Howard Roffman (born April 18, 1953)[1] is an American lawyer and marketing executive, best known for his work on the Star Wars franchise as the head of Licensing at Lucasfilm. He is also a photographer, known for a series of books of gay-positive images published by Bruno Gmünder.[2] In 2013 he decided to take a break from photography and focus on other priorities.[3]
In 1980 Roffman joined the movie production company Lucasfilm to do legal counseling and afterwards, was promoted to general counsel.[4] Roffman then became Lucasfilm's Vice President of Licensing in 1986.[5]
In 1999, Roffman was appointed President of Lucas Licensing, a subsidiary of Lucasfilm, which owns the licensing rights to the Star Wars and Indiana Jones film series.[4] Among the many initiatives launched by Roffman during his tenure as President of the division was the highly successful Star Wars: In Concert, a global arena tour that involved a full symphony orchestra and high definition video.[9] Roffman served as Executive Producer.[10] In early 2012, Roffman transitioned to the role of Senior Advisor, passing the baton to Paul Southern, who had worked for Roffman for 15 years.[11] Later that year he was asked to return full-time to help manage the Star Wars franchise.[12] Roffman has made several public appearances in connection with his work on Star Wars, including a speech at TEDx in 2010.[13]
Star Wars licensing, under the leadership of Roffman, has been widely credited with redefining the licensed merchandise business and is regarded as a key element in the long-term success of the Star Wars brand.[14][15][16] According to Fortune magazine, "George Lucas and his long-time licensing chief Howard Roffman more or less invented the playbook that major media companies, Disney chief among them, now depend on."[6]
Film work
Roffman serves as Executive Vice President of the Board of Directors of the San Francisco Film Society.[17] In addition, he has helped to fund several critically acclaimed documentary films, including We Were Here: The AIDS Years in San Francisco, released in 2011,[18][19] and Chasing Ice, released in 2012.[20]
Photography
As a photographer, Roffman is represented by Wessel + O'Connor Fine Art, a gallery specializing in fine vintage and contemporary photography.[21] His published books of photography include the following:[22]
In 1975, at the age of 22, Roffman published a nonfiction book entitled Presumed Guilty: Lee Harvey Oswald in the Assassination of President Kennedy, the culmination of years of research that began when he was in high school.[23][24] His second book, Understanding the Cold War: A Study of the Cold War in the Interwar Period, followed shortly thereafter in 1976.[25]