We reported on a man in Oklahoma who is on a mission to give America a common goal, which is to create a full size fully function Imperial Walker (AT-AT) from Empire Strikes Back. Mike Koehler is a father of three who after hearing about the Robocop statue in Detroit, decided to start a similar grassroots effort to create the massive vehicle. And he started raising money for it through a website called Kickstarter that exists to help inventors and ideas people get the funding they need to create a project. He has already raised over $400 from people who would like to see this work, even though he admits he has no idea how much such a beast would cost.
And that is where LucasFilms has a problem. They contacted Mike after the news of his intentions went viral and realized he was raising money. While they stated that they would truly like to see an AT-AT actually built and would appreciate the cooperative effort to do so, they objected to him raising money without a solid plan in place on how exactly to build it and how much the project was estimated to cost. Koehler said that he’s been told by experts that it can be done, but could not provide the proper detail to LucasFilms to satisfy them.
So he is returning the money that has been donated so far and rethinking the project. It’s unclear if he can get that project underway, but wants to find some project that would unite the world’s science enthusiasts in a way that would make America proud. Perhaps a mechanical soldier that stands 70 feet tall? It’s a thought.
