TSR Q&A with Gary Gygax

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This is the multi-year Q&A sessions held by D&D co-creator Gary Gygax here at EN World, beginning in 2002 and running up until his sad pasing in 2008. Gary's username in the thread below is Col_Pladoh, and his first post in this long thread is Post #39.

Gary_Gygax_Gen_Con_2007.jpg
 
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Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax
Deuce Traveler said:
Gary, now that Dungeon and Dragon magazines are ceasing printed publications, I was thinking back on some things I thought that you had written before. Was it true that the magazines were under threat of the axe during the early 80s also?
When circulation of The Dragon was not growing as it should have, the Blumes threatened to cancel it, so I had to change editors when the one in charge failed to respond to the demand for inproved circulation.

When TSR was on the verge of bankruptcy in late 1984, one genius suggested that we sell the magazine as it was a valuable asset, then grossing a million in annual profit. Somehow I managed to not only quash that idea, but also got the fool canned. (He had demanded the cecessaton of the support of the RPGA as it had "only 8,500 members"--DM that actively supported TSR with PR of all sorts.) The mentality demonstrated was not suiotable for a hobby game company. Sound familiar?

Cheers,
Gary
 

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Mark CMG

Creative Mountain Games
Col_Pladoh said:
Heh, kids of age 7 and under don't get to hang out on Rush Street. I did later on, when I was 18 and living on my own there. (I had a doctored ID that showed me as three years older than actual.) So I went Bellini's Coffe House, the Gate of Horn, and the Improv theater there on State, the name of which escapes me, but the owner was listed as "Janitor."

Of course I was a big fan of Second City TV with John Candy et al. on the tube :D

Cheers,
Gary


Do you think that knowing about improv had any influence on RPGs and their development?
 

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax
Mark CMG said:
Will you be doing anything special for the last print issue of Dragon or Dungeon magazines?
Even though the zine was created by me, I have not been asked to do any such thing. The fact is that I am dubious about being able to offer anything polite and constructive.

Cheers,
Gary
 

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax
Mark CMG said:
Do you think that knowing about improv had any influence on RPGs and their development?
Not really. Acting was a most minor consideration in the design and development of the D&D game.

Cheers,
Gary
 

Mark CMG

Creative Mountain Games
Col_Pladoh said:
Even though the zine was created by me, I have not been asked to do any such thing. The fact is that I am dubious about being able to offer anything polite and constructive.

Cheers,
Gary


It would be a shame for them to not bring you on board in some capacity but, barring that, perhaps a letter of farewell could be sent. I would think they'd be hard-pressed not to include that in some fashion.
 

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax
Mark CMG said:
It would be a shame for them to not bring you on board in some capacity but, barring that, perhaps a letter of farewell could be sent. I would think they'd be hard-pressed not to include that in some fashion.
Well Mark,

While I agree in part, such a missive would likely be preceived as a sort of sour grapes, or as a slam against WotC, and it would be hard for me not the make it the latter.

Cheerio,
Gary
 

Col_Pladoh said:
The mentality demonstrated was not suiotable for a hobby game company. Sound familiar?

Sadly, yes.

I look longingly at Apple bringing back Steve Jobs and becoming "relevant" (and highly profitable) again with his ideas, passion, drive, and instant street cred, then I look at WOTC and say: what are you guys waiting for? Don't know who your chairman, or at least chairman emeritus, should have been? I guess they're just dumb as nails, like the previous owners. :(
 


Gray Mouser

First Post
Col_Pladoh said:
No Milton, but I did use a bit of Dante's Inferno is developing the denizens of the Nine Hells.

Cheerio,
Gary

Indeed, and that was something that I as a novice player really appreciated :) As I grew older and actually began reading Dante it always made me a bit nostalgic for the MM descriptions of devils.

Along those lines, was there any reason for switching the ice-cold 9th circle of Dante's Inferno for the frozen (IIRC) 8th plane of the nine hells?

Gray Mouser
 

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