Nolan Bushnell Appointed to Atari Board

[mbd30]

The real Nolan Bushnell? the real Ted Dabney? You have to be kidding me? This thread had gone crazy.

And the real Owen Rubin it would appear.

 

Very interesting thread indeed...

 

Yeah. This thread started innocuous and then kind of all blew up like an atomic bomb.

 

 

[ovalbugmann]

"Highly respected" by whom? Kent's heart is in the right place, but some of his sources are questionable and a lot of his claims are dubious.

 

I just noticed that their were several people quoted in the book as saying it was very well done, and praising Kent's work. I didn't know about the inaccuracies until I read something negative about it in another thread a while ago and in this one as well. It was a fun read though.

 

 

Oh I see. I was under the impression by all the praise the book received, from game industry people, that it was completely factual. I thought his book was the best video game history book to read?

 

What book is the best then and is most accurate? So I can get it?

 

As for the best and most accurate, there really isn't one, and it's unlikely there will be for quite some time The all-time best seller in the category is Kent's book

 

Uh huh. This is exactly the answer that I expected. So it seems then, by being a best seller in the catagory that Kent's book is the best yet - even with the mistakes. I do appreciate being informed of the mistakes tho.

 

Ditto what Bill said.

 

Well, It would be nice to have a corrected history of video games book, so Kent doesn't misinform people like me, who then come here to be told what I read was wrong, and that people don't agree with him(Kent) so I then feel like I am missing important details of what really happened in the interesting history of one of my favorite companies, Atari.

 

It's good that we have Atariage to point these things out and to get the truth. Maybe someone should try to contact Kent with maybe a short list(to start) of his mistakes and wrong thinking relating to Atari Inc. so possibly he can consider a revision of the book to fix things. Point is let him know he's wrong about some Atari things so hopefully it eats at him and he does something.

Edited April 27, 2010 by ovalbugmann

[Lynxpro]

Wll now, this is turning into a very interesting thread with Ted Dabney, Nolan Bushnell, and Ralph Baer all reading. Now where is Joe Keenan?

 

 

Quick! Someone alert Ray Kasser and tell him to stop admiring his fine art collection for a moment and jump online because this is an important thread... Then again, he might be too busy working on the next revolutionary breakthrough in towel design to get involved so let's not disturb him.

 

Since [former] President Bush has been brought up, can I make a suggestion about not bringing up "politics of personal destruction" in terms of alleged affairs that have nothing to do with anything here really? It was the swingin' 70s for Zoroaster's sake... Besides, who doesn't pass up on the opportunities that wealth brings? Player haters, literally.

Edited April 27, 2010 by Lynxpro

[+cvga]

If Mr. Nolen wishes to be taken seriously and believed then these issues really need to be addressed. The issue of being cheated out of over 40 grand, that Curt brought up, alone requires a straight answer. Other than to the extremely wealthy, that amount of money isn't exactly a pittance. Short-changing someone for a few bucks let alone several thousand portrays extremely low character qualities. Now someone that has been accused of frequently employing embellishments or outright deceit about past events would seem to be highly motivated to "clear his name" of of such an allegation and perhaps be moved to shed some light on the other questions previously asked by my fellow AA members concerning certain parts of Atari history.

 

Seriously? The issue between Curt and Nolan seems like a private matter to me.

 

This thread ought to be one of the crown jewels of Atari Age but it's been devalued due to all poor posts. It bothers me that I'm stuck defending Nolan given that I've lost close to 6 figures on his uWink venture. I'm more upset that there has been virtually no communication since they delisted the stock over a year ago. He's certainly nowhere near the top of my list of favorite people but I'll still treat him with respect and appreciate the contributions that he (with the obvious help of lots of others) made to video gaming.

 

Why would anyone expect him to answer to any of the inappropriate questions regarding his personal life? I wasn't sure if it was him last night but he answered my question correctly with enough other details to make me reasonably sure that if it wasn't him, it was someone close to him. I'm glad he (or even Brent if that's the case) is spending some time here and answering some of the questions that have been asked. I find it extremely fascinating that Mr. Dabney, Mr. Rubin and some others have joined also. I doubt that they'll ever come to an agreement regarding who is receiving proper credit so I'm just pleased to have them here for now. I don't think any of them owe us, the members of AtariAge, anything. Whatever we get is just a bonus!

