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Post by derv on Apr 12, 2014 22:02:18 GMT -6
One polite question, if I may: Has Brian Blume publicly said or written anything in explanation or defense of his actions? Since James wrote the article that started this discussion, I think this post from the past is adequate in answering your question. grognardia.blogspot.com/2009/02/sympathy-for-devil.html
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Post by kirbyfan63 on Apr 15, 2014 20:01:16 GMT -6
One polite question, if I may: Has Brian Blume publicly said or written anything in explanation or defense of his actions? As far as I know, he has not. Plus, shortly before Gary's death, Brian Blume was at a gaming convention with Gary, I think Gary may have even been the host. So I don't think their relationship is a hostile as people assume.
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Post by kirbyfan63 on Apr 15, 2014 20:05:51 GMT -6
How do those of you leaping to Blume's defense justify his role in exiling Gary to Hollywood and then ousting Gary from his own company when Gary came back and tried to reassume control? ~Scott "-enkainen" Casper Actually Gary did that to himself, He was the one that brought in Lorraine Williams and company (who I believe he met when in Hollywood) and encouraged the Blumes to sell their shares, probably figuring he would have more say in the company with the new owners.
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Post by Stormcrow on Apr 15, 2014 20:39:40 GMT -6
In this interview from 2012, Jim Ward says he still games weekly with Brian Blume.
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machpants
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Post by machpants on Apr 16, 2014 0:31:03 GMT -6
Blume or no Blume, very interesting interview. Thanks for sharing.
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jacar
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Post by jacar on Apr 22, 2014 14:06:52 GMT -6
There was a lot of in-fighting at the time from the early 80s on. There was some rough business decisions in the late 70s as well dealing with Dave Arneson. Gygax? Blume(s)? They all had their hand on the grenade and Lorraine Williams seemed to to believe by buying out the lot of them. All of the mentioned are probably decent people. I've never met any of them. So that's all I can believe. Business is often dirty and messy. That's just the way it is.
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Post by calithena on Apr 22, 2014 15:31:18 GMT -6
If Blume still games that is very interesting! In a Dragon Magazine article he said you could determine your real life Wisdom score by subtracting the number of hours per week you play D&D from 20.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2014 6:19:31 GMT -6
I personally think Maliszewski should be forbidden to write anything even tentatively related to the business side of RPG publishing, ever again.
And I don't mean that at all in an inflammatory way; I just think it's ironic that the guy who arguably produced one of the biggest screw-ups in the history of our subculture gets to rate other people, positively, or negatively, when it was him who failed so spectacularly. I am not saying, burn him, and flag him, but - him evaluating other people's business ventures in the field requires some serious balls.
Did the Dwimmermount backers ever receive a full refund, by the way?
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2014 6:25:15 GMT -6
Like, I am sorry, it seems to me that I only come over here to stirr some bad stuff, but I LOLed when I realized who the author of the article was. I don't wish him any ill, but come on, dude, shut up, or deliver your own stuff in a drama-free way.
The guy who drove his lifetime project into a wall rating the guy who created the core concept of modern RPG marketing? - Holy Hextor, I am not against second chances, but what about Maliszweski cleans up his own dirt first?
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Koren n'Rhys
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Post by Koren n'Rhys on Apr 27, 2014 20:08:59 GMT -6
You did see that the post was dated three years before the KS project, right? James and his blog were a huge part of the making the OSR what it is today (for what that's worth) and it's truly a shame he suffered whatever complete breakdown he did in the midst of that project. It's taken a couple of years extra, but Dwimmermount is inching close to the finish line with or without him. Let the man be - at least he isn't out doing more kickstarters to bring in extra money to finish the first one.
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Post by strangebrew on Apr 28, 2014 0:53:20 GMT -6
Well the article in the original post was from April 8, 2014.
Faineant's delivery might not be the most tactful but I had the same reaction he did. It is a bit ironic, and it's tempting to think the article is a kind of defense by association, if that makes any sense.
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machpants
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Post by machpants on Apr 28, 2014 1:59:00 GMT -6
In better news I have the full text of the Labyrinth Lord version of Dwimmermount, sent to backers today. Just needs all the art and layout and stuff, but it is a full product.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 28, 2014 6:51:44 GMT -6
Ah, you guys posted while I was having the edit window open. Deleted my original response.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 28, 2014 8:29:53 GMT -6
As strangebrew said, the article is from last week, no less.
I have no personal issues with Maliszewski, but who is he, again? - A corny blogger who ran a scam, if you break things down to an unflattering one-sentence summary. Why is he allowed to give his opinion as if he was an elder of the hobby, I don't understand.
