Lot 6000
ICONS Replicas Studio Scale PYRO X-Wing Replica Owned by George Lucas. This piece has quite the history, and provenance. When ICONS Replicas made the first studio scale X-Wing Replica, naturally one was given to George Lucas. As time passed, the wings began to sag due to the laser lances on each wing. This is when things came to happen that brought this X-Wing presented today. And the Saga of this X-Wing’s journey is this,... from the beginning... What has been noted is that in the beginning, the X-Wing concept came from George Lucas himself. He imagined a ship that was somewhat like a dragster, with a long body and a pilot in the rear of the ship. Famed Star Wars designer Colin Cantwell was credited for adding the X-shaped wings to the imagined dragster shape. It would then be transformed by famed Visual Effects Art Director Joe Johnston to look like the legendary X-Wing known today. There were three different ‘grades’ of models made for Star Wars: – The HERO Model with multiple mounting points and lighting. These were used for the close-up shots. — The High-Quality PYRO Model was made to look like their counterpart Hero model, but with the purpose of being blown up for those exciting sequences in the film. —-Then there was the Low-Quality PYRO Model that was created for the multiple times that would be needed to obtain the desired explosive effect for the film. It has been noted that George wanted a specific direction for the explosions, and quite a few attempts were made to achieve his vision. Taken from another article, Pyro Specialist Joe Viskocil, the artist behind the explosive shots for the film, recalled that “George wanted the outline of the ship to be on fire, the entire outline sparking away, and then it would blow. Figuring out how to do that took some time.” It is the lower-quality Pyro models that were made for this purpose, having less detail, and built quickly. Approximately 4 Hero models, 6 High-Quality PYRO models, and an unknown number of Low-Quality PYRO models were made for Star Wars in 1977. When ILM moved their shop from Van Nuys to Northern California in 1978, a few things were left behind that were thought of as unimportant at the time. This is when this X-Wing’s continued glory began with famed artist John Eaves, who then was with Boss Films (formerly Apogee FX). As told, John happened upon some blown up X-Wing parts that were left behind when the ILM shop was moved. The parts were from what appeared to be a High Quality PYRO X-Wing, as previously noted. These parts had been blown up in the 1977 movie Star Wars, and yet were still usable. John pieced together an X-Wing from these parts. This is not to be confused with the PYRO X-Wing that Grant McCune pieced together decades ago from leftover pieces also used in the 1977 movie (with George Lucas’s permission). That model sold at auction in mid 2022 for over $2,000,000 USD. The one that John pieced together was not screen matched as Grant’s was. However, it was John’s X-Wing PYRO find that went to ICONS Replicas to be cast into what is presented today. The difference between any other ICONS X-Wing and this one presented today is that this specific ICONS X-Wing was given to George Lucas, as noted previously. It is known that ICONS Replicas used some lesser quality resin when they produced the X-Wing initially, which made the wings not strong enough to hold the laser lances on the wingtips after a period of time. Therefore, many initial ICONS X-Wing owners faced the same issue with their X-Wing... sagging wings. George’s was no different, and he was upset about it. It was then that George Lucas called upon famed special effects artist Greg Aronowitz (Iron-Man, Titanic, Batman, Freeguy, Cast Away, Saving Private Ryan, Jurassic Park, and many, many more), since he was working on a project with George at that time. George showed the X-Wing to Greg and asked him to fix it for him. Greg accepted the X-Wing to fix it, and then got caught up in several film projects, causing the X-Wing repair to be placed on hold. A few years later, special effects artist and writer Scott Alexander was working on a film for Greg, and while in conversation one day Scott asked Greg if he knew anyone that had information on the X-Wing Fighter, as Scott wanted to make one. Greg told Scott that he didn’t know anyone with information, but that he had one. Greg then proceeded to show it to Scott, who noticed right away that the wings were obviously sagging. Greg told Scott that it was George’s and that he was tasked with repairing the wings. Greg continued telling Scott that since it had been a few years, he knew George wasn’t worried about it being that it was given to him from ICONS Replicas as one of the first having been made of what they were to offer. Knowing that Scott wanted information from someone with knowledge on the X-Wing, and having George's ICONS Replicas X-Wing in his possession, Greg told Scott he could take it, fix the wings, and to return it whenever he could. Scott accepted the X-Wing and eventually moved from Southern California to where he lives now, in the center of California. The X-Wing again sat as other projects arose. Of note, during this time, Scott was able to take measurements off of Grant McCune’s PYRO X-Wing, and then made an X-Wing Fighter kit from those measurements. Many thought that he took George’s ICONS X-Wing and measured it. This was not so. In fact, five more years passed, and Kurt Kuhn was visiting Scott Alexander's Shop in Hanford, California. He took note of the saggy-winged X-Wing and Scott told him the saga of the model. Kurt told Scott that he wanted it for the Collection, and that if he ever wished to part with it, he would purchase it from him. Another two years would pass, and nothing was happening with George’s ICONS X-Wing. With over a decade having passed since this all began, it was obvious this piece had been forgotten about by George, so Scott sold it to Kurt Kuhn to show in the Collection. It has been shown in Kurt Kuhn’s Collection for the past 16 years. With Kurt's recent health challenges, and no longer having the ability to care for this wonderful piece of movie History, it is presented today for auction. The Icons Replicas X-Wing Replica was originally released to the public in 1996 in a limited quantity of 1,977 X-Wings made. The 1,977 was in honor of the Star Wars movie release in 1977. It is constructed from resin and metal, highly detailed and hand painted and weathered to resemble Luke Skywalker’s RED 5 X-Wing seen in 1977’s Star Wars. It is mounted on a thick clear acrylic rod that is itself mounted to a large base of black acrylic with the Death Star tiled surface placed upon it. As with the regular public ICONS X-Wing release, this one has no plaque, as it has no number. It was made to be given to George Lucas, and it is offered in this auction. This piece attracts the attention of every person who walks into the room where it is displayed. It has brought joy to the faces of thousands of people who have admired it in person. It is perfect for any Collection. Keywords: Collectible; Ref: BD1831
- Provenance: This is NOT screen used. This is a first generation Cast off of a PYRO X-Wing used in filming the 1977 movie. This model was owned by George Lucas.
- Dimensions: 11.5x20.5x23.5 in. Model and base
- Circa: 1996
- Condition: This lot is in good condition with signs of visible sagging to the wings. Please review the photos for details.
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| From: | To: | Increments: |
|---|---|---|
| $0 | $99 | $5 |
| $100 | $199 | $10 |
| $200 | $999 | $20 |
| $1,000 | $4,999 | $50 |
| $5,000 | $9,999 | $100 |
| $10,000 + | $200 |