[+cvga]

Nolan,

 

What happened to the 6 player Pong that you had at the Woodland Hills location?

[mbd30]

What is a rough "accuracy percentage" for the Ultimate History of Video Games? Is it mostly accurate? I loved that book when I read it a few years ago.

 

Maybe someone could do an online companion that covers all the inaccuracies per chapter... or just the most glaring ones.

[Curt Vendel]

Nolan and I just had a long video conference. Much was sorted out, much is just chalked up to some errors and wrong memories, some forgotten events and I think it was a good talk, it looks like I have one event incorrect and that was regarding Etak which I will go back and re-investigate.

 

On Nolan and Ralph - some personal feelings were shared by Nolan to me regarding the events around the Magnavox-Atari lawsuit, I'm going to leave it to Nolan/Ralph to sort that out as it is something I'm going to leave some room on and discuss out of the public eye until these guys can shake hands and move on.

 

Basically a lot of was sorted out, I think and I hope Nolan will continue to stop by, maybe post some contributions and comments and maybe be a regular visitor. I would hope that Ted sticks around as well and pop up from time to time too.

 

Bottom line, lets close this thread up, and let Nolan have a fresh start here to post and when he forgets something or mis-remembers, he knows we'll be more forgiving and much less hostile when correcting those errors.

 

 

Curt

[jaybird3rd]

I'm very glad to hear this. Memory does indeed have a way of playing tricks on us, especially decades later. As long as there isn't any intention of misleading or deceiving anyone, then discrepancies here or there in a person's recollections are certainly understandable and forgivable. I'm glad that Curt and Marty are working with everyone involved and that lines of dialog are being opened, and hopefully, any misunderstandings that remain will be remedied and an exhaustive account of these historic events can be documented in a way that everyone can agree with.

 

I sincerely hope that at least some of these conversations with Nolan and Ted and the others will take place here on AtariAge, because I for one would love to have the chance to participate.

[Emehr]

Cool to hear that stuff was sorted out. I love this site.

[+pboland]

I too am glad to hear things were sorted out.

 

I would like to say thanks to Nolan, Ted, and Owen for being apart of this thread. You are all people that I always thought would be cool to see/meet in person. Most likely that will never happen as none of the major events that you guys would be at ever come close to where I live. So, to me this is as close to seeing you guys in person as it will come and for that, thank you. I hope you guys chime in from time to time.

Edited April 27, 2010 by pboland

[hhwolfman]

Nolan and I just had a long video conference. Much was sorted out, much is just chalked up to some errors and wrong memories, some forgotten events and I think it was a good talk, it looks like I have one event incorrect and that was regarding Etak which I will go back and re-investigate.

 

On Nolan and Ralph - some personal feelings were shared by Nolan to me regarding the events around the Magnavox-Atari lawsuit, I'm going to leave it to Nolan/Ralph to sort that out as it is something I'm going to leave some room on and discuss out of the public eye until these guys can shake hands and move on.

 

Basically a lot of was sorted out, I think and I hope Nolan will continue to stop by, maybe post some contributions and comments and maybe be a regular visitor. I would hope that Ted sticks around as well and pop up from time to time too.

 

Bottom line, lets close this thread up, and let Nolan have a fresh start here to post and when he forgets something or mis-remembers, he knows we'll be more forgiving and much less hostile when correcting those errors.

 

 

Curt

 

Thats it, I was hoping both of them would reminisce about the old days. I say let the thread stay open and let them regal us, with the tales, of old.

[jaybird3rd]

Thats it, I was hoping both of them would reminisce about the old days. I say let the thread stay open and let them regal us, with the tales, of old.

I hope they will, but it would probably be best to do so in a new thread where everyone can get a fresh start.

[rolenta]

Maybe someone should try to contact Kent with maybe a short list(to start) of his mistakes and wrong thinking relating to Atari Inc. so possibly he can consider a revision of the book to fix things. Point is let him know he's wrong about some Atari things so hopefully it eats at him and he does something.

 

Steve no longer owns the rights to his book and has no plans on revising it.

