I got turned on in the most direct way, by experience of play back in '76 or '77 ...
... but it was a while before I got my hands on a rule-book, after grasping the essential concept. By "essential," I do not mean the tons of stuff that largely were not even written up yet; I mean the basic idea of a "role-playing" game (a term itself perhaps not yet much current in the D&D scene then).
Anyway, that seems almost the reverse of what's common today. Books and video games and whatnot are widespread with certain trappings, and those can get confused with What It's All About (which some books try to explain, in accordance with the latest corporate line).
I come back to thinking that at heart it's about not knowing what it's about. You descend into some tenebrous cavern, and get assaulted by something toothy. What the ??!!
That's what it's about!