Well played Lucas, well played. “Star Wars” creator, George Lucas, has become the latest billionaire to join Warren Buffett’s “Giving Pledge” by vowing to give half of his fortune to charity. The 66-year-old filmmaker and philanthropist, has joined the pledge to help education. Although he’s giving away half of his money, “The Force” creator, is still a billionaire.
the Star Wars creator has announced that he’s giving away half of his fortune to charity.The filmmaker/mogul/man-in-flannel isn’t the only rich guy who’s making things happen. Lucas is just one of 40 billionaires who is participating in Bill Gates and Warren Buffett’s The Giving Pledge program. The plan is so simple, it’s almost too obvious: persuade America’s richest people to give the bulk of their fortunes to charity.
“We contacted between 70 and 80 people to get the 40,” says Buffet, the coolest old financial guy in town. “A few were unavailable. We don’t give up on them. Every saint has a past, every sinner has a future. We’ll keep on working.”
Of the 40 donating money, their combined net worth is more than $230 billion and “several of them have said they plan to give away much more than 50 percent of their wealth.” You do the math.
Damn. This is in the category of “Well, do you still hate me?” or “What the f have you done lately?”. This pledge program is just insane and awesome. I’m so glad that Mr. Gates and Mr. Buffett are following through on this program. This should have’ve been done years ago. But like with any great idea, it sometimes takes time. I hope more and more billionaires join this program later on. Hopefully they can see that this money is not being wasted, it’s helping future generations. Personally, I don’t hate Lucas. I love the original Star Wars trilogy, and I enjoyed and liked the prequel trilogy. So, I really don’t hate the guy. He has created and given the movie business lots of things. So, after this move, I definitely like the guy more now.
Do you like this idea? You still hate Lucas? Or do you love him even more now?
I still hate him. I have many reasons. Ep 1,2 & 3 were complete crap.
Storyline, dialogue, CGI and other things. The storyline could have been more indepth, Jedism has history. none of that was portrayed in the movies. I have more satisfaction of a story lines from playing the star wars video games.
i think Lucas needs to give up on his idea of this genre and hand it over to some one who can direct and maintain quality in a scifi/fantasy movie.
he can still keep his rights and ownership but just give a decent a director a chance to make for George’s mistakes
I’m very sceptical over this… How come more and more rich people decide on giving half their fortunes just like that? Will they get something in return? Is there a catch here?
This whole situation reminds me of the similar one which happened back in the year 999 when people thought that the Millennium would bring about the End of the World. So, all the rich people gave away their money to the poor in order to save their souls from Hell…
Maybe Lucas, Gates and all these rich people know something about 2012 that we don’t???
Well in that case I’ll tell you what I’ll do with my money… Vegas baby.
Lucas Rocks!Howard The Duck is awesome. Plus, it is WAAAAAY better than Star Wars!
Do me a favor and Slap yourself.
I have never hated him. I wouldn’t give away money.
Why wouldn’t he start his charity by giving us a movie worth watching?
I always loved him. I never hated him.
Why do I hate him? I will always love him!
I really loved the original Star Wars trilogy; they weren’t the best movies ever made, but are absolute classics. The newest 3 films, in my opinion, really hurt the credibility of the series, but I didn’t hate Lucas for them. He created something that will live forever, and I could never hate him just for botching the most recent attempt.
I love Warren Buffett and his Giving Pledge, and truly admire anyone who joins him in it.
Yes.
I still love the guy. Ya most of the new trilogy sucks, as well as the new Clone Wars TV series, but still, if it wasn’t for him, we wouldn’t have Star Wars AT ALL. Let alone a whole HELL of allot of other movies. As well as allot of awesome video games, comic books, novels, TV shows, plus more, that was all influenced by Star Wars in some way. You gotta respect the guy for that.
Same with Indiana Jones, that as well influenced ALLOT of things.
And I did enjoy Episode 3. Flawed yes, I think it was still far better then Episode 1&2 to me and a pretty damn cool Star Wars movie. With it it still gives me SOME hope that he may still have it in him to give us something else good or maybe even great in the future.
And it’s so very cool of him to give away half his fortune to charity. I’m very proud of him for that. And All these people who keep calling him a “sell out”, just plain “greedy”, or whatever, they can’t say too much now. And even if some of them do feel they’re wasted any money on his stuff, at least that money is going to a REALLY good use now. ;)
How can you hate a man that created lightsabers? That everytime you pick up a object that and move it around like a sword you can’t but help making “Vroom, vroom, vroom, ksshh!” Sounds. I really do think this idea that Gates and Buffet are doing is good. I just really do hope it does go to good use and is not abused or placed in the wrong area (somebody else’s pockets) but into the education system that desperately needs it.
Jar Jar Binks was horrible, and ruined the first movie. And Lucas lacks excellent writing skills – he’s got the ideas, but no idea how to flush out GOOD dialogue. As a Director and Writer, he sucks. As the guy with a vision and some great ideas, he’s got talent.
