George Lucas
George Lucas
TERRY O’NEILL/GETTY IMAGES
Star Wars. San Anselmo, Calif. 38. Married, 1 child. Raised on California walnut farm; indifferent high school student. Nearly killed in 1962 car crash. Directed American Graffiti; partner in Raiders of the Lost Ark. Actually believes in “The Force.” With 7 episodes Star Wars gold mine to go, who’s to argue? Aide puts net worth at $50 million, but if Lucasfilm Ltd. were sold, could easily net over $100 million.
From the Forbes 400 1982 Issue
$2 billion. Star Wars, special effects. San Rafael, Calif. 52. Single, 1 child. Raised on California walnut farm, earned allowance cutting grass. USC film school. Innovative filmmaking caught eye of director Francis Ford Coppola; sponsored Lucas with $777,777 (for luck) to turn student film into futuristic police state flick. Box office so-so, but second movie, American Graffiti, grossed $120 million. Realized early that control was key: when negotiating next film gave up large salary for ownership of merchandise, sequels. Smart move: Star Wars shattered box office records, made Lucas over $50 million. Next up: Indiana Jones. Took 77% of the profits for $100-million-plus gain. Abandoned moviemaking, poured money into digital studio Industrial Light & Magic. Produced special effects for other filmmakers (E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial, Forrest Gump, Jurassic Park), advertisers; commercials now 25% of business. Lives on 4,700-acre Skywalker Ranch. “All studios are going to be exactly like us.” First appeared on list 1982.
From the Forbes 400 1996 Issue
$2 billion. Star Wars. San Rafael, Calif. 54. Single, 1 child. Self-imposed Hollywood exile putting final touches on the next installment of Star Wars. Fantasy flick due in theaters next summer. Tapped into popular vein with Star Wars trilogy: bad guy Darth Vader now a Halloween and lunch box staple. Fled Hollywood, set up special effects studio Industrial Light & Magic. Now leading effects house for filmmakers. First appeared on list 1982.
From the Forbes 400 1998 Issue
$2.5 billion. Star Wars. Marin County, Calif. 55. Single, 3 children. Audiences flocked to see The Phantom Menace this summer. Left theaters wondering how Darth Maul’s cool double light-saber could be the beta version of Vader’s weapon of choice. Long-awaited Star Wars prequel cost $115 million to produce, thus far returned $420 million at the box office. Lucrative licensing deals complement huge theatrical receipts. Fled Hollywood, set up special effects studio Industrial Light & Magic. Now leading effects house for filmmakers.
From the Forbes 400 1999 Issue
$3 billion. Star Wars. Marin County, Calif. 65. Darth Vader is now musical theater: Star Wars: In Concert touring America. Still a retail force; Star Wars Legos a top seller in 2008. Total merchandise receipts from franchise since 1977: $17.5 billion. Studied film at U. of Southern California. Founded Industrial Light & Magic in 1975 to create effects for original Star Wars film; now Hollywood’s most bankable special effects shop. Executive produced fourth installment of the Indiana Jones franchise last year; despite tepid reviews, film grossed $782 million in worldwide box office.
From the Forbes 400 2009 Issue
$3.25 billion. Media. 66. Divorced, 3 children. Marin County, Calif. The Hollywood director and producer is still reaping millions from his Star Wars franchise. The 6 movies have earned a total $4.3 billion in worldwide box office (not adjusting for inflation), while toys and other merchandise have grossed $20 billion since 1977. Now a new generation—built on The Clone Wars, which airs on Cartoon Network—keeps the legacy alive. His most valuable asset is Industrial Light & Magic, the special-effects shop founded in 1975; ILM, which expanded from Skywalker Ranch in Marin County to the Presidio in San Francisco in 2005, contributes high-end effects for films like Avatar and the Harry Potter series. Lucas directed his first short in 1967 while studying film at USC (it later became his futuristic police-state flick, THX-1138, a cult classic), and gained fame directing American Graffiti and producing the Indiana Jones series. Next up: the drama Red Tails, which he’s executive producing.
From the Forbes 400 2010 Issue
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John D. Hollingsworth
Textile machinery, real estate. Greenville, S.C. 77. Divorced, 1 daughter. Father serviced cotton mill machines and yarn-making equipment in Depression. John took over 1942, age 24. Navy machinist WWII, while wife Ella Mae ran company. Refined carding machines; propelled productivity from 10 lbs of yarn an hour to over 40. Guaranteed repair service within 48 hours. Bought prime land Greenville, elsewhere. Family, IRS problems 1960s. Diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic; used as defense against IRS. Bought thousands of obsolete carding machines, arranged in field; has lived in trailer on plant grounds since 1964. Textile business hurt by international competitors, but net worth still estimated $495 million.
From the Forbes 400 1995 Issue
Joseph Dahr Jamail, Jr.
$825 million. Lawsuits. Houston. 70. Married, 3 sons. Foul-mouthed pitbull of a trial lawyer: “You could gag a maggot off a meat wagon.” Still scaring corporate America into big settlements. More than $10 million in settlements forecast from multiple suits this year. His standard take: one-third. Started in D.A.’s office with U. of Texas law degree. Went on own, did well as personal injury lawyer. Struck Texas gold with Texaco-Pennzoil case 1987: estimated winnings $345 million (pretax). Low overhead, small staff: 5 associates, no partners (Kolius of firm Jamail & Kolius never a partner); some 90% of billings goes to bottom line. Brought antitrust case against American Airlines on behalf of Northwest and Continental; first case lost in 28 years. Representing American National Insurance against IBM. Son Randall owns Houston-based Justice Records. Member since 1989.
From the Forbes 400 1996 Issue
William Koch
$3.8 billion. Oil, investments. Palm Beach, Fla. 73. Brother of Charles and David (his twin), Koch won $12 million in punitive damages in April from entrepreneur Eric Greenberg, who’d consigned fake bottles of Bordeaux for auction at Zachys. Also fighting against bizarre allegations his minions at Oxbow Carbon held a former executive prisoner at his Wild West ranch in Colorado; countersuit accuses exec of embezzlement and lying about being kidnapped. Also suing Warren Buffett’s Burlington Northern railway for charging monopoly prices to ship his coal. Paid $19.5 million for Rachel “Bunny” Mellon’s former Cape Cod estate in January. Tried to wrest control of Koch Industries in 1980; was fired. With eldest brother Frederick, then sold stakes back to brothers for over $700 million in 1983. Feeling shortchanged; spent 18 years suing for more. Settled after jury awarded them zero in 1998.
From the Forbes 400 2013 Issue