Who was Gary Kurtz, what was the Star Wars producer’s cause of death and when did he meet George Lucas?

LEGENDARY producer Gary Kurtz sadly passed away following a lifetime of achievements.

Here are all the details on who he is, why he passed away and his collaboration with George Lucas.

Who was Gary Kurtz?

Gary Kurtz was an American film producer.

He was born in Los Angeles on July 27, 1940.

Gary is best-known for producing Star Wars (1977), The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return to Oz (1985).

The California native won and been nominated for countless awards throughout his career including Academy, Golden Globe and People’s Choice Awards.

What was the Star Wars producer’s cause of death?

The legendary producer passed away on September 23, 2018.

The 78-year-old was in North London at the time.

His cause of death was cancer.

Peter Mayhew who played Chewbacca in Star Wars went on Twitter to mourn Gary’s passing.

He tweeted: “RIP Gary Kurtz. A great filmmaker and man has just passed. Without him there would have been no ‘force’.

“You will be remembered in the incredible films you made that touched the lives of millions.”

When did he meet George Lucas?

Gary’s first ever collaboration with George Lucas was on the 1973 movie American Grafitti.

The dynamic duo created the acclaimed film on a very strict and low budget.

Their collaboration continued as they worked on Star Wars, specifically Episode IV: A New Hope and Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back.

However, Gary decided to quit working with George as he felt that George’s attention shifted from storytelling to merchandising.

He also disagreed with the commercially-driven direction the franchise was choosing.