text stringlengths 9 78.2k |
|---|
I’m getting to that. Bill and Gloria had a chance to direct their own movie, so I hired another friend to write the script. The first draft wasn’t at all what I wanted. It was a desperate situation. I asked Marcia to support us some more. I was borrowing money from friends and relatives. I wrote the script in three wee... |
And the rest is history? |
Universal took the film, but we still fought and fought. They wanted to take five minutes out of it. Five minutes in a movie is not going to make a difference. It was nothing more than an exercise in authority; Universal saying they had the right. |
Did anything good come out of this experience? |
[Laughing] At the bleakest point in all this, I got an offer to direct. I was writing every day, which I hate, so there was a temptation, but I said no. It went on until the price was $100,000 and points. The most I had ever been paid to direct a movie was $15,000. I said no. It was a real turning point. |
Lady Ice, starring Donald Sutherland. It was a disaster. If I had done that movie, it would have been the end of my career . . . I felt sort of proud of myself when I said no. |
Then American Graffiti went on and was a hit? |
Not quite. [Smiling] I told you it was a long story. It was January 1973. I had been paid $20,000 for Graffiti, it had taken two years, I was $15,000 in debt and Universal hated the film so much they were contemplating selling it as a TV Movie of the Week. I had to start paying back some of this money. So I thought, “I... |
After what they had put you through? |
I hated Universal, but I had to go to them. Part of my deal to make American Graffiti was that I had to sign my life over to them for seven years. That’s the way they work over there. They owned me. They had first refusal on any idea I had. I showed it to them and they said no. I took it to Laddie [Alan Ladd Jr.] at Fo... |
What happened to ‘Star Wars’? |
At that point, I was thinking about quitting directing, but I had this huge draft of a screenplay and I had sort of fallen in love with it. Plus, I was a street filmmaker. I had never done a big studio picture, so I thought, “This’ll be the last movie I direct.” I finally finished the script. I wanted to make a fairyta... |
I said, “I’ll do it for the deal memo, but we haven’t talked about things like merchandising rights, sequel rights.” I said I wasn’t going to give up any of those. Fox said fine. They were getting me for less than $100,000. |
Did you know then that the merchandising and sequel rights were going to be so valuable? |
Well, when I was writing I had had visions of R2-D2 mugs and little windup robots, but I thought that would be the end of it. I went for the merchandising because it was one of the few things left we hadn’t discussed. I took everything that hadn’t been discussed. All I knew was that I wanted to control the sequel right... |
What is your deal with Fox? |
They have first refusal on every Star Wars film I want to make. |
I guess you really do have reason to hate Hollywood. |
They’re rather sleazy, unscrupulous people. L.A. is where they make deals, do business in the classic corporate American way, which is screw everybody and do whatever you can to make the biggest profit. They don’t care about people. It is incredible the way they treat filmmakers, because they have no idea what making a... |
But if you want to make movies, don’t you have to? |
That’s why I’m trying to build the ranch. |
Yeah, I bought 2000 acres in Lucas Valley, California [no relation] – to build a kind of creative-filmmakers’ retreat. The idea for this came out of film school. It was a great environment; a lot of people all very interested in film, exchanging ideas, watching movies, helping each other out. I wondered why we couldn’t... |
What will the ranch look like? |
I’ve always been interested in architecture. [Smiling] This is a way of being [an architect] without doing the work. There will be a main building, a big, simple farmhouse. Behind that, shingled outbuildings for the filmmakers and editors. There will be another big building off to the side, sort of tucked away on a hil... |
No way to project at this point given the way the world is going. I figure it will take between five and six years and cost in excess of $20 million. |
We know you’re rich . . . |
That’s way beyond my personal resources. |
How are you going to do this? |
We are taking the profits from The Empire Strikes Back and the next film, Revenge of the Jedi, and investing them in outside companies, then using those profits to build the ranch and maintain the overhead. It’s just the opposite of how studios work. Basically, what we’re doing is using the profits of other companies t... |
What happens if The Empire doesn’t make enough money for your ranch? |
Well, if it doesn’t happen with this one and the next, then that’s the end. I’m not going to spend the next fifteen years of my life trying to make hit movies to get the ranch. If it doesn’t, I’ll fold up shop. I tried, I failed and I’ll just make 16-mm movies and live the way I’ve been living. |
Are you ever going to forgive Universal? |
[Smiling] I hold grudges. When Warner Brothers cut THX, I held a grudge for ten years. After Star Wars,they apologized. I said, “Okay, I forgive you.” I didn’t want to be ridiculous. After American Graffiti, Universal tried to be nice to me, but I was really angry and I remain angry to this day. |
Are there dangers in working with close friends like Steven Spielberg, who is directing Raiders of the Lost Ark, which you conceived and will be executive producer of? What if he goes over budget? Will that put a strain on your friendship? |
I don’t think that’s a problem. We all have large egos. We can be competitors and still help each other, respect each other. I try to work with only responsible directors, and Steve is a responsible director. He doesn’t mean to go over budget. If you’ve got something that isn’t working, the only way to really solve it ... |
