title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: After the Nazis took control of Germany, and began instituting anti-Semitic policies, the IOC held private discussions among its delegates about changing the decision to hold the Games in Berlin. However, Hitler's regime gave assurances that Jewish athletes would be allowed to compete on a German Olympic team. One year before the games, the American Olympic Association suggested to change the venue to Rome; they saw Rome as a good replacement because Rome was originally selected to hold the 1908 Summer Olympics.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Hans von Tschammer und Osten, as "Reichssportführer" (i.e., head of the Deutscher Reichsbund für Leibesübungen (DRL), the Reich Sports Office), played a major role in the structure and organisation of the Olympics. He promoted the idea that the use of sports would harden the German spirit and instill unity among German youth. At the same time he also believed that sports was a "way to weed out the weak, Jewish, and other undesirables".


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Von Tschammer trusted the details of the organisation of the games to Theodor Lewald and Carl Diem, the former president and secretary of the "Deutscher Reichsausschuss für Leibesübungen", the forerunner of the Reich Sports Office. Among Diem's ideas for the Berlin Games was the introduction of the Olympic torch relay between Greece and the host nation.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: The 1936 Summer Olympics torch relay was the first of its kind, following on from the reintroduction of the Olympic Flame at the 1928 Games. It pioneered the modern convention of moving the flame via a relay system from Greece to the Olympic venue. Leni Riefenstahl filmed the relay for the 1938 film "Olympia".


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: The games were the first to have live television coverage. The German Post Office, using equipment from Telefunken, broadcast over 70 hours of coverage to special viewing rooms throughout Berlin and Potsdam and a few private TV sets, transmitting from the Paul Nipkow TV Station. They used three different types of TV cameras, so blackouts would occur when changing from one type to another.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: The 1936 Olympic village was located at Elstal in Wustermark (at ), on the western edge of Berlin. The site, which is from the centre of the city, consisted of one and two-floor dormitories, a large dining hall, "Dining Hall of the Nations", a swimming facility, gymnasium, track, and other training facilities. Its layout was designed and construction overseen by appointed village commander "Hauptmann" Wolfgang Fürstner beginning in 1934. Less than two months before the start of the Olympic Games, Fürstner was abruptly demoted to vice-commander, and replaced by "Oberstleutnant" Werner von Gilsa, commander of the Berlin Guard-Regiment. The official reason for the replacement was that Fürstner had not acted "with the necessary energy" to prevent damage to the site as 370,000 visitors passed through it between 1 May and 15 June. However, this was just a cover story to explain the sudden demotion of the half-Jewish officer. The 1935 Nuremberg Laws, passed during the period Fürstner was overseeing the Olympic Village, had classified him as a Jew, and as such, the career officer was to be expelled from the "Wehrmacht". Two days after the conclusion of the Berlin Olympics, vice-commander Fürstner had been removed from active "Wehrmacht" duty, and committed suicide because he realised he had no future under the Nazis.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: After the completion of the Olympic Games, the village was repurposed for the "Wehrmacht" into the Olympic Döberitz Hospital (), and Army Infantry School (), and was used as such through the Second World War. In 1945 it was taken over by the Soviet Union and became a military camp of the union occupation forces. Late 20th-century efforts were made to restore parts of the former village, but little progress was made. More recently, the vast majority of the land of the Olympic village has been managed by the DKB Foundation, with more success; efforts are being made to restore the site into a living museum. The dormitory building used by Jesse Owens, Meissen House, has been fully restored, with the gymnasium and swimming hall partially restored. Seasonally, tours are given daily to small groups and students.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: The site remains relatively unknown even in Germany, but some tournaments are held at the site in an effort to boost knowledge of the venues.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Twenty-two venues were used for the 1936 Summer Olympics. Many were located in the Reich Sportsfeld complex.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Sailing was held in the Bay of Kiel, which would serve as the sailing venue for the 1972 Summer Olympics held in Munich. The Olympic Stadium would later be part of two FIFA World Cups and then host an IAAF World Championships in Athletics along with undergoing a renovation in the early 2000s to give new life to the stadium. Avus Motor Road (AVUS) was started in 1907, but was not completed until 1921 due to World War I. The track was rebuilt for the 1936 Games. AVUS continued being used after World War II though mainly in Formula 2 racing. The German Grand Prix was last held at the track in 1959. Dismantling of the track first took place in 1968 to make way for a traffic crossing for touring cars that raced there until 1998.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: BSV 92 Field was first constructed in 1910 for use in football, handball, athletics, and tennis. The Reich Sports Field, which consisted of the Olympic Stadium, the Dietrich Eckert Open-Air Theatre, the Olympic Swimming Stadium, Mayfield, the Hockey Stadiums, the Tennis Courts, and the Haus des Deutschen Sports, was planned for the aborted 1916 Summer Olympics, but was not completed until 1934. Mayfield was the last venue completed prior to the 1936 Games in April 1936. Deutschland Hall was opened in 1935. Mommenstadion opened in 1930. Basketball was held outdoors at the request of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA). The tennis courts were used, which turned to mud during heavy rain at the final. The K-1 1000 m canoeing final was also affected by heavy rain at Grünau that included thunder and lightning. During World War II, Deutschlandhalle suffered heavy aerial bombing damage. After the second world war, the hall was reconstructed and expansion has continued . The Deutschlandhalle in Berlin, where the boxing, weightlifting, and wrestling events took place, was used as a venue, but was increasingly closed for repairs, last in 2009 when it was close for repairs, It was demolished in December 2011. the Mommsenstadion was renovated in 1987 and was still in use in 2010.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: The Olympic Stadium was used as an underground bunker in World War II as the war went against Nazi Germany's favor. The British reopened the Stadium in 1946 and parts of the stadium were rebuilt by the late 1950s. As a host venue for the 1974 FIFA World Cup, the stadium had its roof partially covered on the North and South Stands. British occupation of the stadium ended in 1994. Restoration was approved in 1998 with a contractor being found to do the work in 2000. This restoration ran from 2000 to 2004. The modernized Stadium reopened in 2004, with a capacity of 74,228 people. The seating has been changed greatly, especially the sections that were reserved for German and international political leaders. The stadium now plays host to Hertha BSC (1963–present), and is expected to remain the home of the team for years to come. For the 2006 FIFA World Cup, the venue was where the final took place between Italy and France. Three years later, the venue hosted the World Athletics Championships.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: The opening ceremony was held at the Berlin Olympic Stadium on 1 August 1936. A flyover by the German airship "Hindenburg" flying the Olympic flag behind it was featured early in the opening ceremonies. After the arrival of Hitler and his entourage, the parade of nations proceeded, each nation with its own unique costume. As the birthplace of the Olympics, Greece entered the stadium first. The host nation, Germany, entered last. Some nations' athletes purposefully gave the Nazi salute as they passed Hitler. Others gave the Olympic salute (a similar one, given with the same arm), or a different gesture entirely, such as hats-over-hearts, as the United States, India, and China did. All nations lowered their flags as they passed the Führer, save the United States, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and the Commonwealth of the Philippines. (The United States doing this was explained later as an army regulation.) Writer Thomas Wolfe, who was there, described the opening as an "almost religious event, the crowd screaming, swaying in unison and begging for Hitler. There was something scary about it; his cult of personality."


