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 Blasts from the past. By Kevin Bowen | May 18, 2003 Most of us here at GameSpy had a jolly good time covering the E3 2003 show, but not many people realize that E3 has attracted gamers and lovers of technology from across the globe for over a century now. Before it was renamed the Electronic Entertainment Expo in 1964, E3 was referred to as the Electric Entertainment Exhibition. It was first held in 1880, and the only thing on display that year was Thomas Edison’s new incandescent filament lightbulb, complete with evacuated glass bulb and screw base. Back then, the act of merely staring at a lightbulb for hours on end was a viable means of amusement. We thought it might be fun to take a look back and check out what E3 was like a hundred years ago. So we went to the library, dug up some old newspapers, and came up with a list of highlights from the memorable E3 1903 show. Enjoy! 10. Early Fanboys Heckle New Magic Lantern  The O’Malley Optical Magic Lantern was available in both black and dark grey colors. The announcement was greeted by almost universal derision, and early film fanboys mocked the Magic Lantern’s somewhat backwards approach. Here’s an excerpt from a reader letter published in the The Future-Times Electric Journal -- a popular publication of the time -- weeks after the show: I viewed the O’Malley Optical Magic Lantern at the E3 faire whilst in the midst of laughing my posterior clean off. That clumsy doo-dad dropped more frames than a drunken moving-man working inside a master painter’s workroom! Film projectors provide the superior motion picture I assure you! Woman Sitting Near Flowers? Man Sneezing Upon His Manservant? these are all exclusive to the cinema! And they dare call this a "Magic" Lantern? I prefer to refer to it as a "Tragic Lament," as this sub-par spectacle will surely crumble under the crushing weight of cinemagnifique!Of course, a small yet very vocal group of Magic Lantern fans expressed their dissenting viewpoints, pointing out that Magic Lanterns were more affordable and had a wider variety of content. They were immediately pelted with stones. The editor-in-chief of a popular Magic Lantern fanzine was later lynched, and as a final insult, images of his burning corpse were filmed on early 15mm stock. 9. First Booth Babe Causes Stir  Francine DeMarco. The Future-Times Electric Journal describes Francine’s appearance on the show floor: This fantastical event of future forecast and general mirth was marred only by the deplorable display of uncouth behavior this reporter witnessed during the exhibition’s closing morrow. The Canterberry Corporation -- a whiz-bang fly-by-night outfit shoecladded together vaunted British boy genius, Edward Canterberry -- hired a comely chop-locked maiden of questionable chasteness to gallivant a-top their display counter, wantonly flashing her bared ankles to the hoots and hollers of a small mob of wretched rapscallions. This sinful display of skin for the amusement of the masses shocked every true gentlemen in attendance. "Did thou lose your bearings whilst traversing to the location of an adjoining laundry facility, madam?" a particularly offended fellow bellowed from his up-stage coffers.Of course, today, booth babes are a little more widely accepted for some reason. 8. Dual Monocle Technology  This picture is actually an example of very early poor Photoshopping, as photographs took three weeks to develop back then and the actual technology wasn't ready until two days before the show. Electronic Arts, which purchased the remaining assets of Electric Artists in 1985 for trademark protection purposes, found the old dual monocle advertising flyer and thought it sounded catchy, so they started naming their games in a similar fashion (ex. EA Sports John Madden Football 2003) and hired celebrity endorsers. Years later, some gamers use dual monitors to play games. Without dual monocles to pave the way, well... you figure it out. Next: Dice dice baby » Page: 1 2 3 4 |
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