[ovalbugmann]

Nolan and I just had a long video conference. Much was sorted out, much is just chalked up to some errors and wrong memories, some forgotten events and I think it was a good talk, it looks like I have one event incorrect and that was regarding Etak which I will go back and re-investigate.

 

On Nolan and Ralph - some personal feelings were shared by Nolan to me regarding the events around the Magnavox-Atari lawsuit, I'm going to leave it to Nolan/Ralph to sort that out as it is something I'm going to leave some room on and discuss out of the public eye until these guys can shake hands and move on.

 

Basically a lot of was sorted out, I think and I hope Nolan will continue to stop by, maybe post some contributions and comments and maybe be a regular visitor. I would hope that Ted sticks around as well and pop up from time to time too.

 

Bottom line, lets close this thread up, and let Nolan have a fresh start here to post and when he forgets something or mis-remembers, he knows we'll be more forgiving and much less hostile when correcting those errors.

 

 

Curt

 

So what your sayin' is you and Marty were wrong(mainly about who NolanB is), Curt, and that "NolanB" is really him just as Ted said he was and you still doubted it even after Ted confirmed the identity. Why can't you just admit when your wrong?

 

But I don't hear a public apology for the messed up stuff you said about him and requested of him here.....who he was sleeping with while married and such.

 

I wouldn't expect Nolan or Ted back here after this bashing thread - Thanks Curt and Marty.

Edited April 27, 2010 by ovalbugmann

[misspent_youth]

Curt, Marty, will this thread get a mention in your book? It kinda merits something (a sidebar maybe?), since it involves some heavyweight pioneers all in the same 'place'.

[Lynxpro]

don't be an idiot. Chuck E. Cheese was not made for you it was made for kids. As your kids what they think about your favorite restaurant and they will say is sucks.

 

 

Before this thread is closed, I want to address this...especially for the posts that were highly critical of the pizza's quality at Chuck E. Cheese back in the day. I loved Chuck E. Cheese back in the day. I had my birthday parties there from the age of 6 to 12, and I think my family generally went there once a month, especially after church services. I don't recall ever having a bad tasting combo pizza there. And during that time, on more than one occasion, I ate at Pizza Hut and I thought the taste of their pizza was completely inferior. Sure, taste wise, the Chuck E. Cheese pizza* may not have been an equal to Round Table Pizza, but what is?

 

So thank you, Mr. Bushnell, for giving us Chuck E. Cheese in addition to Atari. I owe a lot of my great childhood memories to you... and Mr. Lucas. [Well, and my parents too, of course!].

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hmmm. My parents bought me my 2600 - err, excuse me, VCS - for my 6th birthday. For my 12th, it was a 7800 [although my grandmother bought one for her house the month of the product launch]. 86 was a good year...got a 1040ST too...

 

 

*Come to think of it, I'd rate Chuck E. Cheese pizza close to Shakey's Pizza at the time...

[homerwannabee]

Well welcome to the boards Nolan. Glad to see on the boards. You have always been a larger than life figure for me. Glad to see the hatchet buried in this thread. Something I never thought would come. Good luck to you with Atari again. If you can help make Atari come back to a tenth of it's former glory, than you have done a job well done. Also glad to see Ted here as well. To be honest I did not know much about him until this thread, so it is cool to get a better background of one of the founders of Atari. This thread definitely has had it's twist, and turns, and is quite an interesting read.

[ovalbugmann]

Thats it, I was hoping both of them would reminisce about the old days. I say let the thread stay open and let them regal us, with the tales, of old.

 

Yes, it would have been nice to talk about the old Atari and stuff with Ted and Nolan in this thread rather than what we all did here, which was waste their visits and the whole thread(second half), fricking debating who NolanB really was.

 

Most of us don't get to video conference with Nolan so this thread could have had much more value and been more interesting to regular Atari fans that don't personally know these historical figures of the video game world.

Edited April 27, 2010 by ovalbugmann

[hhwolfman]

don't be an idiot. Chuck E. Cheese was not made for you it was made for kids. As your kids what they think about your favorite restaurant and they will say is sucks.