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: After a speech by the president of the German Olympic Committee, the games were officially declared open by Adolf Hitler who quoted (in German): "I proclaim open the Olympic Games of Berlin, celebrating the Eleventh Olympiad of the modern era." Hitler opened the games from his own box, on top of others. Writer David Wallechinsky has commented on the event, saying, "This was his event, he wanted to be glorified."


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Although the Olympic flame was first introduced in the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam, this was the first instance of the torch relay. The Nazis invented the concept of the torch run from ancient Olympia to the host city. Thus as swimmer Iris Cummings later related, "once the athletes were all in place, the torch bearer ran in through the tunnel to go around the stadium". A young man chosen for this task ran up the steps all the way up to the top of the stadium there to light a cauldron which would start this eternal flame that would burn through the duration of the games.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: But in spite of all the pomp and ceremony, and the glorification of Hitler, all did not go according to plan, and there was a rather humorous aspect in the opening ceremony. U.S. distance runner Louis Zamperini, one of the athletes present, related it on camera:


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: 129 events in 25 disciplines, comprising 19 sports, were part of the Olympic program in 1936. The number of events in each discipline is noted in parentheses.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Basketball, canoeing, and handball made their debut at the Olympics. Handball did not appear again on the program until the next German summer Olympic games in Munich in 1972. Demonstration sports were Art, Baseball, Gliding, and Wushu. A team from India gave demonstrations of Kabaddi, Mallakhamb and other traditional Indian sports but were not part of India's official Olympic contingent.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Germany had a successful year in the equestrian events, winning individual and team gold in all three disciplines, as well as individual silver in dressage. In the cycling match sprint finals, the German Toni Merkens fouled Arie van Vliet of the Netherlands. Instead of being disqualified, he was fined 100 ℛℳ and kept his gold. German gymnasts Konrad Frey and Alfred Schwarzmann both won three gold medals.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: American Jesse Owens won four gold medals in the sprint and long jump events. His German competitor Luz Long offered Owens advice after he almost failed to qualify in the long jump and was posthumously awarded the Pierre de Coubertin medal for sportsmanship. Mack Robinson, brother of Jackie Robinson, won the 200-meter sprint silver medal behind Owens by 0.4 seconds. Although he did not win a medal, future American war hero Louis Zamperini, lagging behind in the 5,000-meter final, made up ground by clocking a 56-second final lap. In one of the most dramatic 800-meter races in history, American John Woodruff won gold after slowing to jogging speed in the middle of the final in order to free himself from being boxed in. Glenn Edgar Morris, a farm boy from Colorado, won gold in the decathlon. British rower Jack Beresford won his fifth Olympic medal in the sport, and his third gold medal. The U.S. eight-man rowing team from the University of Washington won the gold medal, coming from behind to defeat the Germans and Italians with Hitler in attendance. 13-year-old American sensation Marjorie Gestring won the women's 3 meter diving event.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Jack Lovelock of New Zealand won the 1500 m gold medal, coming through a strong field to win in world record time of 3:47.8.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: In the marathon, the ethnic Koreans Sohn Kee-chung and Nam Sung-yong won one gold and one bronze medal; as Korea was annexed by Japan at the time, they were running for Japan.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: India won the gold medal in the field hockey event once again (they won the gold in all Olympics from 1928 to 1956), defeating Germany 8–1 in the final. However, Indians were officially considered Indo-Aryans by the Germans so there was no controversy regarding the victory. Rie Mastenbroek of the Netherlands won three gold medals and a silver in swimming. Estonia's Kristjan Palusalu won gold medals in both Men's heavyweight Wrestling styles, marking the last time Estonia competed as an independent nation in the Olympics until 1992.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: After winning the middleweight class, the Egyptian weightlifter Khadr El Touni continued to compete for another 45 minutes, finally exceeding the total of the German silver medalist by 35 kg. The 20-year-old El Touni lifted a total of 387.5 kg, crushing two German world champions and breaking the then-Olympic and world records, while the German lifted 352.5 kg. Furthermore, El Touni had lifted 15 kg more than the light-heavyweight gold medalist, a feat only El Touni has accomplished. El Touni's new world records stood for 13 years. Fascinated by El Touni's performance, Adolf Hitler rushed down to greet this human miracle. Prior to the competition, Hitler was said to have been sure that Rudolf Ismayr and Adolf Wagner would embarrass all other opponents. Hitler was so impressed by El Touni's domination in the middleweight class that he ordered a street named after him in Berlin's Olympic village. The Egyptian held the No. 1 position on the IWF list of history's 50 greatest weightlifters for 60 years, until the 1996 Games in Atlanta where Turkey's Naim Süleymanoğlu surpassed him to top the list.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Italy's football team continued their dominance under head coach Vittorio Pozzo, winning the gold medal in these Olympics between their two consecutive World Cup victories (1934 and 1938). Much like the successes of German athletes, this triumph was claimed by supporters of Benito Mussolini's regime as a vindication of the superiority of the fascist system. Austria won the silver; a controversial win after Hitler called for a rematch of the quarterfinals match to discount Peru's 4–2 win over Austria. The Peruvian national Olympic team refused to play the match again and withdrew from the games. In the quarter-finals of the football tournament, Peru beat Austria 4–2 in extra-time. Peru rallied from a two-goal deficit in the final 15 minutes of normal time. During extra-time, Peruvian fans allegedly ran onto the field and attacked an Austrian player. In the chaos, Peru scored twice and won, 4–2. However, Austria protested and the International Olympic Committee ordered a replay without any spectators. The Peruvian government refused and their entire Olympic squad left in protest as did Colombia.