BREAKING NEWS: Disney to buy Lucasfilm, Ltd for $4.05B

Star Wars creator George Lucas to sell his entertainment empire to Disney
led by Chairman/CEO Robert Iger. (Photo: The Walt Disney Company)

Burbank, CA and San Francisco, CA, October 30, 2012 – Continuing its strategy of delivering exceptional creative content to audiences around the world, The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) has agreed to acquire Lucasfilm Ltd. in a stock and cash transaction. Lucasfilm is 100% owned by Lucasfilm Chairman and Founder, George Lucas.

Under the terms of the agreement and based on the closing price of Disney stock on October 26, 2012, the transaction value is $4.05 billion, with Disney paying approximately half of the consideration in cash and issuing approximately 40 million shares at closing. The final consideration will be subject to customary post-closing balance sheet adjustments.

"Lucasfilm reflects the extraordinary passion, vision, and storytelling of its founder, George Lucas," said Robert A. Iger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company. "This transaction combines a world-class portfolio of content including Star Wars, one of the greatest family entertainment franchises of all time, with Disney's unique and unparalleled creativity across multiple platforms, businesses, and markets to generate sustained growth and drive significant long-term value."

"For the past 35 years, one of my greatest pleasures has been to see Star Wars passed from one generation to the next," said George Lucas, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Lucasfilm. "It's now time for me to pass Star Wars on to a new generation of filmmakers. I've always believed that Star Wars could live beyond me, and I thought it was important to set up the transition during my lifetime. I'm confident that with Lucasfilm under the leadership of Kathleen Kennedy, and having a new home within the Disney organization, Star Wars will certainly live on and flourish for many generations to come. Disney's reach and experience give Lucasfilm the opportunity to blaze new trails in film, television, interactive media, theme parks, live entertainment, and consumer products."

Under the deal, Disney will acquire ownership of Lucasfilm, a leader in entertainment, innovation and technology, including its massively popular and "evergreen" Star Wars franchise and its operating businesses in live action film production, consumer products, animation, visual effects, and audio post production. Disney will also acquire the substantial portfolio of cutting-edge entertainment technologies that have kept audiences enthralled for many years. Lucasfilm, headquartered in San Francisco, operates under the names Lucasfilm Ltd., LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic, and Skywalker Sound, and the present intent is for Lucasfilm employees to remain in their current locations.

Moving On: Courage or Cowardice?

Meredith Vieira interviews former President Bill Clinton in 2006.
Photo Credit: NBC News

I saw a headline on the Huffington Post website about NBC Today co-anchor Meredith Vieira that caught my attention-- Meredith Vieira: "I'm Not Afraid To Go" From The "Today" Show.

Photo Credit: NBC News

Vieira's contract with NBC expires next year and there is already speculation that she will leave the top-rated morning news program.  That speculation seems to come from an interview she granted Ladies' Home Journal last November in which she said, "I'll know when it's time to go, and I'm not afraid to go."

While many people might think that once a television journalist or personality reaches a pinnacle position, like the one Vieira has, they want to hold on to it for as long as possible, no matter what. That is not always the case.

The story reminds me of a scene in Star Wars: Episode III where Chancellor Palpatine shares with a vulnerable and conflicted Anakin Skywalker that "all who gain power are afraid to lose it."  There is a certain amount of power and prestige, not to mention fame and fortune, that come from anchoring a news program, especially a top-rated program like Today.  Clearly, all of those things don't intoxicate Vieira.