Atari book coming....

martyg

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Press Release

For Immediate Release: December 19, 2011
Atari Book
T: 414.380.2781
E: [email protected]
Contact: Martin Goldberg, Media Relations

Book Chronicling The People And Brand That Created The Video Game Industry To Be Released

December 21, 2011 - Video game industry historians Martin Goldberg and Curt Vendel have publicly announced the targeted release of their book on the history of Atari Inc., the seminal video game company that dominated the early industry. Over 7 years in the making, poring over thousands of original documents and internal resources as well as conducting hundreds of interviews with former Atari employees, the duo are now in the home stretch and spending time in the final leg of interviews and research.

Atari Inc., originally started as an engineering partnership between Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney in 1969 called Syzygy Co., became the foundation of the early video game industry. The company and the brand were synonymous with "video games" in the 1970's and 80's, dominating both the arcade and consumer industries during those periods while making inroads in to computing and other little publicly known advanced research, even bringing legendary Xerox/Parc researcher Alan Kay on board to lead an advanced research division. However due to corporate mismanagement and driven to extraordinary growth by it's parent company Warner Communications, in 1984 it imploded spectacularly taking most of the US video game industry with it.


In an age where Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft now dominate the consumer industry and the video arcade industry has all but disappeared, Gen-Xers and those old enough to have grown up during the "Age of Atari" still cling fondly to the memories of this period. The passion and loyalty for the brand still sounds loudly in the hearts of fans as evidenced by the large collectors market for Atari arcade games, hardware, and paraphernalia. Goldberg and Vendel began the book as a testament to the unsung heroes who created the legacy of Atari, and had just as much fun creating it as the people who played it. Tentatively titled "Silicon Hot Tub: Atari Inc. How innovative leisure created the video game industry, and how excess almost destroyed it," the book is targeted for a release in conjunction with the Atari brand's 40th anniversary this June.

"With this book, we really wanted to make it more about the stories and people that worked there" said Goldberg, former site director of IGN/Gamespy's ClassicGaming.Com and a current freelancer for Retro Gamer magazine. "More then just the usual facts, figures, and oft repeated personalities, really give fans an unparalleled look in to what it was like to work at a place that created fun for a living."


Vendel, founder of the Atari History Museum - the only organization dedicated to the preservation and archiving of Atari's history, said "To most people, Atari was the logo, the hardware and a culmination of myths and lore almost as treasured as the products themselves. What most people never knew were the hearts and souls that created the company, the real lives that unfolded within its hallways. So many triumphs and defeats, arguments and inspirations, that all germinated in to incredible products, games...as well as spectacular blunders. This is about the people of Atari, and the story of going from a risky idea in an industry that didn't exist to smiles, laughs, arguments and defeats while holding onto the wildest ride in high-tech history."


Atari luminaries have been very supportive in the research and writing of the book. Owen Rubin, creator of such arcade classics as Space Duel and Major Havok stated "Finally, a book about the people who made Atari real, who made the games, built the devices, and made sure people had fun. Not about the business of video games, but a book through the eyes of the people who WERE Atari. See it from our perspective for a change." Atari co-founder Ted Dabney added "There have been several books written about Atari that have been less than accurate. Finally there seems to be a book that promises to be about what really happened. Marty and Curt have put in a lot of time to be sure that what they have to say is based on fact and not a lot of the fiction that has been floated about for many years."


There's still more interviews and documentation inquiry to do! Consequently, they are seeking funds to cover travel and research expenses during this period via the unique services of crowd funding service Kickstarter. To get more information, watch their video, or to donate and become part of the movement to make this all happen, please visit the book's Kickstarter project at:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ataribook/atari-history-book-volume-1-beginnings-to-1984
 
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Great. Now Leo DiCaprio will have the building blocks for a script for his Paramount film. :D

(At least, that was the plan a few years back.)
 
Great. Now Leo DiCaprio will have the building blocks for a script for his Paramount film. :D

(At least, that was the plan a few years back.)

That script was already written AFAIK (some script writers with Nolan), and Leo purchased the option on it. Probably just to lock it down from anyone else trying to option it.

With this book, it's not a story on Nolan. We've really tried hard to make it a tribute to all the people that worked there and not tell it from one specific person's perspective.
 
That script was already written AFAIK (some script writers with Nolan), and Leo purchased the option on it. Probably just to lock it down from anyone else trying to option it.

With this book, it's not a story on Nolan. We've really tried hard to make it a tribute to all the people that worked there and not tell it from one specific person's perspective.

That's awesome. Definitely a worthy project that should have plenty of people reading...
 
Will all volumes be completed by the time vol. 1 is sent to press?

No. The first book is on Atari Inc., the original Atari (1972-1984). The other two are on Atari Corporation (Jack Tramiel's company, 1984-1996) and Atari Games (1984-2003). All three have been worked on during this time, but the goal is to release the next book in 2013 and the final in 2014.

After the current book is wrapped up, we plan on just keeping going and focus on finishing the next book and so on.

There's just been so much material for all three, a line has to be drawn somewhere as far as finishing. As such, we'll probably be doing web updates and additional material online at the atarimuseum site as well for material that has to be cut or updates uncovered from additional research after each book is published.
 
I contributed to the Kickstarter campaign today, happily. I'm sure the book will be a worthwhile addition to the community. They are holding on to a lot of interesting documents (and knowledge) covering Atari's history that hasn't yet been generally made public (especially on the console side).

Additionally, Marty and Curt have helped out the community in countless ways, including supporting The International Arcade Museum Library in ways not yet made public.

For those that haven't seen Curt's Atari Museum web site, it's worth a visit: www.atarimuseum.com

And though it was included at the beginning of this thread, the kickstarter campaign (book info, video, etc.) can be found at: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ataribook/atari-history-book-volume-1-beginnings-to-1984
 
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that's pretty cool. with all the stuff curt has and knows about atari, it'll be pretty interesting. he seems to be the scott evans of atari console stuff.
 
Hey Mods, how about a collection for a $250 donation from all of us to have "KLOV" immotalized in the book!
 
Very interesting thought.

Actually, I was just speaking with Curt last night. I'll touch base with him again and see if there is a special KLOV thing we can do. I have an idea, but I need to run it by him.
 
This could possibly be the most poignant piece of Atari-related literature since... uh...

AweCovr.jpg
 
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