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: A remarkable story from the track and field competition was the gold medal won by the US women's 4 × 100 m relay team. The German team were the heavy favourites, but dropped the baton at one hand-off. Of notable interest on the US team was Betty Robinson. She was the first woman ever awarded an Olympic gold medal for track and field, winning the women's 100 m event at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam. In 1931, Robinson was involved in a plane crash, and was severely injured. Her body was discovered in the wreckage and it was wrongly thought that she was dead. She was placed in the trunk of a car and taken to an undertaker, where it was discovered that she was not dead, but in a coma. She awoke from the coma seven months later, although it was another six months before she could get out of a wheelchair, and two years before she could walk normally again. Due to the length of her recovery, she had to miss participating in the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, in her home country.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: A total of 49 nations attended the Berlin Olympics, up from 37 in 1932. Five nations made their first official Olympic appearance at these Games: Afghanistan, Bermuda, Bolivia, Costa Rica and Liechtenstein.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Hitler saw the Games as an opportunity to promote his government and ideals of racial supremacy. The official Nazi party paper, the "Völkischer Beobachter", wrote in the strongest terms that Jewish and black people should not be allowed to participate in the Games. However, when threatened with a boycott of the Games by other nations, he relented and allowed black and Jewish people to participate, and added one token participant to the German team—a Jewish woman, Helene Mayer. In an attempt to "clean up" the host city, the German Ministry of the Interior authorized the chief of police to arrest all Romani and keep them in a "special camp", the Berlin-Marzahn concentration camp.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: United States Olympic Committee president Avery Brundage became a main supporter of the Games being held in Germany, arguing that "politics has no place in sport", despite having initial doubts.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: French Olympians gave a Roman salute at the opening ceremony: known as the "salut de Joinville" per the battalion, , the Olympic salute was part of the Olympic traditions since the 1924 games. However, due to the different context this action was mistaken by the crowd for a support to fascism, the Olympic salute was discarded after 1946.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Although Haiti attended only the opening ceremony, an interesting vexillological fact was noticed: its flag and the flag of Liechtenstein were coincidentally identical, and this was not discovered until then. The following year, a crown was added to Liechtenstein's to distinguish one flag from the other.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Marty Glickman and Sam Stoller were originally slated to compete in the American 4x100 relay team but were replaced by Jesse Owens and Ralph Metcalfe prior to the start of the race. There were speculations that their Jewish heritage contributed to the decision "not to embarrass the German hosts"; however, given that African-Americans were also heavily disliked by the Nazis, Glickman and Stoller's replacement with black American athletes does not support this theory. Others said that they were in a better physical condition, and that was the main reason behind the replacement.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: In 1937, 20th Century Fox released the film "Charlie Chan at the Olympics". The plot concerned members of the Berlin police force helping the Chinese detective apprehend a group of spies (of unnamed nationality) trying to steal a new aerial guidance system. Despite pertaining to the Berlin Olympics, actual Games' footage used by the filmmakers was edited to remove any Nazi symbols.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: After the Olympics, Jewish participation in German sports was further limited, and persecution of Jews started to become ever more lethal. The Olympic Games provided a nine-month period of relative calmness.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: The German Olympic committee, in accordance with Nazi directives, virtually barred Germans who were Jewish or Roma or had such an ancestry from participating in the Games (Helene Mayer, who had one Jewish parent, was the only German Jew to compete at the Berlin Games). This decision meant exclusion for many of the country's top athletes such as shotputter and discus thrower Lilli Henoch, who was a four-time world record holder and 10-time German national champion, and Gretel Bergmann who was suspended from the German team just days after she set a record of 1.60 meters in the high jump.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Individual Jewish athletes from a number of countries chose to boycott the Berlin Olympics, including South African Sid Kiel, and Americans Milton Green and Norman Cahners. In the United States, the American Jewish Congress and the Jewish Labor Committee supported a boycott.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Prior to and during the Games, there was considerable debate outside Germany over whether the competition should be allowed or discontinued. Berlin had been selected by the IOC as the host city in 1931 during the Weimar Republic, but after Adolf Hitler's rise to power in 1933, observers in many countries began to question the morality of going ahead with an Olympic Games hosted by the Nazi regime. A number of brief campaigns to boycott or relocate the Games emerged in the United Kingdom, France, Sweden, Czechoslovakia, the Netherlands, and the United States. Exiled German political opponents of Hitler's regime also campaigned against the Berlin Olympics through pro-Communist newspapers such as the "Arbeiter-Illustrierte-Zeitung".


