[game_preservation] Release date of the Odyssey?
Brian Taylor
taylorbri at gmail.com
Thu Aug 9 14:14:04 EDT 2012
Gonna jump in, because it's a slow afternoon at the office.
Found stuff in:
Wall Street Journal, "All-Electronic Game Hooked to TV Set Slated by
Magnavox", May 11, 1972.
Washington Post, "Games for TV -- a New Concept", June 25, 1972 & an
ad from September 19, 1972 - half the page or so dedicated to the
Odyssey ("$99.95, pay $10 monthly").
LA Times - a half-page ad for Ken Crane's Magnavox City ("The Largest
Display of Magnavox in the West") that is mostly TV and audio
equipment, but there's a small box that says "See the Odyssey game at
our booth - LA County Fair."
Oh, by the way, hi.
--b
Brian Taylor
btphotographer.com
twitter.com/brianmtaylor
On Thu, Aug 9, 2012 at 2:04 PM, Henry Lowood <lowood at stanford.edu> wrote:
> Frank,
> Also checked NY Times. The Magnavox announcement, "Magnavox Unveils TV Game
> Simulator" is dated 11 may 1972.
> "Simulator?" That's interesting.
> The earliest display ad is in November - Christmas ad, I guess.
> Interestingly, I also noticed a hit for the want ads in 1974 -- no way I was
> searching through the NY Times want ads, but that was probably a used one up
> for sale.
> Henry
>
>
> On 8/9/2012 10:51 AM, Frank Cifaldi wrote:
>>
>> Correction: I've got one from August 28 now, can you go earlier than that?
>>
>> On Thu, Aug 9, 2012 at 10:47 AM, Frank Cifaldi <fcifaldi at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> We're not all librarians! :)
>>>
>>> Henry, can you check to see if there is a Magnavox ad that mentions the
>>> Odyssey dated earlier than August 30?
>>>
>>>
>>> On Thu, Aug 9, 2012 at 10:14 AM, Henry Lowood <lowood at stanford.edu>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Frank,
>>>> Correction: Article is available *on-line* (for pay) at
>>>>
>>>> newspaperarchive.com. :) It's available at various places on
>>>> microform and paper.
>>>> I checked the Chicago Tribune database, and they have a 1 July 1972
>>>> article on the Odyssey. I have attached it. This article is saying
>>>> "expected" release in "late August" in Chicago and 18 other market
>>>> areas.
>>>> Henry
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On 8/9/2012 9:59 AM, Frank Cifaldi wrote:
>>>>
>>>> BREAKING NEWS!
>>>>
>>>> Via the July 27, 1972 edition of The Daily Herald (Chicago):
>>>>
>>>> "Available to Magnavox dealers in August, Odyssey's initial price tag of
>>>> just under $100 will include 12 different games."
>>>>
>>>> This was in a report about Magnavox's annual zone meeting for its
>>>> dealers.
>>>> There you go!
>>>>
>>>> Article is available (for pay) at newspaperarchive.com.
>>>>
>>>> On Thu, Aug 9, 2012 at 9:37 AM, Philippe Dubois, association MO5.COM,
>>>> Président <samurai at mo5.com> <samurai at mo5.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> **
>>>>
>>>> Thanks everyone for your answer.
>>>>
>>>> The biography of M.Baer just came out in France this month through the
>>>> edition "Pix'n Love", i'm sure it will be delightful to read it in
>>>> details
>>>> ;)
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Best regards,
>>>>
>>>> -----------
>>>>
>>>> Cordialement,
>>>>
>>>> Philippe Dubois, Association MO5.COM, Président
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Aug 9, 2012 11:25 AM, "Philippe Dubois, association MO5.COM,
>>>> Président" <samurai at mo5.com> <samurai at mo5.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Hi everyone !
>>>>
>>>> How can it be possible for M.Baer, with all the respect i have
>>>> for him,
>>>>
>>>> not to know the exact date the Odyssey was publicly launch and
>>>> available in
>>>> stores ?
>>>>
>>>> Because he had nothing to do with that. Remember, he was with Sanders.
>>>>
>>>> The Odyssey's launch, distribution, etc. was a Magnavox issue.
>>>>
>>>> What about the date when M.Baer showed up the tennis game to M.Bushnell
>>>> so
>>>> he went into the idea of cloning this as "Pong" ?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> He didn't show anything, Magnavox did.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Best regards,
>>>>
>>>> -----------
>>>>
>>>> Cordialement,
>>>>
>>>> Philippe Dubois, Association MO5.COM, Président
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>>
>>>> Maybe we just have different philosophies but I'm going to have
>>>> to
>>>>
>>>> strongly disagree here. The only thing we know as solid fact right now
>>>> is
>>>> that sometime between May 3 and August 30, the Odyssey was in at least
>>>> one
>>>> store. Saying "by August" is safe, I agree, but I fail to see how saying
>>>> the first sale was in August is any safer than saying the first sale was
>>>> in
>>>> July. We just don't know.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Thu, Aug 9, 2012 at 9:02 AM, Bill Loguidice
>>>> <bill at armchairarcade.com> <bill at armchairarcade.com>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> August is safest at the moment because the ad is thus far our
>>>> earliest
>>>>
>>>> proof of a unit physically being in a store. Again, it doesn't mean it
>>>> was
>>>> for sale - it could have been a demo unit - but even if it wasn't
>>>> necessarily in stock, it was likely available for order. If we have some
>>>> type of earlier proof a unit was in a store, we can revise the estimate.
>>>> That's why I personally think August is "safe" and the best available
>>>> time
>>>> period. If someone can dig up earlier availability at a Magnavox dealer,
>>>> all the better...
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ===================================================
>>>>
>>>> Bill Loguidice, Managing Director; Armchair Arcade, Inc.
>>>>
>>>> ===================================================
>>>>
>>>> Authored Books and Film; About me and other ways to get in touch
>>>>
>>>> ===================================================
>>>>
>>>> On Thu, Aug 9, 2012 at 11:36 AM, Frank Cifaldi
>>>> <fcifaldi at gmail.com> <fcifaldi at gmail.com>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Why is August the safest estimate? And do we want a "safe
>>>> estimate" or
>>>>
>>>> do we want an exact range?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Thu, Aug 9, 2012 at 8:30 AM, Bill Loguidice
>>>> <bill at armchairarcade.com> <bill at armchairarcade.com>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> I think right now August is still our safest estimate, though
>>>> you're
>>>>
>>>> right, it could certainly have been released sooner. Even the ad -
>>>> which at
>>>> least proves the system was at dealers by August - doesn't necessarily
>>>> mean
>>>> it was for SALE in August (it's a relatively modest "come see" - you
>>>> would
>>>> think they would advertise something so "cool" with the TVs and indicate
>>>> its actual availability).
>>>>
>>>>
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>>>>
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>>>>
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>>>>
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Henry Lowood
>>>> Curator for History of Science & Technology Collections;
>>>> Film & Media Collections
>>>> HSSG, Green Library, 557 Escondido Mall
>>>> Stanford University Libraries, Stanford CA 94305-6004650-723-4602;
>>>> lowood at stanford.edu; http://www.stanford.edu/~lowood
>>>>
>>>>
>
> --
> Henry Lowood
> Curator for History of Science & Technology Collections;
> Film & Media Collections
> HSSG, Green Library, 557 Escondido Mall
> Stanford University Libraries, Stanford CA 94305-6004
> 650-723-4602; lowood at stanford.edu; http://www.stanford.edu/~lowood
>
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