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• Gary Gygax was an influential writer and co-creator of the massively popular Dungeons and Dragons fantasy role-playing games. On March 8, 2008, he died in his home at the age of 69 from heart problems. He had suffered health problems for several years.

  Dungeons and Dragons co-creator Dave Arneson died in his sleep at his St. Paul, Minnesota home on April 9, 2009. The 61-year-old Arneson been battling cancer for years.CNN: 'Dungeons & Dragons' co-creator dies (April 10, 2009)

• Fast Facts

  1. Full name: Ernest Gary Gygax
  2. Born: July 27, 1938
  3. Birthplace: Chicago, IL
  4. Death: March 8, 2008
  5. Resided in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
  6. High school dropoutWashington Post: [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/04/AR2008030402784.html E. Gary Gygax; Co-Creator of Dungeons & Dragons (March 4, 2008)
  7. Children: Ernest G. Jr., Lucion Paul, Alexander, Mary Elise, Heidi Jo, Cindy Lee
  8. 1968: Founded Gen Con
  9. Spouses: Mary Jo Gygax (divorced), Gail Carpenter
  10. The son of Swiss immigrants
  11. Acknowledged as one of the fathers of table-top gaming
  12. Helped develop the "Chainmail" miniatures board game
  13. Founded the magazine Dragon
  14. Has six children
  15. Suffered two strokes in 2004
  16. Voiced a cartoon version of himself for an episode of the television show Futurama
  17. Was a life-long smoker
  18. Switched to cigars rather than cigarettes after his strokes in 2004

• Dungeons and Dragons Facts

  1. Creators: Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson
  2. Created: 1974
  3. Current publisher: Wizards of the Coast, a division of Hasbro
  4. Also called D&D or DnD
  5. Number of players: Open-ended
  6. Play time: Open-ended
  7. United States: 3 million play every monthBBC: What Happened to Dungeons and Dragons? (April 26, 2004)
  8. Estimated $1 billion in sales for book and equipment as of 2004BBC: What Happened to Dungeons and Dragons? (April 26, 2004)

• Related Mahalo Pages

  Dungeons and Dragons | Gary Gygax Dead | Dave Arneson | 2008 Deaths

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