George Lucas's father, George Walton Lucas Sr., managed a stationary store at this intersection called L.M. Morris Co.

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George Walton Lucas was born on May 14, 1944 in Modesto, California.

His father, George Walton Lucas, Sr., ran a stationery store and owned a small walnut orchard. His mother, Dorothy Ellinore Bomberger Lucas, came from a prominent Modesto family.

The family lived at this residence until they moved to a ranch house in the walnut grove north of Modesto. As a boy, Lucas loved comic books and TV serials of the 30s and 40s, including Flash Gordon.

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On June 12, 1962, then 17-year-old George Lucas was driving his Fiat Bianchina home to northern Modesto. His classmate, Frank Ferreira, attempted to pass him at a high speed and smashed into the small Fiat. The car flipped several times before crashing into a tree. Lucas was thrown from the car and survived with minor fractures and hemorrhaging lungs.

Lucas had wanted to be a race car driver up until that point, spending most of his 10th and 11th grade weekends cruising. The accident altered his perception.

"The accident made me more aware of myself and my feelings. I began to trust my instincts. I had the feeling that I should go to college, and I did," said Lucas.

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George Lucas attended high school at Thomas Downey High.

In his film American Graffiti, the high school is referred to as Dewey High. However, the actual high school scenes were shot at Petaluma High School in Petaluma, CA.

While attending high school, George was not a stellar student. Instead, he hoped to become a race car driver. His attitude shifted after being involved in a serious crash, and he decided to attend school at Modesto Junior College.

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Assembling the property by piecemeal since September of 1978, Skywalker Ranch (aka Lucasfilm Ltd.) has been George Lucas's ever increasing film-making fortress of solitude (although he doesn't actually live there).

With a current land mass of 4,700 acres and a cost of $100 million dollars (according to The Wall Street Journal), The Ranch contains a barn with animals, vineyards, a garden with fruits and vegetables used in the on-site restaurant, an outdoor swimming pool and fitness center with racquetball courts, the man-made "Lake Ewok," a hilltop observatory, a 300-seat theater called "The Stag" as well as multiple theater screening rooms, and parking that is mostly concealed underground to preserve the natural landscape.

The Main House has a company research library under a stained-glass dome. Skywalker Ranch has its own fire station which is part of the local fire-fighting network.

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