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: The protests were ultimately unsuccessful; forty-nine teams from around the world participated in the 1936 Games, the largest number of participating nations of any Olympics to that point.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Fencer Albert Wolff qualified for the French Olympic Team but boycotted the 1936 Summer Olympics, withdrawing from France's national team on principle because he was Jewish. He said: "I cannot participate in anything sponsored by Adolf Hitler, even for France."


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: The Spanish government led by the newly elected left-wing Popular Front boycotted the Games and organized the People's Olympiad as a parallel event in Barcelona. Some 6,000 athletes from 49 countries registered. However, the People's Olympiad was aborted because of the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War just one day before the event was due to start.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: The Soviet Union had not participated in international sporting events since the 1920 Olympics. The Soviet government was not invited to the 1920 Games, with the Russian Civil War still raging, and they did not participate in the 1924 Olympics and forward on ideological grounds. Instead, through the auspices of the Red Sport International, it had participated in a left-wing workers' alternative, the Spartakiad, since 1928. The USSR had intended to attend the People's Olympiad in Barcelona until it was cancelled; the Soviets did attend the Spartakiad-sponsored 1937 Workers' Summer Olympiad in Antwerp, Belgium. The Soviet Union started competing in the Olympics in 1952, when Soviet leaders realized that they could use the event to fulfil their political and ideological agenda.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Halet Çambel and Suat Fetgeri Așani, the first Turkish and Muslim women athletes to participate in the Olympics (fencing), refused an offer by their guide to be formally introduced to Adolf Hitler, saying they would not shake hands with him due to his approach to Jews, as stated by Ms. Çambel in a "Milliyet" newspaper interview in 2000.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Traditionally, the United States sent one of the largest teams to the Olympics, and there was a considerable debate over whether the nation should participate in the 1936 Games.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Those involved in the debate on whether to boycott the Olympics included Ernest Lee Jahncke, Judge Jeremiah T. Mahoney, and future IOC President Avery Brundage. Some within the United States considered requesting a boycott of the Games, as to participate in the festivity might be considered a sign of support for the Nazi regime and its antisemitic policies. However, others such as Brundage (see below) argued that the Olympic Games should not reflect political views, but rather should be strictly a contest of the greatest athletes.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Brundage, then of the United States Olympic Committee, opposed the boycott, stating that Jewish athletes were being treated fairly and that the Games should continue. Brundage asserted that politics played no role in sports, and that they should never be entwined. Brundage also believed that there was a "Jewish-Communist conspiracy" that existed to keep the United States from competing in the Olympic Games. Somewhat ironically, Brundage would be later accused of being a Soviet dupe for his controversial stance on the Soviet sports system that allowed them to circumvent the amateur rules. On the subject of Jewish discrimination, he stated, "The very foundation of the modern Olympic revival will be undermined if individual countries are allowed to restrict participation by reason of class, creed, or race."


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: During a fact-finding trip that Brundage went on to Germany in 1934 to ascertain whether German Jews were being treated fairly, Brundage found no discrimination when he interviewed Jews and his Nazi handlers translated for him, and Brundage commiserated with his hosts that he belonged to a sports club in Chicago that did not allow Jews entry, either.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Unlike Brundage, Mahoney supported a boycott of the Games. Mahoney, the president of the Amateur Athletic Union, led newspaper editors and anti-Nazi groups to protest against American participation in the Berlin Olympics. He contested that racial discrimination was a violation of Olympic rules and that participation in the Games was tantamount to support for the Third Reich.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Most African-American newspapers supported participation in the Olympics. The Philadelphia "Tribune" and the "Chicago Defender" both agreed that black victories would undermine Nazi views of Aryan supremacy and spark renewed African-American pride. American Jewish organizations, meanwhile, largely opposed the Olympics. The American Jewish Congress and the Jewish Labor Committee staged rallies and supported the boycott of German goods to show their disdain for American participation. The JLC organized the World Labor Athletic Carnival, held on 15 and 16 August at New York's Randall's Island, to protest the holding of the 1936 Olympics in Nazi Germany.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Eventually, Brundage won the debate, convincing the Amateur Athletic Union to close a vote in favor of sending an American team to the Berlin Olympics. Mahoney's efforts to incite a boycott of the Olympic games in the United States failed.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his administration did not become involved in the debate, due to a tradition of allowing the US Olympic Committee to operate independently of government influence. However, several American diplomats including William E. Dodd, the American ambassador to Berlin, and George Messersmith, head of the US legation in Vienna, deplored the US Olympic Committee's decision to participate in the games.