He used to be Awesome and then he took that break in the 90’s messed him up with his ideas. He dominated the adventure/action films when it was ok to make fantasy/adventure films that were somewhat cheesy, Remember Arnold and Stallone came after that and we still watched, but if you see them again today they lack story and Dialogue. Hell Freddy was scary in the 80’s. Don’t get me wrong I love all of them but they had their time. Now a day the viewers have evolved and want more Dialogue and better stories, that is why all these remakes don’t do justice to the originals, because the Originals ware done back then when they ware cool like that. George Lucas is a visionary man and he gave us some of the best movies ever made, but he should pass the torch.
George is a class act, I cannot hate a man who made me believe in the force and amazed me as a youngster.
Never hated and never will. You will have my undying loyalty and Respect George!
I don’t hate Lucas. Never did. He never wronged me personally. I loved his films. I’m just getting impatient and want him to release Red Wings soon, or at least a trailer please!
Star Wars never meant anything to me (holds up umbrella for protection) but he did bang-up Indy pretty good. So I’d say I dislike him for that. Otherwise, rock-on.
I’m not sure how well I can speak because I grew up during the prequel era and watching the rest as the prequels played out, and I’m one of those people who actually enjoyed the prequels a lot. So I’m not so sure how many people will agree with me when I say that I’m not angry with Lucas.
that’s nice!? 115 000 000 000 (half of their worth) out of 65 000 000 000 000 (GNP of all countries in the world in 2009) is 0,18% !.
so what i’m saying somebody is really getting away with hard earned money.
wikpedia:
“A study by the World Institute for Development Economics Research at United Nations University reports that the richest 1% of adults alone owned 40% of global assets in the year 2000, and that the richest 10% of adults accounted for 85% of the world total. Moreover, another study found that the richest 2% own more than half of global household assets.”
I never hated Lucas. He brought us two of the best trilogies in cinematic history (Indy Jones and Star Wars) and made American Graffiti, which is a personal favorite of mine. He’s a good person for doing this.
Fine I hate some of his film story decisions. I can do that, right?
I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again. GL made a great universe. If you’d let others play in it, it would be great again…
I have never hated him while i wish other things he did were a little differnt i have never hated him and i am sick and tired of people crying over what he is doing with HIS franchise making a cartoon for kids? we do that all the time with superheros but you never see them getting bashed anything george lucas is fine by me
Still love him and respect him even with varying opinions on his films.
George made Star Wars, that alone is a legacy that will make him immortal. But he created the original trilogy the way he wanted and hoped people would like it. He did the same with the prequels. Its his, not mine. He did what he wanted with it and you still have the right to like it or not, but its not yours.
He didn’t “ruin” star wars, because star wars is only what you take from it. It simply is.
And a very classy and respectful move from a man who can recognize that giving away half of his infinite pools of money would benefit others and he still would have too much.
Cheers George.
agree 100%
If Lucas never made those first 3 SW movies then SCI FI to me would have taken alot longer for me to look at. The fact that he is doing this makes Lucas all the more of a bad ass. Sure the last 3 films were boring as crap and just did not sit well with me but who the fck cares when he is doing good things like this.
You despise George Lucas artistically? Wow…from what you are saying it sounds like you at least appreciate Star Wars, if not the prequels then at least the original trilogy. Maybe you are just a little jaded because he made the movie his way instead of how you wanted it to be…which is the whole point of being a director/artist.
Kudos to Lucas and the other billionaires for their philanthropy. And I’ve definitely never hated him. Star Wars, Indiana Jones, American Graffiti…my life would be less enjoyable without all of these movies, not to mention all the video games, toys, books, and other merchandise they have spawned. Plus just the general awesomeness of LucasArts, LucasFilm, Industrial Light and Magic, and THX. Go go, George Lucas!
Well said Matt!!!I agree completely!!
Star Wars,Indiana Jones,American Graffiti can change life!W George Lucas!!
Still dislike. Ending of Phatom Menace was a joke, preceding by a super bad ass fight scene, so I’m pissed about that. Darh Maul deserved a better death. I can’t really remember AotC to be honest. Oh, wait, Jango Fett. Not to bad. Ending of RotS was crap. Not because of “you were the chosen one!” whining, but the whole chopping legs off part. That was HORRIBLE. It should have been some sort of falling through the air/over the lava falls and Obi Wan is someone saved by someone flying a speeder while letting Anakin fall.
Just because someone is a great person doesn’t mean I can’t despise them artistically.
:)
Agree, Also why was Anakin a kid in the first one. I mean, I know it was to make him more commercial, but I could not follow him as the leading character in the trilogy if he was a kid in the entire first movie and then plaid by another actor in the second and third one, that was just ridicules.
I never hated him.
I’ve never understood those that say Lucas ruined Star Wars, or that they hate him. How can he ruin something he wrote himself? Also, hating someone because they made a movie you didn’t like? Wow, shallow much? If they were so bad, get out and write your own 3 movies, get them filmed and have them make billions in the box office.
The actual work that went into producing everything he stands for deserves vast amounts of kudos and appreciation, and then he and his fellow industry makers turn around and give vast amounts of their money away to help others… this guy’s doing pretty good by all accounts in my book.
I’ve never hated the guy, I did find he’s decisions for the last 3 live action films ware not as Awesome as the original 3, but at least they were not as bad as that Indiana Jones Skull movie. And the people who hate him is because they love Star Wars more than they do themselves so if they didn’t like something is like they got a n arm chopped off or something.