Manny Gerard, The Man Who Fired Nolan

For this interview, we’re getting a different perspective of the Atari/Warner relationship, this time from the Warner side.  (Emanual) Manny Gerard was a member of the Office of the President for Warner during the Atari days from 1976, when they acquired Atari, to 1984 when it was sold to the Tramiels.  He in fact was the key person in the decision for Warner to acquire Atari.  As you will hear in the interview, he was also the man who ousted Nolan Bushnell from Atari.  We get Manny’s perspective on Atari from Warner’s view, on the decision to bring out the computer line, and much more.  I think you’ll appreciate Manny’s honesty and his sense of humor.

This interview took place on August 9, 2015.

Teaser Quotes

“I can remember saying this to Nolan, over and over again: You cannot run the company by divine right of kings, Nolan”

It feels to me like the computer’s problem at Atari was that it was; it lived in the shadow of the game systems, because they were so bloody successful.”

“I mean I think the early Apples were good computers but I don’t think they were better than the Atari computers by any considerable margin and they may not even been as good, but we sure got out-marketed.”

“Manny Gerard, the guy who fired me at Atari!  Everybody looks up; who is this guy?  And I said, yeah, Nolan, and the guy who made you a millionaire.”

Links

New York Times 1984 article on Manny leaving Warner

HI-RES Vol. 1, No. 1 / November 1983 Article on Atari History

Manny Gerard - Thoughts on E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial - YouTube