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Let’s discuss what went into renewing the power of the Force. You see, Kenner had a sweet deal.  In 1977, they negotiated a license with Lucasfilm to make Star Wars toys for a $100,000 advance and an ongoing 5% royalty. All they had to do to keep that deal alive—forever—was to pay Lucasfilm $10,000 per year. That was no problem at all for the first few years, as Kenner shipped over 300 million Star Wars products between 1977 and 1985. After Tonka purchased Kenner in 1987, even though they were no longer making Star Wars toys, and there were no new Star Wars movies on the horizon, Tonka believed it was still worthwhile to send Lucasfilm enough money every year to keep the contract going.

But in 1991, Hasbro purchased Tonka, and—whether by intent or accident—didn’t make the required payment, so their contract with Lucasfilm expired. And in 1992, George Lucas started letting people know that he was working on Star Wars movies again. Of course, Hasbro was interested in making the toys, but now they had to compete against other toy companies for a new license, and that meant they had to show Lucasfilm what they could do…

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