Los Angeles will be home to George Lucas' $1-billion museum

[OhioGuy]

Los Angeles will be home to George Lucas' $1-billion museum
By Deborah VankinContact Reporter | January 10, 2017, 3:00 PM

The suspense has been as epic as “Star Wars,” but after months of intense speculation, George Lucas’ Museum of Narrative Art on Tuesday chose Los Angeles as its home over San Francisco.

The filmmaker’s personal collection of fine and popular art, including ephemera related to his “Star Wars” franchise, will fill a futuristic new museum in L.A.’s Exposition Park, which beat out a competing plan on Treasure Island in San Francisco Bay. The rivalry had pitted two cities in the competition not only for Lucas’ collection and the tourism it will bring, but also for the thousands of jobs that backers say it will create.

Lucas has said he will fund the project to the tune of about $1 billion, including building costs, his art and an endowment of at least $400 million.

photo from Connect Media

[OhioGuy]

After missing out on The Presidio in San Francisco and the Museum Campus in Chicago, George Lucas opts to give his $1-billion gift to Los Angeles. SF's and Chicago's loss is LA's gain.

[Crawford]

Now LA has the distinct honor of hosting a collection of Star Wars trinkets on public parkland. SF and Chicago dodged a bullet.

[badrunner]

Funny how transit changes everything. Five years ago I would have said this was a horrible location. Now there is the expo vermont station just off the lower left corner of the picture. All of USC/exposition park is now within "walking distance" of most LA residents.

[Ant131531]

I like it. Just another thing for people to see and do in the LA area.

[lio45]

Originally Posted by Crawford

SF and Chicago dodged a bullet.

I wouldn't exactly go as far as to say that. That thing's going to create jobs and attract tourists. Star Wars nerds' money is as green as anyone else's.

[LA21st]

Originally Posted by Crawford

Now LA has the distinct honor of hosting a collection of Star Wars trinkets on public parkland. SF and Chicago dodged a bullet.

I have friends in chicago still dissapointed they botched it.
Theyre not star wars nerds either.

[Centropolis]

this thing makes more sense in los angeles than it ever did on lakefront parkland in chicago. i still don't understand why this has to be on parkland, however. there's got to be plenty of parking lots, etc in los angeles.

[NativeOrange]

Originally Posted by Centropolis

this thing makes more sense in los angeles than it ever did on lakefront parkland in chicago. i still don't understand why this has to be on parkland, however. there's got to be plenty of parking lots, etc in los angeles.

Well the site that the museum will be built on currently is a parking lot, so there ya go.

[10023]

Shouldn't this be somewhere in West LA? Movie-land?

[Quixote]

Originally Posted by NativeOrange

Well the site that the museum will be built on currently is a parking lot, so there ya go.

Yes. The irony is that this project is actually going to create some much-needed, inviting green space for the public to enjoy. That's the main reason why I'm thrilled about this news; I couldn't care less about Star Wars.

And it will provide for some great aerial visuals whenever the Trojans are playing at home.

[RaymondChandlerLives]

Originally Posted by 10023

Shouldn't this be somewhere in West LA? Movie-land?

West LA is only "movie land" in the sense that a bunch of stars live there. Most of the big studios are located in the Valley.

This museum won't only be dedicated to Boba Fett costumes either. Lucas has a pretty decent art collection that he wants to display too. Exposition Park is the perfect central location for it.

[BrandonJXN]

Originally Posted by Crawford

Now LA has the distinct honor of hosting a collection of Star Wars trinkets on public parkland. SF and Chicago dodged a bullet.

It should be said that the Lucas Museum is NOT just a Star Wars museum.

[dave8721]

Originally Posted by BrandonJXN

It should be said that the Lucas Museum is NOT just a Star Wars museum.

That's what I read as well. It will be an art museum that just happens to be funded by the guy who made billions selling star wars to Disney. Disney owns Star Wars now, not Lucas.

[Crawford]

Originally Posted by BrandonJXN

It should be said that the Lucas Museum is NOT just a Star Wars museum.

No, it is pretty much just Star Wars and pop culture tchotchkes.

The highfalutin' museum name was an attempt to rebrand the project after it came under criticism by established museums.

[bobcat]

Even if the museum had no collection at all it sounds like it will be well endowed with the chance for even more funding after Lucas' passing. A cultural institution like that has the potential to do a lot of good for the community--the Getty kind of started out that way.

[Buckeye Native 001]

I thought he had a somewhat decent collection of Norman Rockwell paintings (people's definition on whether that's low class being subjective) that might be included as part of this.

Does it appear to anyone else that the Coliseum is also being renovated? Or was that something that was already planned? It looks like they've enclosed the west end of stadium, or I'm reading too much into the renderings...

[JManc]

Originally Posted by Crawford

No, it is pretty much just Star Wars and pop culture tchotchkes.

The highfalutin' museum name was an attempt to rebrand the project after it came under criticism by established museums.

So what. It's LA. The mecca of this sort of thing. Everywhere you look in that town, there is some homage to the film industry or pop culture. If it's tastefully done and for a billion dollars, i'm sure it will be, i'm not sure what the problem is. It's a big city with a lot of options. Go to the Getty if this is not your thing.

[BrandonJXN]

Originally Posted by Crawford

No, it is pretty much just Star Wars and pop culture tchotchkes.

The highfalutin' museum name was an attempt to rebrand the project after it came under criticism by established museums.

http://lucasmuseum.org/about/the-collection

Buckeye: The Coliseum is going to be renovated whether LA gets the Olympics or not.













http://www.scout.com/college/usc/sto...ll-hold-77-500

[LA21st]

Originally Posted by BrandonJXN

It should be said that the Lucas Museum is NOT just a Star Wars museum.

He probably knows. But did his "funny" "comment anyway.