George Lucas spent five decades collecting art and memorabilia, and now his massive, spaceship-shaped museum in Los Angeles is scheduled to open its doors on September 22, more than 16 years after the project began. The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art will sprawl across 28,000 square meters, roughly 300,000 square feet, with five floors, 30 […] The post George Lucas's $1 billion museum in Los Angeles finally set to open after 16 years appeared first on American Almanac .
George Lucas spent five decades collecting art and memorabilia, and now his massive, spaceship-shaped museum in Los Angeles is scheduled to open its doors on September 22, more than 16 years after the project began. The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art will sprawl across 28,000 square meters, roughly 300,000 square feet, with five floors, 30 galleries, and more than 1,300 objects on display. The building itself, with its curved white walls, looks like something pulled from a science-fiction set. Two cinematic theaters sit inside. More than 200 trees surround the grounds outside. The Sun reported the project carries a price tag of roughly £740 million, north of $900 million at current exchange rates. For a filmmaker who built an empire on…Open
Movie theaters across America raked in $4.61 billion in ticket sales over the summer of 2026, Hollywood’s best season in over a decade, yet the numbers show a rebound driven by fresh faces, Gen Z crowds, and high-end screens, not a simple return to business as usual. After years of pandemic-era closures and lackluster box […] The post Hollywood’s summer box office surges as audiences return, but the numbers reveal a more complicated comeback appeared first on American Almanac .
Movie theaters across America raked in $4.61 billion in ticket sales over the summer of 2026, Hollywood’s best season in over a decade, yet the numbers show a rebound driven by fresh faces, Gen Z crowds, and high-end screens, not a simple return to business as usual. After years of pandemic-era closures and lackluster box office takes, the U.S. movie industry recorded its strongest summer performance since 2013, with a 26.1% jump in domestic ticket sales compared to 2025. The surge, tracked from May 1 through August 31, was confirmed by Rentrak and cited by The Associated Press . But beneath the headline, the recovery reflects changing tastes, new industry players, and a younger audience taking the lead. Filmmakers and executives are…Open
The 82-year-old filmmaker behind the most lucrative franchise in movie history has spent 17 years and weathered failed bids in two other cities to build a 100,000-square-foot temple to the art the establishment long dismissed. George Lucas showed up unannounced at a media preview this week for the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los […] The post George Lucas opens his Los Angeles museum — and Star Wars is only 7 percent of it appeared first on American Almanac .
The 82-year-old filmmaker behind the most lucrative franchise in movie history has spent 17 years and weathered failed bids in two other cities to build a 100,000-square-foot temple to the art the establishment long dismissed. George Lucas showed up unannounced at a media preview this week for the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles, wearing a T-shirt that read "Dedicated to the people's art." The museum, set in Exposition Park next to his alma mater at the University of Southern California, opens to the public on September 22. It houses the personal collections of Lucas and his wife, businesswoman and major African-American art collector Mellody Hobson, and its curators want visitors to know that the galaxy far, far away fills…Open
A local content creator has taken possession of Pittsburgh's iconic Phantom Menace vending machine, with the fire station's blessing, to fix its long-broken internals, but not before social media critics accused him of stealing a neighborhood landmark. The 1999-era Star Wars: Episode I, The Phantom Menace vending machine has stood outside Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire […] The post Pittsburgh's beloved Star Wars vending machine is coming back after restoration scare appeared first on American Almanac .
A local content creator has taken possession of Pittsburgh's iconic Phantom Menace vending machine, with the fire station's blessing, to fix its long-broken internals, but not before social media critics accused him of stealing a neighborhood landmark. The 1999-era Star Wars: Episode I, The Phantom Menace vending machine has stood outside Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire Station 27 on Mount Washington for decades. It draws large crowds every May the Fourth for annual Star Wars celebrations. Recently, the machine vanished from its usual spot, and the internet lost its collective mind. Braeden Days, a Pittsburgh native and lifelong Star Wars fan who works as a content creator, removed the machine after getting permission from Fire Station 27. His…Open
Dominic Monaghan has been confirmed as the second guest for CCXP26 in São Paulo, reuniting with Elijah Wood to mark 25 years since The Lord of the Rings hit theaters. Monaghan, the British actor who made his feature debut as Meriadoc "Merry" Brandybuck in Peter Jackson's The Fellowship of the Ring, will join Wood, Frodo […] The post Dominic Monaghan joins Elijah Wood for 'Lord of the Rings' 25th anniversary reunion at CCXP in São Paulo appeared first on American Almanac .