title: 1936 Summer Olympics

text: Upon the death of Joan Langdon on March 15, 2022, Iris Cummings became the last surviving competitor of the 1936 Summer Olympics.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: On October 21, 2021, at the Bonanza Creek Ranch in Bonanza City, New Mexico, United States, cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot and director Joel Souza was injured on the set of the film "Rust" when a live round was discharged from a revolver used as a prop by actor Alec Baldwin. The weapon had not been thoroughly checked for safety in advance.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: , the incident is being investigated by the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office, the New Mexico First Judicial District Attorney, the New Mexico Occupational Health and Safety Bureau, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Production of "Rust" was suspended until January 2023, and the incident prompted a discourse on occupational safety in the film industry, the treatment of its employees, and the use of real guns as props.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: Writer and director Joel Souza conceived the story for "Rust" with actor and producer Alec Baldwin. The Western film was produced on a small budget of $6–7 million and was Baldwin's passion project. Its distribution rights were sold for $2 million during the pre-production phase. The production had a filming schedule of twenty-one days. Filming began on October 6, 2021, at the Bonanza Creek Ranch in Bonanza City, New Mexico, a ghost town located thirteen miles south of Santa Fe.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: Responsible for overseeing all weapons on set was the production's property key assistant and armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, daughter of long-time industry armorer Thell Reed. "Rust" was Gutierrez-Reed's second film serving as lead armorer. On her first film, "The Old Way", several crew members complained about her handling of firearms, including an incident in which she discharged a weapon without warning and caused lead actor Nicolas Cage to walk off set.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: Dave Halls was the assistant director. In the aftermath of the incident, former colleagues reported that Halls faced complaints in 2019 about his behavior on two episodes of "Into the Dark", in which he disregarded safety protocols by ignoring blocked exits and a fire lane. In the same year, Halls had been fired from working on the film "Freedom's Path" after a firearm discharged unexpectedly on set, wounding a crew member.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: On the set of the independent film "One Way", a crew member warned producers about Halls's disregard for safety measures and said, "That man is a liability. He's going to fucking kill someone someday, and you're going to be responsible." However, the film's digital imaging technician disputes this claim, saying he knew Halls to be conscientious about safety. "The Hollywood Reporter" reported a number of complaints raised during the production of 2019's "The Tiger Rising", which also featured "Rust" executive producers Ryan Donnell Smith, Allen Cheney, Emily Hunter Salveson, and Ryan Winterstern.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: The beginning of "Rust"s production came amidst a potential strike by members of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) over working conditions and low pay. On October 4, it was announced that IATSE members voted 98.68% in favor of authorizing a strike, with a voter turnout of 89.66% of eligible voters. Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins supported the IATSE. She wrote in an Instagram post: "Standing in #IAsolidarity with our @IATSE crew here in New Mexico on RUST."


title: Rust shooting incident

text: Some crew members claim firearms safety protocols were not distributed with the call sheets and were not strictly followed on the set. They claim a medic was absent during the construction of the film's sets. Furthermore, crew members grew upset with what they claimed was a lack of adequate hotel rooms. Crew members alleged producers would only allow the local New Mexico crew courtesy room rentals after working 13 hours "on the clock". Some claimed they were only left with six hours to sleep after long drives home. However, a source close to the production said their union contract indicated a hotel would be provided if the travel distance was more than 60 miles and that producers would provide a hotel for crew after 13.5 hours or more on set. The source also claimed that hotels were provided to crew on days they worked 10–12 hours if call time was before 6 a.m. and production wrapped after 7 p.m.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: It has been reported that some crew members believe they were mocked for wanting to avoid a one-hour drive from Albuquerque. Several crew members also cited that they were not being paid on time. A crew member added, "We cited everything from lack of payment for three weeks, taking our hotels away despite asking for them in our deals, lack of COVID safety, and on top of that, poor gun safety! Poor on-set safety period!" Before the incident occurred, two prop guns had previously fired a total of three times unintentionally (Baldwin's stunt double had accidentally fired two blanks when he was told a prop gun was "cold", and the film's prop master shot herself in the foot with a blank round).


title: Rust shooting incident

text: However, in a letter signed by 24 crew members, these claims were directly disputed. In the letter, the crew writes that they "believe the public narrative surrounding our workplace tragedy to be inadequate and wish to express a more accurate account of our experience. We do acknowledge that no set is perfect, and like any production, "Rust" had areas of brilliance and areas that were more challenged," read the joint statement. "While we stand firmly with our unions and strongly support the fight for better working conditions across our industry, we do not feel that this set was a representation of the kind of conditions our unions are fighting against." The open letter claims that the shoot was not "a chaotic, dangerous, and exploitative workplace". They go on to write that "[u]nfortunately, in the film industry, it is common to work on unprofessional or hectic productions to gain experience and credits. Many of us have worked on those types of productions. "Rust" was not one of them. "Rust" was professional."


