Tramiels

[tom]

what are they up to now, if anything?

[SoulBlazer]

That's a very good question. I don't know what happened to them after Atari. I know Jack is still alive, because he's one of the only people who refused to be interviewed for Steven Kent's Ultimate History of Video Game book. You think he'd welcome the chance to clear the air after all these years..... :roll:

[rbudrick]

I thought Tramiel went to work for EA...I'm probably confusing him with someone else.

He probably didn't want to clear the air because

1. He knows he's guilty...there's nothing to clear.

2. He'd get potentially lambasted in the interview.

What a great read it would have been to hear his perspective on the situation though.

-Rob

[Daniel Thomas]

I'd have to assume that Jack Tramiel is retired and loving every minute of it. He was a successful businessman (during the Commodore days) and he's paid his dues. I can't imagine he'd want to jump into that mosh-pit again, especially since his tenure at Atari was so endlessly lambasted.

Maybe I'm just thinking in broader terms. Yes, I loved Atari, I loved the Lynx, and I thought the Tramiels did a pretty mediocre job running things. But so what? Jack Tramiel survived the Holocaust. In my book, he can be the worst businessman in the world, and still get a pass.

I'd like to read a boigraphy about him. That cat's definitely got a story to tell.

[Dangerboy]

That cat's definitely got a story to tell

Considering the Jaguar swan song, that was a rather interesting choice of words. :D

[rbudrick]

A Jack Tramiel biography.......yes...that would be highly interesting indeed.

-Rob

[ApolloBoy]

I hate Tramiel for what he did to Atari! He released the 7800 two years late, held off on the Lynx for two years (Atari bought the Lynx technology from Epyx in '87), was lousy at marketing, and salvaged higher quality for lower costs. :angry:

[Daniel Thomas]

I hate Tramiel for what he did to Atari! He released the 7800 two years late, held off on the Lynx for two years (Atari bought the Lynx technology from Epyx in '87), was lousy at marketing, and salvaged higher quality for lower costs. :angry:

True, they consistently zigged when they should have zagged, but businesses like this one are so often a gambler's game, where you take your chances and place your bets. The Tramiels made their bets after the videogames market bottomed out, and home computers were on their way in. Nintendo gambled on Super Mario Bros., and won the whole damn kitty.

Yeah, I know, I'm not trying to make cat puns here. It just keeps coming out that way. Probably the Jimi Hendrix records I'm listening to right now.

Anyway, the problem with the Lynx was that Atari was a very small company, competing against the 800-lb. gorilla (Nintendo), which held a solid lock on the entire industry. It's really amazing that Sega achieved what they did with the Genesis, really. Atari probably did the best they could, but who was going to pay $35 for lesser-known arcade games when they could get a portable Mario for $20?

Of course, the Tramiels had notoriously burned their bridges with nearly all parties involved, and they never really seemed to grasp just how broadly the games business had changed. For that, the family gets the razzies. But, overall, I just don't see how anyone could have done any better. Atari's time was long past.

[stargate]

I'm pretty sure the dude is working at Wal-Mart.

[§ Gideon §]

I'm pretty sure the dude is working at Wal-Mart.
Yeah, he gave me a sticker:

:)