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In the East Room, Return of a Jedi

President Bush gives the National Medal of Technology to George Lucas and Chrissie England. (Photos By Gerald Martineau -- The Washington Post)

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"We feel really honored," England said. "It's one thing to be honored by our peers . . . this is an acknowledgement by a group we don't interact with much. We're very proud."

They all agreed it was nice to be at the White House for real this time, after they had played with the faux image of the place on their computer screens for so many years. For example, they made a lovely matte painting of the building, wreathed in snow, for "The American President."

"In 'Mars Attacks!' we didn't blow it up, but the aliens did take over. They annihilated the president, played by Jack Nicholson," England said.

"We blew up the Washington Monument," Plumer reminded her.

"Yeah, but that wasn't our idea. It was the director's," she said.

That would be Tim Burton.

Meanwhile, their other director, Lucas, couldn't resist a final dig at the Bush administration, even though he confided that he promised his PR folk he "wouldn't say a word."

"Obviously things are not going well," Lucas said, responding to a question about whether the administration's commitment to science and technology is consistent. "Whether they put enough effort into turning it around remains to be seen."

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