 

 

Before this thread is closed, I want to address this...especially for the posts that were highly critical of the pizza's quality at Chuck E. Cheese back in the day. I loved Chuck E. Cheese back in the day. I had my birthday parties there from the age of 6 to 12, and I think my family generally went there once a month, especially after church services. I don't recall ever having a bad tasting combo pizza there. And during that time, on more than one occasion, I ate at Pizza Hut and I thought the taste of their pizza was completely inferior. Sure, taste wise, the Chuck E. Cheese pizza* may not have been an equal to Round Table Pizza, but what is?

 

So thank you, Mr. Bushnell, for giving us Chuck E. Cheese in addition to Atari. I owe a lot of my great childhood memories to you... and Mr. Lucas. [Well, and my parents too, of course!].

 

 

I agree in the 80s Chuck E Cheese pizza was pretty good.

 

 

 

 

 

Hmmm. My parents bought me my 2600 - err, excuse me, VCS - for my 6th birthday. For my 12th, it was a 7800 [although my grandmother bought one for her house the month of the product launch]. 86 was a good year...got a 1040ST too...

 

 

*Come to think of it, I'd rate Chuck E. Cheese pizza close to Shakey's Pizza at the time...

[lapetino]

I do feel bad for Nolan in this thread. Regardless of our passions for Atari, no one really should be subjected to some of the things said in this thread. So, hopefully Nolan will return despite all of this--thanks for joining us, if you're still lurking about.

[ovalbugmann]

Mr. Bushnell(if your still even reading this) Welcome to Atariage! And Welcome to you also Ted!

 

Nolan, here are my comments for you I mentioned to you & wrote earlier today that I hesitated to post due to the lame identity fiasco that was perpetrated here:

 

-----------------------------------

Wow! Yeah, it's hard to believe Nolan is really here!!!!!!!! -awesome! I am thinking that, yes, you are really you from your detailed posts here! Thank you for stopping by this particular AA group! I don't know what REAL facts any Nolan haters here have against you but I can say that as a lifelong Atari fan since I had a VCS as a kid in the very early '80s that you were my childhood hero. I even did a very positive short essay on you when I was in the 6th grade. I've always associated you with my Atari video game fun, and as the main founder of Atari. Also, as a kid, I thought it was cool that my first name, Noel is similar.

-----------------------------------

 

Hope to see you post here again.

Edited April 27, 2010 by ovalbugmann

[+Random Terrain]

Yes, it would have been nice to talk about the old Atari and stuff with Ted and Nolan in this thread rather than what we all did here, which was waste their visits and the whole thread (second half), fricking debating who NolanB really was.

Famous people need a way to verify who they are in a forum. With all of the nutbags and evildoers out there, you can't instantly trust when somebody claims to be a living legend. We would be gullible idiots if we accepted every supposedly famous person without some kind of verification. It's understandable.

 

Now that everything has been settled, I'm going to blow your mind. I'm not Duane Alan Hahn. My real name is Scadoobie Floinkenburger.

[ovalbugmann]

Uh huh I hear ya RT, but let me ask you to count the number of people that have came here to AA in the past 10 years of it's operation claiming to be the famous father of video games -Nolan Bushnell????

 

Let me answer that for you......ummmmmm... how about one person NolanB who participated in this thread!

 

Am I wrong or am I right?

 

Al?

[Cebus Capucinis]

Uh huh I hear ya RT, but let me ask you to count the number of people that have came here to AA in the past 10 years of it's operation claiming to be the famous father of video games -Nolan Bushnell????

 

Let me answer that for you......ummmmmm... how about one person NolanB who participated in this thread!

 

Am I wrong or am I right?

 

Al?

 

If it IS the first time it's actually happened, wouldn't that be even more justification for people to be skeptical? It's not like we have a track record to base anything from, be it positive or negative. I think this is one of those 'half full vs half empty' things actually.

[Buck]

Hey Scadoobie! Nice webpage. Just checked your links and you have a very cool design. (I had actually checked it a long time ago, but never said anything)

 

Back OT, I welcome our new users as well. That being said, Curt and Marty obviously have/had real reasons for stating their opinions in the way they did. I still am on the Legacy Engineering (or IMO the New NATCO :-) )fan club. Thanks for all you do and I am glad that you have appeared to iron a few things out w/ NolanB.

Take care,

Buck