title: Rust shooting incident

text: On October 21, seven unionized members of the film's camera crew collected their belongings at approximately 6:30a.m. MT in a walkout. They claim they were told to leave the set, with a producer threatening to call the police, and were replaced. According to a statement given to "TheWrap" by an anonymous insider, several crew members took a number of prop guns off-set that day, including the firearm involved in the incident, to pass the time shooting at beer cans with live ammunition. After a lunch break, the prop guns had been returned. It is not clear if the firearms were checked again. On October 26, the Santa Fe County district attorney said these claims were still unconfirmed.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: On the twelfth day of filming, on October 21, 2021, the cast and crew were rehearsing a gunfight scene taking place inside of a church at the Bonanza Creek Ranch. Firearms and ammunition were retrieved from a locked safe and Gutierrez-Reed placed three guns used as props on a cart. Among them were a plastic gun that could not shoot live ammunition, a modified weapon that could not fire any type of ammunition, and a solid-frame .45 Colt revolver replica made by Pietta. The latter was the one that Baldwin fired. That morning a new box of ammunition arrived from an uncertain source.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: There are conflicting accounts of how Baldwin came into possession of the revolver. According to a search warrant, the guns were briefly checked by armorer Gutierrez-Reed, before assistant director Halls took the weapon from the prop cart and handed it to Baldwin. In a subsequent affidavit, Halls said the safety protocol regarding this firearm was such that Halls would open the loading gate of the revolver and rotate the cylinder to expose the chambers so he could inspect them himself. According to the affidavit, Halls did not check all cylinder chambers; he recalled seeing three rounds at the time, while the gun was loaded with at least four, one of which was a live round. He "couldn't recall if she [Gutierrez-Reed] spun the drum." In the warrant, it is further stated that Halls announced the term "cold gun", meaning that it was empty. Halls' lawyer, Lisa Torraco, insisted that he did not grab the gun off the table and hand it to Baldwin as reported.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: B-camera operator Reid Russell was situated on a camera dolly, looking at a monitor with Hutchins and Souza both nearby. The scene involved Baldwin's character removing a gun from its holster and pointing it toward the camera. The trio behind the monitor were two feet from the muzzle of the firearm and none of them were wearing any protective gear like noise-canceling headphones or safety goggles.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: While the trio behind the monitor were repositioning the camera to remove a shadow, Baldwin began explaining to the crew how he planned to draw the firearm. He said, "So, I guess I'm gonna take this out, pull it, and go, 'Bang!'" When he removed it from the holster, the gun was fired a single time. Baldwin and Halls have said that Baldwin did not pull the trigger, a claim that was later challenged by an FBI report. The projectile flew towards the three behind the monitor, striking Hutchins in the chest and Souza in the shoulder. Script supervisor Mamie Mitchell called 9-1-1 at 1:46p.m. PT and emergency crews appeared three minutes later. The incident was not recorded.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: Hutchins was flown by helicopter to the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque, where she was pronounced dead. Souza was treated by EMS and transported by ambulance to Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center in Santa Fe, where he was admitted and released by the following morning.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: As a result of the incident, production on "Rust" was suspended indefinitely, though co-producer Anjul Nigam was confident the film would resume production once the investigation ends. However, Nigam later clarified that he meant to express optimism and hope, rather than confidence, as he stated that many involved in the production hope to honor Hutchins by completing her final work.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: On October 21, the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office said it was investigating "what type of projectile was discharged" and how the event occurred. Baldwin was questioned and left without charges filed.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: On October 22, Baldwin sent out a tweet expressing his shock and sadness. He also indicated his full cooperation in the ongoing police investigation regarding the incident, which the Sheriff's Office confirmed. On October 22, the Santa Fe County Magistrate issued two search warrants. In an affidavit, the Sheriff's Office said neither Halls nor Baldwin knew the gun was loaded. On October 27, after issuing another search warrant, the department said they had recovered over 600 items as evidence, including 500 rounds of ammunition which were a mix of blanks, dummy rounds and suspected live rounds. They added that a projectile had been recovered from Souza's shoulder, which they categorized as a suspected live round.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: The incident is also under investigation by the state's First Judicial District Attorney, as well as the New Mexico Occupational Health and Safety Bureau, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The film's production company, Rust Movie Productions, is conducting an internal review. On October 26, the film's producers said they had hired a legal team from Jenner & Block to conduct an investigation and interview the cast and crew about the incident. On the same day, women's rights attorney Gloria Allred and her law firm Allred, Maroko & Goldberg were confirmed to be investigating the incident and representing "Rust" script supervisor Mamie Mitchell. On October 28, Halls hired Albuquerque attorney Lisa Torraco as his defense lawyer; Gutierrez-Reed hired former Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Bowles as her lawyer.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: On November 3, Bowles made the claim that sabotage was involved in the incident. On November 10, Santa Fe County District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies said there was no evidence to back up Bowles's claim and added, "The defense attorneys, we don't have the same information that they do, but until we have it in our hands, it doesn't play into the decision making process." That same day, Bowles continued to spread his theory and said his team "are convinced that this was sabotage and Hannah is being framed." In December 2021, Gutierrez-Reed's father Thell Reed said there was "a lot of motive" for the incident to be sabotage.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: On December 2, 2021, an interview between Baldwin and television host George Stephanopoulos aired on ABC. On December 6, Baldwin deleted his Twitter account. On December 16, it was reported that Santa Fe police had obtained a search warrant for Baldwin's mobile phone, which was handed over on January 14, 2022.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: On April 21, 2022, the state of New Mexico fined the production company, Rust Movie Productions, $137,000 for ignoring firearms safety regulations, revealing that Gutierrez-Reed's time as armorer was extremely limited, Halls had witnessed two other misfires and did nothing about safety issues, along with giving Baldwin the weapon that killed Hutchins, and stating the production company failed to have a process for preventing live ammunition from getting onto the set.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: In August 2022, FBI forensic testing and investigation of the firearm determined the Pietta .45 Long Colt Single Action Army revolver could not have been fired without a trigger pull from a quarter or half-cock position and with the hammer fully cocked. It was also determined that the working internal components were intact and functional which ruled out a mechanical failure as a reason for an accidental discharge. The FBI report contradicts Baldwin's statement during the December 2021 interview when he claimed "the trigger wasn't pulled" and "I didn't pull the trigger."


title: Rust shooting incident

text: On November 10, "Rust" gaffer Serge Svetnoy filed a lawsuit against the production for general negligence. A second lawsuit was filed on November 17 by script supervisor Mamie Mitchell, who says the script did not call for the discharging of a firearm. On January 23, 2022, Baldwin and other producers filed a memorandum that asked a California judge to dismiss the November 17, 2021 lawsuit by Mitchell.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: On January 12, 2022, Gutierrez-Reed filed a lawsuit against armorer Seth Kenney and his company PDQ Arm and Prop for allegedly bringing the live rounds on set. On February 7, 2022, "Rust" key medic Cheryln Schaefer filed a lawsuit against the production and several crew members for negligence. On February 15, after nearly three months of legal preparation, the Hutchins family filed a wrongful death suit which named Baldwin, Halls, Gutierrez-Reed, prop master Sarah Zachry, and others as defendants and sought unspecified damages. In October 2022, the Hutchins family settled the lawsuit. Filming is set to resume in January 2023, in California, with Matthew Hutchins as an executive producer. Many of the film's crew gave mixed reactions towards the news, with some supporting it and planning on resuming their work on it, while others condemning the decision and deciding to not return.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: In November 2022, the court rejected a request to dismiss Mitchell's lawsuit against Baldwin and his production company.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: The International Cinematographers Guild announced it would hold a candlelight vigil on the evenings of October 23 and 24 for Hutchins. The Guild additionally set up a GoFundMe fundraiser for Hutchins's family. The American Film Institute (AFI) announced that it would set up a scholarship program for women cinematographers in Hutchins's name. On October 24, a vigil took place in New Mexico to mourn Hutchins's death. Industry professionals, including a number of Hollywood actors, were among those who attended the event in Albuquerque. Some attendees also called for better safety measures to be taken on film sets.