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Koren n'Rhys
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Post by Koren n'Rhys on Apr 28, 2014 8:36:29 GMT -6
Well the article in the original post was from April 8, 2014. Faineant's delivery might not be the most tactful but I had the same reaction he did. It is a bit ironic, and it's tempting to think the article is a kind of defense by association, if that makes any sense. Ah, I didn't even notice the date on the original article. Fair enough. Still, to say the guy should disappear and never show his face on the RPG scene ever again seems a bit extreme. Don't get me wrong, I'm NOT defending him in regards to the whole Dwimmermount fiasco. That's entirely on him, regardless of teh reasons.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 28, 2014 13:17:31 GMT -6
And please understand, too, that I am not trying to be intentionally confrontational. But what I am very strongly objecting against is the idea that people like him - meaning, in the most neutral sense, "captains of failboats" - dominate the discourse within the community. Instead of philosophizng about industry gossip, what about the guy writes a free adventure, and sends it to the people that are still waiting for a book they bought from him?
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Koren n'Rhys
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Post by Koren n'Rhys on Apr 29, 2014 9:18:52 GMT -6
Fair enough. If James is feeling well enough to resume some interaction with the online community, then perhaps you're right - throwing a bone in the form of an adventure or some content might be appreciated by some of those burned customers. Still, to say he "dominates the discourse with in the community"? I don't think that's the case at all. All we've seen is the rare article or forum post someplace, to my limited knowledge. If he was to resume blogging at anything approaching his old level , then you'd have a very valid argument.
I've got nothing to argue for or against here, really. I didn't get burned by the KS, personally, and don't really care one way or the other. James, and Brian too, are grown men who can defend themselves if they really care what people on the internets are saying about them. Enough said.
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Post by Deleted on May 1, 2014 7:41:16 GMT -6
Let's just drop this, guys. I'm nearly to lock point here and really don't want to do that. Well, I made the mistake of looking in on this thread, and I wish I hadn't. Speaking as somebody who lived through those years - I used to have to go to TSR stockholders meetings as Dave's proxy to vote his single share of TSR stock - may I ask that we take a deep breath, and look at Brian's contributions to the hobby and not at his activities in the industry? I certainly have an opinion about both Brian and Kevin as business people, and I'll talk about those in the right time and place, but I'd like to think that we can have a civil discussion about games and gaming hereabouts. Thanks for your time. yours, chirine
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Post by Falconer on May 1, 2014 10:34:33 GMT -6
With all due respect, sir, please allow us fans to speculate, if the topic interests us. If “somebody who lived through those years” has something to contribute, great! But you can’t seriously expect us to quash the discussion until “the right time and place” is proclaimed by you, can you?
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Post by Deleted on May 1, 2014 15:25:30 GMT -6
With all due respect, sir, please allow us fans to speculate, if the topic interests us. If “somebody who lived through those years” has something to contribute, great! But you can’t seriously expect us to quash the discussion until “the right time and place” is proclaimed by you, can you? Ah. Well, if you like, there's enough dirt and skeletons in the closet from those years to go around. How much of it would you like? And just how nasty and personal? I gathered, from the Admin comments, that suchlike wasn't entirely in the purview of this forum. My feeling is that there's been enough of thirty-five years of nastiness in the industry, and I'm pretty tired of it. I thought, for example, that Mr. Kask's comments about Dave Arneson (published and republished on several fora), could have been a little more intelligently phrased; Tim's comments *** as an editor *** on Dave's writing style and submissions were both accurate and cogent, but his personal attacks on Dave were - to my mind - inappropriate, rude, and made Tim look like a fool. I am not expecting anyone to quash anything; what I'm hoping is that people will listen to the Admin's voice. I'm not proclaiming anything in the way of an appropriate place; if you like, start a thread on the topic of old wounds and I can rub as much salt into the flayed and bleeding corpses as you like. Fin might have something to say about it, though. yours, chirine (Former Vice-president for Tekuemel Publishing at Adventure Games, and a founding member of GAMA. Yes, I was there, and in the thick of it. It wasn't fun, pretty, or nice.)
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Post by Deleted on May 1, 2014 15:41:01 GMT -6
With all due respect, sir, please allow us fans to speculate, if the topic interests us. If “somebody who lived through those years” has something to contribute, great! But you can’t seriously expect us to quash the discussion until “the right time and place” is proclaimed by you, can you? "Ultracrepidarianism -- expressing opinions on subjects about which one has no knowledge." Sometimes, as I said publicly in two interviews (for both "D&D, a documentary" and "The Great Kingdom") -- those of us who were there wish that those who weren't would stop indulging in public mudslinging and baseless speculation and "open a big ol' can of Shut the F*ck Up." And yes, I did say that with the cameras rolling. Twice.
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Post by Finarvyn on May 1, 2014 18:54:33 GMT -6
I probably let this one go for too long. From the onset, the topic was volatile enough to spark argument. It did.
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