Founder and chairman, Lucasfilm Ltd., LucasArts Entertainment Co.
and Lucas Digital Ltd. NET WORTH $2 billion AGE 54 ADDRESS P.O.
Box 2009, San Rafael, Calif. BIO Not long ago, in this very
galaxy, special effects were an afterthought, hastily thrown
together and utterly uncool. One man elevated them to an art
form. With his work on the Star Wars trilogy and the Indiana
Jones films, this University of Southern California film-school
grad set the f/x standard. Lucas' Industrial Light & Magic and
Skywalker Sound companies count 28 Oscars to their credit. His
public image is that of reluctant businessman, and his
high-profile projects do seem to market themselves. But Lucas
relies on the re-releases, toy franchises and home-video sales to
fund his high-tech exploits. His introduction of the first
nonlinear editing system in 1984 revolutionized the way
filmmakers work. His dinosaurs in Jurassic Park were the first
computer-generated, living, breathing creatures with personality.
And Lucas has also created educational and gaming software--titles
such as Curse of Monkey Island and Jedi Knight have won awards
for technical achievement and storytelling. 1998 POWER PLAY In
the last year, Lucas' f/x companies have churned out blockbusters
like Saving Private Ryan and Titanic, while he has been hard at
work on the first installment of the Star Wars prequels, due in
May 1999. PLACE YOUR BETS Got any Yoda figurines left in the
attic? When the prequels inspire another merchandise rush, you
could be sitting pretty.
