Before I go on, I'll just admit straight up that I'm not a fan of the prequels, and I feel that Rick was a big part of not keeping George Lucas in check....

Having said that, I don't see him involved in any of these things that have come out regarding Episode 7. I say that's good....

What do you think?

He retired.

Yeah, he totally hasn't been quoted. Maybe he's not answering the phone.

I think he did a man's job. But it's time to shake up the SWU.

When? I didn't see that... Last I saw of him he was still talking up the tv show...

The only people who think artists should be kept in "check" are corporate types (and their focus groups) who are concerned with money rather than art. George Lucas does what real artists do in refusing to compromise his vision.

Except in film making where a real producer challenges directors all the time to be better. That process kind of didn't happen with the prequels. That aspect of producing a film went missing....

I agree. Never compromise story for cash. If the story's good enough, we'll shell out the bucks.

Rick and Gary Kurtz are hanging out on the beach in Hawaii getting ready for The Power Of The Dark Crystal!!!

He's definitely retired. Red Tails was his last project. I read it somewhere recently, though I can't remember where off the top of my head.

It's been rumored he retired after Redtails was released.

On 30 October 2012, The Walt Disney Company announced an agreement to acquire Lucasfilm. The deal includes the rights to the Star Wars franchise for which George Lucas will act as creative consultant to a new film trilogy, which is to debut in 2015. Rick McCallum is said to have retired. In a conference call following the press release, Disney stated its interest in the potential of Star Wars television series but did not go into details.

Ahh, there it is. Thanks.

He's probably living it up in Tahiti drinking maitais and surrounded by naked women while sitting atop a pile of cash.

Well, the further away that guy is from the new movies the better...

Basking in the Maui sun, their debt to society paid in full.

If George Lucas needs to be reign in on anything its TCW, not the PT.

Kurtz is living in London last I knew. I was an escort for him at C5, nice guy, but really outside of the Hollywood scene and keeps Lucas at arm's length these days.

A producer is not there to keep a director in check for money purposes. They are there as a very important part of the film making process. Here are some of the roles a producer fills:

Production

• Offer creative suggestions to the director.
• Handle problems with actors or creative staff.
• Monitor production timetable and budget.
• Review video dailies, the film shot each day.

Postproduction

• Discuss order and selection of scenes with the director.
• Review the fine cut of the film after it is edited.
• In some cases, polish, revise and restructure the film to create the final cut.
• Work with a distributor to secure distribution for the film. This may include showing the distributors the final cut of the film.
• Review the distributor's advertising campaign for the film.

A good producer will push a director, disagree if he feels he should, and make sure the film is the best it can be.

The producer is the Directors boss, well unless the Director is the also the EP and owner of the company ....

The Producer on the Star Wars films wasn't the role of a typical Studio producer. That role is primarily on the Executive Prodcer... in that case Lucas himself... and now Kathleen Kennedy.

Does it matter? Lucas did what he wanted on the prequels. In his words it was "his vision, his story" etc. Mcallum was just a yes man there to make sure the numbers added up.

I get the whole thing about art and all that, and ultimately, Lucas is entitled to make whatever movie he wants....

But there's a reason Empire is widely considered the best of the series.

If you're making art for expression, and you're going to put it in your basement or a gallery and you don't give a crap if anyone likes it or not, by all means, just do whatever you want. But if you're producing a piece specifically for public consumption, it's probably not a bad idea to try and focus your work toward the intended audience...which will sometimes mean NOT going with your gut.

What's more, we know Lucas intends for his Star Wars films to be mass-consumption products, because he says as much in the multiple interviews he provides. As an example, in the editing featurette on the Ep I DVD, Lucas goes on for a good minute about cutting things out of the movie that he personally likes in order to not bore the audience. That's altogether different from producing art for a private gallery...that's more like designing art for something like, say, a big Hollywood movie.

Or it shows that he still cared about story, even if he missed the beat on that one.

I think people like ESB best because its the tamest of the series and the least personal.

I think people like ESB the best because it had a qualified writer, a solid director, and strong producer who knew what they were doing and were capable of producing a very good movie. As opposed to the other episodes, which show George's influence a lot more, and reflect his short-comings in those areas.

Before you bash me, I am a fan of the Prequel Trilogy, so it's not like I personally dislike what George did with the films.

I agree to some extent.
However, there is quite a difference between "selling out" i.e. compromising your ideas purely for monetary gains and ease of mass consumption and having a second or third opinion that is constructive criticism that pushes you to reconsider your idea, build on it and in the end improve it. And of course, you can always say No and stick with the original idea.
I feel there was no one to do this in PT.
By "keeping Lucas in check" I don't think telling him not to do something because it won't sell. But someone who will not just blindly go along with everything he thinks up. And that is not a bad thing.
Take a look at that transcript of Kersh and others filming the Solo freezing scene. They built upon Lucas' base, reconsidered options, experimented, moved things around and in the end improved upon the basic idea and gave us a great scene.
There's a difference between that and being kept in check by corporate interests.