Skywalking: The Life And Films Of George Lucas, Updated Edition

Catching up with Dale Pollock's notorious 1983 biography of George Lucas is like watching a prequel that goes out of its way to explain the origins of everything we've seen happen later in the timeline. Considering 'Skywalking' is a genuine vintage publishing, this just speaks for its insight and credibility: before George Lucas even HAD the reputation for being an aloof, petulant control freak, this book was chronicling how George Lucas became an aloof, petulant control freak.But what makes it a truly excellent read is that it is NOT a scandalous tell-all: in fact, it actually maintains a pretty positive, sympathetic and at times even celebratory tone and outlook (at least until the epilogue added in 1999, where a jaded Pollock gets a little snippy recounting Lucas's complaints, heh). Reading it I felt like I got to walk in Lucas's shoes a bit, and while I may still find some of the things he does infuriating, honestly I can't say I wouldn't be pretty much the same way if I had lived the life he had. It's the sort of transfer of understanding that every biography strives for, and 'Skywalking' achieves it.If that weren't enough, it's also fun to realize just how much George Lucas really IS both Anakin and Luke Skywalker rolled into one. As Han Solo would say, "It's true. All of it. It really happened."EDIT: There's a couple of quotes near the end where Lucas talks about what might happen if he were to ever sell off the Star Wars property (remember this is 1983!) that must be seen to be believed!

For the first 3/4ths of this book, the information is gold. Author Dale Pollock details Lucas's life from birth through the beginning of Return of the Jedi and, having been given access to the man himself, you get a wealth of quotes and personal insights. Even better, this is a warts-and-all sort of look. No criticisms are held back, but rather than coming off in negative light, it just makes everyone look human - and I find that far more refreshing than the sugar-coated bios most filmmakers manipulate for themselves.The most packed sections deal with American Graffiti and A New Hope, and again, the information is fantastic - especially the details on the two years of drafts for ANH. Raiders and Empire definitely could have been given more, but at that point, Lucas was more of a hands off producer, and in many ways, they don't add to the story.So why four stars? As you hit the 3/4 mark, you suddenly begin to wonder how the book is going to fill up its remaining quarter, since you're up to Jedi in the history. What follows is a really painful to read character analysis of George Lucas that literally tries to analyze him down to an atomic level. It's wildly bipolar - you'll regularly come across sentences like "Lucas is one of the greatest producers in the world - but many think him a subpar director, and a bad husband." Also, it gets REALLY, REALLY gossipy, with just about everyone coming out of the woodwork to criticize him over anything, and then letting Lucas respond. I'm all for the behind the scenes stuff, especially when it's revealing, but this just feels exploitative. And it goes on, and on, and on, and on...Then you hit the last chapter, cobbled together from what the author has read about the Phantom Menace's production (he clearly wasn't allowed within ten miles of George Lucas after the first publication), and it's laughable. These last two chapters, about 1/4th of the book, are terrible.BUT! It's absolutely worth reading for the first 3/4ths for a great portrait of Lucas. Just stop reading when it starts getting stupid.

Even though the book is older, this is a fun read. The book takes you through Lucas' life: growing up, going to college and becoming successful. It is filled with facts about the man that are quite personal. My son chose to read the book for a school project, so of course, I read it too. We couldnt put it down. There are some spots that deal with business that get 'dry' for kids, but if they persevere, they are rewarded with a great story. Many laughs, many lessons. A reality check for those that think filmmaking is an easy art -- business is business, after all. Mr. Pollock did his homework on this one, there are interviews with just about everyone is Lucas' life. The most important lesson in the book: Lucas' midwestern sensibility keeps him grounded. We are from Michigan, and I understand the lessons George's father taught him, and the way George looks at life. His view of success is something every kid should consider. Great read!

This is a good book, but it could be updated. The book is fairly thorough in detailing the early career, ambitions, problems and plights of George Lucas from the time of his birth to the time of making Return of the Jedi. This includes some discussion of THX1138 and American Grafitti. Even the updated version, however, stops there. There is no substantial discussion of any of the new prequels in this book. Yet that summarizes the book's scope and major limitations. That aside, readers will find themselves well-informed about the roots of Lucas, the genesis of Star Wars, and how the dream of the first trilogy unfolded and played out on screen. Obviously this book is not the last word on Lucas, but it is not a bad place to start learning about him

This book was really well written, but almost all of the book was written in the early '80s and then the author added a section right before episode 1 was released in the late '90s. It gives a really good snapshot of the man during the original Star Wars, and how he got there. It does not include the reception of the prequels or his thoughts on those movies. Also note that it's obvious that the author didn't interview Lucas for the added section; he just took quotes from Lucas to other people, so it's not as insightful as the rest of the book.

I read this in anticipation of the 7th Star Wars film. It's amazing how much detail has gone into this book and I cannot recommend it enough for Star Wars fans. The best thing is that it feels as though George Lucas would have been happy with this. I'm seriously pumped for the next installment now.

I believe this was suppose to be an "authorized" biography but Lucas changed his mind at the last minute. The author was with Lucas for much of the production of Return Of The Jedi and had interviewed many people close to Lucas. It explores in-depth on what made Lucas such an innovative film-maker during his college years and throughout the 1970's and early 1980's.This biography came out in the 1980's at the height of Star Wars but not many people seem to know about it.Highly recommended if you are a fan of Star Wars, George Lucas, or a fan of movie making.

Not a bad book - but not in the way the author intended it, if you see what I mean. By no means a good book, either. In fact, I'd advise any rabid 'Star Wars' fan to steer well clear of it. There's no indication that Pollock has any real feeling for his subject - just as there was never any that a director like Kubrick had any for horror or 'science fiction' - and he simply can't get his basic facts right. Mind you, I've just been reading Charles Beaumont on Bela Lugosi and he's - amazingly - all over the place, getting Lugosi mixed up with Dwight Frye, for instance.Where it is okay, it's mostly probably accidental: how only a rather indulged little JD like Lucas could wind up making movies like 'Star Wars'. No Englishman could have pulled it off, that's for certain. It's all about time, place, family circumstances, early tastes for comic books etc. etc. Who could we offer? Michael Reeves? Kingsley Amis said years ago there were certain things only the Americans could do properly: play jazz, make westerns and animated cartoons, for example. So, yes, Lucas is some kind of genius - certainly more to my taste than, say, Picasso, but not in the same league as Louis Armstrong. The movies themselves are mostly crap - though not as bad as something like 'The X-Files' - but you get the feeling Lucas knows they're crap. They're also - needless to say - entertaining - in the way that Abbott and Costello are entertaining. Nothing much wrong with that - until you start watching Laurel and Hardy, Keaton, Chaplin or Harold Lloyd all over again.The majority of 'science fiction' movies are, unfortunately, either junk or overrated - like 'Forbidden Planet'. I prefer the junk, just like I prefer a cheeseburger and large fries over quiche and salad. Give me 'Earth Versus The Flying Saucers' over 'The Day The Earth Stood Still' any day of the week. Martians kick butt - yay!