Kelly Turner RIP

[jaybird3rd]

I don't remember seeing any mention of this sad news elsewhere on AtariAge; I only learned about it the other day even though it happened some months ago. I posted this information from AtariGames.com on another discussion board and thought it merited a thread here too:

 

(Updated 9/24/05) I just heard the terrible news, that Kelly Turner has passed away. Kelly had been an invaluable source of information for the web site, for many years. Kelly had provided me with invaluable video tapes, documentation and information in my research on Atari Games. Kelly was also featured in the Atari Panel discussions at California Extreme 2003 and 2004. He was always willing to help out, and he had some great stories to tell. He will be missed....

 

Kelly started programming computer games in 1976. His first job in the game industry came in 1984 when he joined Atari Coin-op. Kelly spent 10 years at Atari and was involved in programming , game design , and producing. Some of his coin-op achievements include : Super Sprint , Championship Sprint , Vindicators , Tetris , Batman , Badlands , and Off the Wall.

 

After Atari , Kelly spent a year at P.F. Magic and another two at Virgin. Along the way he picked up some experience in the Special FX field of the film industry and at an L.A. based company , Rhythm & Hues. Kelly also worked at 3DO and was known for the Army Men series of games.

 

 

Kelly Turner passed away today after a brief and completely unexpected illness. He was rushed to Irvine Medical Center on September 5th with an extremely high temperature, extremely low blood pressure, and possible organ damage. He remained in Intensive Care for several days while doctors attempted to stabilize him and figure out what had happened. Despite their best efforts, including dialysis to take the load off his organs, he fell into a persistent vegetative state on September 13th, with no brain activity. He had a Living Will and left explicit instructions that extraordinary measures should not be taken to preserve his life, so life support was withdrawn yesterday afternoon, in the presence of his family, in accordance with his wishes. He passed peacefully in his sleep this morning in the arms of his life partner.

 

 

Video game producer Kelly Turner died of multi-systemic organ failure Sept. 18 in Irvine, Calif. He was 43. A memorial service will be held Sunday, Sept. 25 at 10 a.m. at El Camino Memorial Park, 5600 Carroll Canyon Rd., San Diego.

 

Turner started in the game industry as a programmer at the coin-op division of Atari in 1984. Over the last 20 years, he worked in virtually every aspect of development and production at companies that included, in addition to Atari, P.F. Magic, Virgin Interactive, Rhythm& HuesRhythm & Hues, The 3DO Company and Eidos. He most recently joined videogame maker Point of View in Irvine, Calif.

 

Turner had been involved with the Producers Guild of America New Media Council for two years, most recently as Vice Chair.

 

He is survived by his partner, Tom Grissinger; his mother, a sister and a brother.

 

Donations may be made to the Producers Guild of America, Kelly Turner Memorial Fund.

 

(this article has been compiled from various sources on the internet)

 

His last public appearance was at CGE 2005. Hard to believe he was gone less than a month later.

Edited November 5, 2005 by jaybird3rd

[Teknik_SE-R]

Shame. It's hard to imagine that some of the people responsible for such revolutionary thinking and ingenuity are reaching that age.

 

Think of all the experience that he had, and the knowledge that only he posessed. I can only hope that appreciation for the heritage of computer and gaming technology don't fade with time. Preservation, people. PRESERVATION.

 

lest we forget...

[omne]

[thegamezmaster]

Somehow the gaming world and the world in general seems a little emptier after reading this.

Edited November 6, 2005 by thegamezmaster

[n8littlefield]

Sad stuff - it's easy to forget nowadays with so many games created by teams of 50+ people just how many of our old favorites can be attributed to so few people. Truly a loss.