In Sunday’s (1/9) Arizona Republic, Richard Nilsen writes, “The Phoenix Symphony has named James Ward interim president and CEO of the orchestra. He replaces Maryellen Gleason, who left in December to become CEO of the Milwaukee Symphony. Ward, who ran for Congress in 2010 as a ‘tea party’ Republican candidate in District 5, has a business and marketing background. … Ward was president of LucasArts and senior vice president of Lucasfilm Ltd., where he led the video-game company and ran the global-marketing and distribution programs for all of Lucasfilm’s properties, including ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Indiana Jones.’ … He said he wants to give back to the community. ‘That’s why I ran for public office,’ he said. His campaign platform included a large arts segment, including a call for more federal money for the arts, better spent. … Ward is a classically trained pianist, and was nominated for an Emmy in 2007 as executive producer for a History Channel documentary on the ‘Star Wars’ films.”
Posted January 10, 2011
