PRINCE INVESTS IN CREATORS OF `JURASSIC' RIDE.Byline: Gregory J. Wilcox Daily News Staff Writer A Saudi Arabian prince Arabian Prince is the stage name of Mik Lezan (born October 12, 1964 in Inglewood, California), a rapper and hip hop producer, best known for being an original member of the legendary rap group, N.W.A. who is a business partner of entertainer Michael Jackson Noun 1. Michael Jackson - United States singer who began singing with his four brothers and later became a highly successful star during the 1980s (born in 1958) Michael Joe Jackson, Jackson has made a $50 million investment in North Hollywood-based Landmark Entertainment, a design and production company responsible for such theme park attractions as Jurassic Park: The Ride. Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud's 50 percent stake in the form of cash and future financing commitments provides Landmark with capital for expanding into other areas of the entertainment industry. The prince, who co-owns Kingdom Entertainment with Jackson, was not available for comment but he addressed his plans in a prepared statement. ``The creation of wholesome family entertainment is not just a business for me, it is a major driving force for much of what we are planning around the world,'' he said in the statement. Gary Goddard and Tony Christopher formed Landmark in 1980. In addition to the Jurassic Park adventure at Universal Studios Hollywood, Landmark has created Terminator 2/3D for Universal Studios Florida and Caesars' Magical Empire at Caesars Palace Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada. Caesars Palace is owned and operated by Harrah's Entertainment. Caesars is located on the west side of the Strip, between the Bellagio and the Mirage. in Las Vegas Las Vegas (läs vā`gəs), city (1990 pop. 258,295), seat of Clark co., S Nev.; inc. 1911. It is the largest city in Nevada and the center of one of the fastest-growing urban areas in the United States. . The company now is designing and producing Star Trek  Editing of this page by unregistered or newly registered users is currently disabled due to vandalism. : The Experience for Paramount Parks Paramount Parks was an operator of theme parks and attractions, which annually attracted about 13 million patrons. Viacom had assumed control of the company as part of its acquisition of Paramount Pictures in 1994. and the Las Vegas Hilton The Las Vegas Hilton is a hotel, casino, and convention center in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is a joint venture between Colony Capital, which owns 60 percent, and New York City-based REIT Whitehall Street Real Estate Funds, which owns the remaining 40 percent. . To this point Landmark has primarily been a service company, building projects to client specifications. With the added financial resources of the prince, Landmark can expand into theme park development while acquiring the land and attractions, said Christopher, the company's president and co-owner. ``We want to start our own projects and create our own equity,'' he said. ``We intend to make the most of this historic collaboration.'' Landmark has a core of about 65 employees, but the work force swells to about 500 when big projects are under way. Christopher said the company's management staff will be expanded to allow Goddard and himself more time to create new properties. Christopher and Goddard will continue to oversee day-to-day management and the prince will be responsible for future financing. The deal with the prince began taking shape about 18 months ago while Landmark was working on the Wonderful World of Oz attraction in Kansas City Kansas City, two adjacent cities of the same name, one (1990 pop. 149,767), seat of Wyandotte co., NE Kansas (inc. 1859), the other (1990 pop. 435,146), Clay, Jackson, and Platte counties, NW Mo. (inc. 1850). , Kan. ``One of the projects that Michael (Jackson) was interested in working on was the Oz project but we were already working on it so it didn't take long to get connected,'' Christopher said. Landmark currently is working on 23 projects worldwide. |
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