Dominic Monaghan has been confirmed as the second guest for CCXP26 in São Paulo, reuniting with Elijah Wood to mark 25 years since The Lord of the Rings hit theaters. Monaghan, the British actor who made his feature debut as Meriadoc "Merry" Brandybuck in Peter Jackson's The Fellowship of the Ring, will join Wood, Frodo Baggins himself, at the Brazilian fan convention running December 3, 6. The event's organizers are billing the reunion under a "Fellowship Forever" banner, tying it directly to the quarter-century milestone since the first film opened on December 19, 2001. Wood was previously announced as the first confirmed guest. Monaghan is the second. CCXP says the full lineup will be announced soon, leaving open the possibility that…Open
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The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is now accepting reservations for its Skywalker Grill restaurant weeks before the $1 billion institution opens its doors in Los Angeles, capping a decade-long saga that saw two cities lose their bids to host it. George Lucas and his wife, businesswoman Mellody Hobson, co-founded the museum, which sits on […] The post George Lucas' billion-dollar museum opens bookings for Skywalker Grill ahead of September debut appeared first on American Almanac .
The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is now accepting reservations for its Skywalker Grill restaurant weeks before the $1 billion institution opens its doors in Los Angeles, capping a decade-long saga that saw two cities lose their bids to host it. George Lucas and his wife, businesswoman Mellody Hobson, co-founded the museum, which sits on a seven-acre site in Exposition Park in South Los Angeles. The museum announced on Wednesday that Skywalker Grill, a restaurant inspired by Lucas' private creative compound, Skywalker Ranch, in Northern California, will open alongside the museum on September 22. Reservations are already live on the booking platform Resy, as the New York Post reported . The grill's menu leans on locally grown ingredients…Open
AI:The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is entering its final phase before a scheduled September 22 debut in Los Angeles, with reservations now live for the Skywalker Grill. Co-founded by George Lucas and Mellody Hobson, this billion-dollar private institution sits on a seven-acre site in Exposition Park following years of failed bids in Chicago and San Francisco caused by legal and environmental opposition. Unlike many massive cultural projects that rely on taxpayer funding, this museum is entirely privately funded through Lucas's collection and endowment. The venue will feature two theaters, including a potential screening of the unreleased animated series "Star Wars: Detours," and the Skywalker Grill will serve classic American fare inspired…Open
Marvel Studios confirmed Ryan Gosling as the next Ghost Rider at San Diego Comic-Con, pairing the actor with director Shawn Levy for a standalone film targeting a 2028 release. Kevin Feige, president of Marvel Studios, brought Gosling onstage over the weekend and introduced him as the new face of the fiery antihero, a character previously […] The post Ryan Gosling signs on as Ghost Rider in new Marvel standalone film appeared first on American Almanac .
Marvel Studios confirmed Ryan Gosling as the next Ghost Rider at San Diego Comic-Con, pairing the actor with director Shawn Levy for a standalone film targeting a 2028 release. Kevin Feige, president of Marvel Studios, brought Gosling onstage over the weekend and introduced him as the new face of the fiery antihero, a character previously portrayed by Nicolas Cage in two Sony-produced films released in 2007 and 2011. Levy, who directed the blockbuster Deadpool & Wolverine, joined them for the announcement and set the timeline: the Ghost Rider film is expected sometime in 2028. The casting caps a busy stretch for Gosling, who has quietly become one of the most bankable names in Hollywood franchise filmmaking. His sci-fi adaptation Project…Open
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige says actor Adam Driver has declined to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe so many times that the two men's periodic Zoom calls have become a running ritual neither seems eager to end. Feige made the admission during a recent appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, hosted by Josh Horowitz. […] The post Kevin Feige admits Adam Driver keeps turning down Marvel — and calls it a 'tradition' appeared first on American Almanac .
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige says actor Adam Driver has declined to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe so many times that the two men's periodic Zoom calls have become a running ritual neither seems eager to end. Feige made the admission during a recent appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, hosted by Josh Horowitz. The Marvel chief was candid about the studio's interest in Driver and equally candid about the result: every pitch ends the same way. Driver listens, stays polite, and passes. The exchange matters because it pulls back the curtain on how Hollywood's biggest franchise machine actually recruits talent, and on the rare actor who keeps saying no. In an industry where a single MCU contract can define a career for a…Open
Some of the biggest items in film history, including Luke Skywalker's lightsaber and the Wicked Witch's hat from "The Wizard of Oz," are up for sale through Heritage Auctions.
