George Lucas Receives AFI's 33rd Life Achievement Award

George Lucas Receives AFI's 33rd Life Achievement Award

USA Network to Air Tribute on June 20, 2005

Award Dinner Tribute With Lucas Friends and Family

Screenwriter/Director Paul Schrader Recognized With 15th Annual Franklin J. Schaffner Alumni Medal

LOS ANGELES, June 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Thousands of guests filled the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, California, last night for the 33rd American Film Institute (AFI) Life Achievement Award honoring George Lucas. The two-hour special event, executive produced and written by Bob Gazzale and directed and co-produced by Louis J. Horvitz, was taped for telecast on USA Network on Monday, June 20, 2005 at 9:00 p.m. (ET/PT). Widely regarded as the highest honor for a career in film, the black-tie tribute celebrated Lucas' extraordinary career with many of his colleagues, friends and family present. Steven Spielberg presented Lucas with the honor at evening's end.

Among guests participating in the tribute were three previous AFI Life Achievement Award recipients -- Harrison Ford, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg -- joined by Richard Dreyfuss, Robert Duval, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Jimmy Smits, Billy Dee Williams and John Williams; as well as AFI's Director and CEO Jean Picker Firstenberg, AFI Board of Trustees chair Sir Howard Stringer, AFI Board of Directors chairs Jon Avnet and John Cooke, AFI Executive Vice President Jonathan Estrin and President of USA Network and Sci-Fi Channel Bonnie Hammer.

Also in attendance were Warren Beatty, Annette Bening, Adam Carolla, Robert Daly, Rick Dees, Calista Flockhart, Anthony Michael Hall, Irvin Kershner, Kathleen Kennedy, Cloris Leachman, Daniel Logan, Benito Martinez, CCH Pounder, Mackenzie Phillips, Molly Sims and Cindy Williams. Intergalactic celebrities Chewbacca, C-3PO and R2-D2 were also in attendance.

The tribute, both heartfelt and playful, focused on the filmmaker's astonishing contributions to the art and technology of filmmaking, as well as the impact of the epic STAR WARS series. In addition to an homage given by guests including Tom Hanks and Harrison Ford, the evening featured clips from Lucas' films presented with commentary from five Academy Award winning directors -- Spielberg, James Cameron, Francis Ford Coppola, Ron Howard and Peter Jackson.

The evening began with eloquent remarks from AFI Board of Trustees chair Sir Howard Stringer, and continued with a surprise opening song from William Shatner. Performing a modified version of My Way, Shatner was accompanied by a chorus line of dancing stormtroopers with great comic effect. A moving tribute to Lucas' devotion to his family was paired with an acoustic performance by Maroon 5 -- his children's favorite band.

AFI Director and CEO Jean Picker Firstenberg paid tribute to the AFI Conservatory's filmmaking alumni and presented the 2005 Franklin J. Schaffner Alumni Medal to screenwriter/director Paul Schrader. The Franklin J. Schaffner Alumni Medal recognizes the extraordinary creative talents of a graduate of the AFI Conservatory or of the Directing Workshop for Women who symbolizes the legacy of Franklin Schaffner. Established in 1991 by Franklin J. Schaffner's widow, Jean, the Alumni Medal celebrates the qualities associated with the late director: talent, taste, dedication and commitment to quality filmmaking.

Lucas joins a distinguished list of recipients of AFI's Life Achievement Award including Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Barbra Streisand, Harrison Ford, Dustin Hoffman, Steven Spielberg, Jack Nicholson, Elizabeth Taylor, Sidney Poitier, Gregory Peck, Barbara Stanwyck, Billy Wilder, Fred Astaire, James Stewart, Alfred Hitchcock, Bette Davis, Orson Welles, James Cagney and John Ford.

About the American Film Institute

AFI is a national institute providing leadership in screen education and the recognition and celebration of excellence in the art of film, television and digital media. AFI trains the next generation of filmmakers at its world-renowned Conservatory, maintains America's film heritage through the AFI Catalog of Feature Films and explores new digital technologies in entertainment and education through AFI's New Media Ventures. As the largest nonprofit exhibitor in the US, AFI ON SCREEN encompasses the annual AFI FEST presented by Audi: AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival and SILVERDOCS: AFI/Discovery Channel Documentary Festival, while offering year-round programming at ArcLight Hollywood and the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in Silver Spring, Maryland. AFI AWARDS, the annual almanac for the 21st century, honors the most outstanding motion pictures and television programs of the year, while AFI's 100 Years . . . series has ignited extraordinary public interest in classic American movies. And, during the past 32 years, AFI'S LIFE ACHIEVEMENT AWARD has become the highest honor for a career in film. Additional information about AFI is available at AFI.com.

AFI thanks Microsoft for its support of this year's Life Achievement Award. American Airlines is the official airline of the American Film Institute. AFI offers additional thanks to the Frank Family Vineyards.

About USA Network

USA Network is cable television's leading provider of original series and feature movies, sports events, off-net television shows, and blockbuster theatrical films. USA Network is available in 82% of all U.S. homes and is seen in over 88 million U.S. homes. The USA Network Web site is located at www.usanetwork.com.

USA Network is a program service of NBC Universal Cable a division of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience.

Source: American Film Institute

CONTACT: Alison Deknatel, +1-323-856-7896, adeknatel@AFI.com, or Erin Hurff, +1-323-856-7603, ehurff@AFI.com, both of AFI; or Maria Stasi of USA Network, West Coast, +1-818-777-6679, maria.stasi@nbcuni.com; or Kristin Schulman of USA Network, East Coast, +1-212-664-4140, kristin.schulman@nbcuni.com

Web site: http://www.usanetwork.com/

Web site: http://www.afi.com/

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