title: Rust shooting incident

text: On October 29, Gutierrez-Reed released a statement saying that "the whole production set became unsafe" due to several factors that included a lack of safety meetings and her having to work two positions, preventing her from focusing full-time on her position as armorer. The statement also said that she "fought for training, days to maintain weapons, and proper time to prepare for gunfire but ultimately was overruled by production and her department", and that she had no idea where the live rounds came from. On November 1, Halls released a statement to the "New York Post" in which he paid his respects to Hutchins and said he hoped the incident would cause "the industry to reevaluate its values and practices to ensure no one is harmed through the creative process again".


title: Rust shooting incident

text: The shooting sparked debates about the use of guns as props on film sets. Shannon Lee, the sister of Brandon Lee, an actor who was killed by a similar accidental shooting from a prop firearm on the film set of "The Crow" in 1993, called for mandatory gun safety training and reducing the use of firearms as props, stating that "with all the special effects that are possible and all of the technology, there is no reason to have a prop gun or a gun on a set that can fire a projectile of any sort". Similar comments were echoed by others who knew Lee or had worked with him on "The Crow". Bill Dill, a cinematographer who was a teacher for Hutchins at the AFI, also suggested using special effects instead, calling it "archaic" that "real guns with blanks in them" are used in film. On October 22, "The Rookie" showrunner Alexi Hawley announced that the show would ban live guns from set, stating that "it is now policy on "The Rookie" that all gunfire on set will be Airsoft guns with CGI muzzle flashes added in post."


title: Rust shooting incident

text: Firearms safety expert Dave Brown disputes the need to use only fake or toy guns in future film productions. In an article for CNN, he says that incidents such as this one "are the result not of including firearms on a film set but of a cavalier attitude towards safety" and "[w]hen handled responsibly, firearms are as safe as any other prop on a film set." He explains that, "On a safe production, each firearm is meticulously inspected every time it changes hands. It means every take of every angle of every scene; the same prop gun could be checked and re-checked dozens upon dozens of times in a single day. Live ammunition, without question, is never allowed on set."


title: Rust shooting incident

text: The shooting sparked debates about the use of guns in films and television more generally. In an article for "The Conversation", Brad Bushman of Ohio State University and Dan Romer of the University of Pennsylvania argued that "the gun industry pays production companies to place its products in their movies. They are rewarded with frequent appearances on screen," and that "the more guns there are in movies, the more likely it is that a shooting will occur – both in the 'reel' world and in the 'real' world." An editorial for the "Los Angeles Times" said the incident "raises the bigger issue of the proliferation of guns in shows and movies. Weapons are often part of plot points but do they need to be? TV and movie cops brandish and fire their weapons often, but in reality, a police officer rarely draws his or her gun (outside of a shooting range) in the course of an entire career."


title: Rust shooting incident

text: The shooting also sparked debates about working conditions on film sets. In a speech at a vigil, IATSE vice-president Michael Miller said, "I'm afraid we are also gathered with some frustration and a little bit of anger. Anger that too often the rush to complete productions and the cutting of corners puts safety on the back burner and puts crew members at risk." In a Facebook post, the gaffer on the film set, Serge Svetnoy, said that "to save a dime sometimes [producers] hire people who are not fully qualified for the complicated and dangerous job."


title: Incubus (band)

text: Incubus is an American rock band from Calabasas, California. The band was formed in 1991 by vocalist Brandon Boyd, lead guitarist Mike Einziger, and drummer José Pasillas while enrolled in Calabasas High School and later expanded to include bassist Alex "Dirk Lance" Katunich, and Gavin "DJ Lyfe" Koppell; both of whom were replaced by bassist Ben Kenney and DJ Kilmore, respectively.


title: Incubus (band)

text: Incubus has attained commercial success, reaching multi-platinum sales, as well as releasing several successful singles. After their first two albums, "Fungus Amongus" (1995) and "S.C.I.E.N.C.E." (1997), the band earned mainstream recognition with the release of their 1999 album "Make Yourself" which spawned several hits, including the band's highest charting song "Drive." Success continued with the albums "Morning View" (2001) and "A Crow Left of the Murder..." (2004). Their sixth studio album, "Light Grenades", debuted at No. 1 in 2006 and was followed by Incubus's first greatest hits album "Monuments and Melodies" in June 2009 and the band's 2011 album, "If Not Now, When?". Incubus also released an EP, "Trust Fall (Side A)", in early 2015, and two years later, the band released their eighth studio album, titled "8", on April 21, 2017. A second EP, "Trust Fall (Side B)", was released on April 17, 2020. Worldwide, Incubus has sold over 19 million albums.


title: Incubus (band)

text: Incubus was formed in 1991 by vocalist Brandon Boyd, guitarist Mike Einziger, bassist Alex Katunich and drummer José Pasillas, while the members were in high school. They existed as a band for some time before they gave themselves a name, having only chosen the band's name "Incubus" when required to supply a band name for an upcoming show. The band's early shows were frequently at nightclubs on Los Angeles's Sunset Strip, including such well-known venues as the Whisky a Go Go, the Roxy and the Troubadour. Early on the members of Incubus bonded over Phish and Primus and used their grassroots approach as a model for their career.