I understand that your automobile accident when you were eighteen had a major effect on your life. Will you talk about it? |
It was right before I graduated from high school and I should have been killed but I wasn’t. I was driving a little sports car with a roll bar and racer’s seat belt. I was hit, the car rolled, and for some reason the seat belt broke in one of the rolls, just before the car pretzeled itself around a tree. If I had staye... |
Coppola seems to have been another big influence on your life. |
We respect each other, but at the same time we are totally different personalities. He says he’s too crazy and I’m not crazy enough. Francis spends every day jumping off a cliff and hoping he’s going to land okay. My main interest is security. It was great when we were together, because we complemented each other. I th... |
Are you having fun being head of Lucasfilms, a big corporation? |
No. I don’t want to be a businessman. My ambition is to make movies, but all by myself, to shoot them, cut them, make stuff I want to, just for my own exploration, to see if I can combine images in a certain way. My movies will go back to the way my first films were, which dealt a little more realistically with the hum... |
And how do you feel about the human condition? |
I am very cynical, and as a result, I think the defense I have against it is to be optimistic and to think people are basically good, although I know in my heart they’re not. |
Oh, dear. Let’s get back to The Empire Strikes Back for a moment. In the movie, Ben says Luke is the last hope and Yoda says no, there is another. |
Yes. [Smiling] There is another, and has been for a long time. You have to remember, we’re starting in the middle of this whole story. There are six hours’ worth of events before Star Wars, and in those six hours, the “other” becomes apparent, and after the third film, the “other” becomes apparent quite a bit. |
What will happen to Luke? |
I can’t say. In the next film, everything gets resolved one way or the other. Luke won the first battle in the first film. Vadar won the second battle in the second film, and in the third film, only one of them walks away. We have to go back to the very beginning to find out the real problem. |
What about the actors? Are they under contract? |
Some are, but it doesn’t matter. I am not going to force anyone to make a movie. [Smiling] I’m not Universal Pictures. |
Do you have story lines for the seven Star Wars movies left to be done? |
How can you think that far ahead? |
[Laughing] Marcia says I either live in the past or in the future, never in the present. I’m always sort of living for tomorrow, for better or for worse. [Shrugs] It’s just a personality quirk. |
Adding to a slate of local branch closures, Bank of America plans to shutter its Kingsburg location on Nov. 1. |
The closing of the Bank of America branch will leave two remaining bank branches in town – Westamerica Bank and Suncrest Bank, both of which are located downtown on Draper Street. |
Jolene Polyack, economic development coordinator for the City of Kingsburg, said the bank plans to auction off the building at 1490 Draper St. Built in 1955, the building features two stories and a basement, with a total of nearly 8,900 square feet of space. |
She said local parties have expressed interest in bidding during the auction, which will take place online. |
Polyack said possible buyers have expressed interest in developing combinations of ground-floor retail – including a restaurant or brewpub – with apartments or offices on the top floor. |
In 2015, Kingsburg lost half of its banks when JP Morgan Chase and Citibank announced the closure of hundreds of branch locations, leaving only the Bank of America and the Westamerica branches in town. Suncrest Bank opened up in June of that same year in the former Citibank. |
A Bank of America ATM location near the Kingsburg Save Mart will remain. The next closest Bank of America branches are in Selma and Reedley. |
The closure will come about a year after the Bank of America branch in Fresno’s Tower District closed. |
Bank of America is among several large, national banks that have been closing branches in recent years. According to an ABC news report, as many as 10 percent of its 6,100 U.S. branches could possibly be on the chopping block. |
Mark Riley, Market President for BofA, said that the closing of branch banks is something to expect across the entire industry. |
Riley said, that unfortunately, smaller towns like Kingsburg might not get the foot traffic needed to justify keeping brick and mortar locations operating, especially as more people are moving to online banking. |
A Lemoore Bank of America location was closed on July 31, according to the Lemoore Leader news website. |
SAM ALLARDYCE has confirmed that West Ham will copy Manchester United and head for a warm-weather training camp in Dubai. |
Allardyce revealed after West Ham's 2-0 victory over Norwich - that lifted the Hammers into the Premier League top 10 - he would be taking his squad to the United Arab Emirates. |
West Ham will join David Moyes' United in Dubai, who are set to include defender Rio Ferdinand on the trip despite reports to the contrary. |
And Allardyce joked that following the champions' lead has been crucial to his side securing three successive Premier League victories. |
"It's already benefited us," he said. |
"Once the lads knew the trip was booked four or five weeks ago, it has been part of our turnaround. It was something for them to look forward to, to strive for and to know that they are going to do what I've done every year for the last 14 years. |
"The critical need for it for every player we have is for them to get a bit of sun on their back, do a little bit of light training and ease the pressure on the mind, soul and body. They will come back refreshed. |
