Ralph H. Baer Passes Away at 92

[Videogamerdaryll]

R.I.P

[Sanriostar]

Had to come back to the Old Guard after hearing the news. I hope there's one thing that those of us on the older game sites (DP, AA, et. al) can take comfort in:
We held his banner high From the start. I'd like to think our support of his efforts were the initial snowball roll that turned into the Smithsonian donations and the National Medal of Technology.

God bless you Mr. Baer. It was a highlight of my life to meet you in 2000.

[Aussie2B]

Rest in peace, Mr. Baer. Thank you for planting the seeds of our hobby.

[AdamAnt316]

Great post, AdamAnt316. May Mr. Baer always be remembered for his pioneering work in the favorite pastime of millions. His was a life well lived.

AdamAnt, that's fantastic!

The father of our hobby has passed, but I'm not sad. Mr. Baer was 92, and he lives on in the medium he pioneered.

I'm glad you liked my post. I intended to talk about it earlier, but wasn't sure if it would come off as bragging; when I heard about his passing, I felt compelled to pay tribute to him. Several months after meeting Mr. Baer at his house (about which I wrote an article for the club newsletter), he attended a meeting of the antique radio club, and gave an excellent lecture about his days in the radio/TV repair business (among other things). I had my Odyssey 300 set up at the meet for everyone to play, and he was happy to see it running.

A month or so later, I managed to find an example of the original Magnavox Odyssey at a ham radio flea market. It was missing the cable which connected the console to the TV/game switch, but the other hardware was there. I sent an email to Mr. Baer, and he graciously offered to give me an example of the missing cable. Went back to his house, picked up the cable, and was able to get the Odyssey up and running. The graphics are nothing to write home about, but it definitely made for a good start for our hobby.
-Adam

[wizardofwor1975]

A true visionary. He will be missed. Rest in peace.

[Tron 2.0]

R.I.P Baer the father video games,without his vision there wouldn't have been a console market to begin with.

[thisIsLoneWolf]

He seemed like a good man, and I'm thankful for what he did for us.
RIP Mr. Baer.

[kaedesdisciple]

An inspiration, for the hobby that we all share, for his passion for technology (a field in which I am proud to participate), and for his passion for life.

While I mourn his loss, the world is certainly better for having had men like him.