George Lucas Offered A May The Fourth Greeting As Lucas Museum Reveals Opening Exhibit
by Erik Amaya
Star Wars creator George Lucas is many things, but his public speaking abilities have always been … well, not his strongest suit. Case in point: the following video he and Lucas Museum of Narrative Art co-founder Mellody Hobson made to celebrate May the Fourth.
That said, it is nice to see the guy enjoying himself. Or, at least, it was nice before the video was set to private. We promise it was a good one.
The video, beyond its May the Fourth trappings, coincided with the Lucas Museum announcing its opening exhibit. Called Star Wars in Motion, it will feature “innovative vehicle designs, film props, costumes, and concept illustrations spanning the first six films of the visionary saga.” Additionally, “the exhibition will transport visitors to a galaxy far, far away with high-speed racers, hulking ground vehicles, and flying vessels.” The choice to focus on this aspect of Star Wars is natural enough as Lucas is, among other things, a car guy. The exhibit will also include Luke Skywalker’s (Mark Hamill) landspeeder from the original Star Wars and “the first-ever physical build of General Grievous’ Wheel Bike.” Both are definitely examples of Lucas’s fascination with horsepower re-imagined for the galaxy far, far away.
Additionally, the museum will also present artifacts from the Lucas Archives, a collection of various materials from both Star Wars and the Indiana Jones films. Hopefully, there will be room for Willow to join the public collection at some point as the Museum press release mentions the items to be on display represent only a “small part” of overall archive.
Beyond Lucas’s own contributions to cinema and culture at large, the museum hopes to be a place to reflect on narrative art in all its forms: stories, song, cinema, comics, and more. At a presentation about the museum during last summer’s Comic-Con International: San Diego, Lucas and special guest Guillermo del Toro made it clear the building will highlight the expertise, craft, and artistry of the various narrative art practitioners The hope is to inspire the next generation of storytellers.
And you can be part of that mission now as the museum is offering founding memberships at various price tiers with increasing perks. The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art opens to the public on September 22nd.