"We've already had a massive response because they have been looking forward to it so much, and now they can look forward to it even more because of what they have just achieved." |
India has rejected Apple’s request to import and sell refurbished iPhones, a telecommunications ministry official told Bloomberg on Tuesday. |
Apple’s rivals mounted a public campaign against the proposal, arguing that such a move would trigger a flood of used electronics while defeating the government’s ‘Make in India’ scheme to encourage local manufacturing. |
Earlier, a similar proposal was rejected in 2015 by the environment ministry. |
The decision is a setback for Apple, which has just two per cent of Indian phone shipments but needs to tap new markets as global iPhone sales plateau. The US company is also seeking permission to open its first Indian retail stores, key to driving its brand in a market dominated by local vendors. That decision is stil... |
India is a challenging market because of the iPhone’s premium pricing but bringing in refurbished phones would have allowed Apple to attract the cost-conscious buyers. The company typically doesn’t lower prices, to maintain its marquee image. |
Apple enjoyed its best year in terms of iPhone sales in India in 2015. iPhones are, however, still too expensive for most Indian consumers. |
Aspiration to own an Apple device went up significantly in the last three years, leading to an increase in sales of iPhones to 2 million handsets in 2015. Sales of refurbished iPhones by third-party vendors surged as well. Apple’s motivation to sell refurbished or used iPhones in the second-largest smartphone market in... |
According to senior government officials, the department of electronics and information technology had expressed concern over import of second-hand products. This would contribute to electronic waste being dumped in India, the IT ministry told the environment ministry and the Director-General of Foreign Trade. |
“The sales of refurbished iPhones have been growing steadily in the past couple of years. Some smartphone recycling companies told us that as much as 80 per cent of refurbished smartphone sales are iPhones when a new model is announced. Apple would rather those customers buy a cheap new iPhone rather than a refurbished... |
“Apple’s objective was to sell refurbished phones at a lower price and later on upgrade those customers. This decision could seriously affect its expansion plans,” said Tarun Pathak, senior telecom analyst at Counterpoint Research. |
An industry executive says restricting Apple from selling used products would be a big relief for other players. |
Martin Shkreli, the pharmaceuticals CEO who raised the price of a drug that helps people with HIV or cancer from $13.50 a pill to $750 a pill, was just arrested. |
He pleaded not guilty to the seven counts — which include securities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud — and was released on $5 million bond Thursday afternoon. |
According to CNBC, Shkreli had to give up his passport and isn’t allowed to leave New York. |
Shkreli was also undaunted by the criticism of his treatment of Daraprim, the drug that he raised the price of by about 5,000 percent. |
At a press conference on Thursday afternoon, U.S. Attorney Robert Capers told reporters, “As alleged in the indictment, Shkreli essentially ran his companies like a Ponzi scheme, where he used each subsequent company to pay off the defrauded investors in the prior company.” Shkreli was allegedly deep in debt after his ... |
Turing Pharmaceuticals is a privately held company, but KaloBios, a biotech firm that Shkreli just took over this year, saw its stocks tank this morning. |
Prosecutors were asked on Thursday how Shkreli got the money to pay for the album — they didn’t know. |
What if Donald Trump were smart? |
If Trump’s rise proves nothing else, it proves that tyranny could happen here. |
It is likely not a question you’ve given a lot of thought. After all, the urgency of our ongoing disaster leaves little time for speculation. One is too busy tallying up the damage that’s happening now to worry about the damage that could. |
But maybe it’s time we did. |
Well, if Trump’s rise proves nothing else, it proves that it could happen here. It even shows how. Meaning that, more than any other single event, his presidency has forced us to see our vulnerability to new media manipulation and disinformation. Tweet by agonizing tweet, he has embodied the frightening possibilities o... |
The saving grace in all of this – relatively speaking, at least – is that Trump has no fixed ideological moorings. He doesn’t believe in any particular thing outside of his own underappreciated greatness. Even his bigotry is lazy and unfocused, producing – with the exception of the ill-fated Muslim ban – no hard-and-fa... |
But what if Trump were smart? |
More to the point, what if there arose some future demagogue who combined Trump’s new media savvy with a toxic ideology? It’s not far-fetched to wonder if Trump is not simply writing that individual’s playbook, showing her or him how easily a stable democracy can be subverted. |
So, even as we grapple with the daily outrages of this presidency, it would be smart to begin inoculating future generations against one that could be worse. Now, then, would be an excellent time to push even harder for internet giants like Facebook and Twitter to find better ways of purging their platforms of false ne... |
Now would also be an excellent time for schools to beef up their teaching of philosophy, history, civics and social studies. Teach those things as a means of helping people to think critically, value truth and internalize the ideals that are supposed to make America America. |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.