title: Incubus (band)

text: Incubus produced many of their early recordings with Jim Wirt and Chillum Records in the Santa Monica studio 4th Street Recording, only able to work on their music during hours in which they were not in school. In 1995 recorded their first two-song EP, "Let Me Tell Ya 'Bout Root Beer". This was followed by the debut album "Fungus Amongus", also recorded with Wirt and released on Incubus's own label "Stopuglynailfungus Music". Incubus then added Gavin Koppell (known by his stage name DJ Lyfe) to the band. In the following year, Incubus signed a seven-record deal with Sony's Immortal Records, later to become Epic Records. The group was spotted by Epic/Immortal A&R Paul Pontius, who was also responsible for signing Korn to the label. The 1997 six-track EP "Enjoy Incubus" was the band's first major-label release and was created so the band could present a recording while touring with Korn in Europe.


title: Incubus (band)

text: "S.C.I.E.N.C.E.", Incubus's second studio album, was released on September 9, 1997. After their album release, they started opening for bands such as Korn and 311. This album marked a stylistic departure from the band's early material, featuring heavy guitar riffs, slap bass and turntables to create their most nu metal album. In February 1998, Incubus dismissed Koppell. They decided that with him in the band they could no longer be a productive family. A friend recommended Chris Kilmore to fill the position. The band enjoyed Kilmore's style and attitude towards life and asked him to join the band. Incubus participated in the Ozzfest and Family Values metal festivals and toured with System of a Down and Ultraspank during the fall. Chris Kilmore, also known as DJ Kilmore, replaced DJ Lyfe.


title: Incubus (band)

text: After constant touring throughout 1998, and after selling over 100,000 copies of "S.C.I.E.N.C.E." without the support of radio or television exposure, Incubus took a break for two years and then released their critically acclaimed third album "Make Yourself".


title: Incubus (band)

text: After just two weeks in the studio with producer Jim Wirt, the band was unhappy with the recordings and opted to continue recording without a producer. After another 3 weeks of recording, R.E.M./Nirvana producer Scott Litt took an interest in their songs and started taking part in the recording sessions, mainly focusing on songs like "Drive" and "Stellar". According to the band, Litt's involvement in the record came mostly during the mixing process.


title: Incubus (band)

text: "Make Yourself" was released on October 26, 1999. The album marked the beginning of a more commercially acceptable pop rock and alternative rock sound for the band, although several songs from the album still included elements of nu/alternative metal, such as downtuned riffs and layers of electronics. Right after their album's release, the band went on tour with Primus and Buckethead, a tour which lasted for the remainder of the year. The first song that kicked off the album, "Privilege", was featured on "MTV Sports: Pure Ride" for the PlayStation. The band also released the single, "Pardon Me", but it was initially not well received by radio stations. Brandon and Mike decided to perform a live acoustic version of the song at the few radio stations who were showing interest, and this in turn spread the word of the song. Many radio stations began to play the acoustic version, including the influential Los Angeles radio giant KROQ-FM.


title: Incubus (band)

text: With sparked interest in the song, radio stations began playing the studio version of "Pardon Me". In response, Incubus made a video for the song and released a six-song EP titled "When Incubus Attacks (Vol. 1)" on August 22, 2000. The EP contained the acoustic version of "Pardon Me". In its first week, the EP sold nearly 40,000 copies, and peaked at No. 41 on the "Billboard" 200. To start off 2000, the band headed out on Tour with System of a Down, and Mr. Bungle until March, at which point they embarked on a headline tour in clubs until April.


title: Incubus (band)

text: Due to the success of "Pardon Me", "Make Yourself" reached Gold certification (500,000 copies sold) in April 2000. Incubus continued to tour overseas, and returned home at the end of May to go on a tour of the United States with longtime friends 311. "Stellar," the next single from the album was soon released, and its video received afternoon airplay on MTV and "TRL," becoming a success on the Alternative chart. In July, Incubus were once again on the Ozzfest bill, until the late summer.


title: Incubus (band)

text: The band then took a short break after finishing the Ozzfest 2000 Tour, playing two acoustic shows at Artist Direct Studios. On October 5, 2000, "Make Yourself" went Platinum (one million copies sold), and shortly after, the band went on tour with Deftones. Sony re-released their independent debut album "Fungus Amongus" on November 7, 2000.


title: Incubus (band)

text: On November 14, 2000, the band released "Drive", the fourth single from "Make Yourself" after "Privilege" was released (which then went to the top 20 where it stayed at No. 3 for 6 weeks.) It moved quickly up to the top of the Alternative Charts, eventually hitting the No. 1 spot. The single was a success and helped the band break into the mainstream. The single eventually reached the top ten of the "Billboard" Hot 100 singles chart.


title: Incubus (band)

text: After a ten-year break from the music business in 2000, thrash metal band Opprobrium (already formed in 1986) were forced to change their name in order to avoid confusion and a lawsuit.


title: Incubus (band)

text: The band took a break during the first part of 2001 before heading to a beachside mansion in Malibu, California, to record their follow-up album, which would later become known as "Morning View".


title: Incubus (band)

text: They began touring once more with Hundred Reasons in Europe from June until the first week of July. At this time, the band was invited to play with the Area 1 Festival, which featured Moby, Outkast, the Roots, Paul Oakenfold, Carl Cox, and Nelly Furtado. Also, in July, "Make Yourself" was certified double-platinum, selling 2 million copies. In August, the band got to play their first shows in Australia and Japan, before returning to the United States to begin their headlining tour with their long-time friends from California, Hoobastank. Meanwhile, the band's video for "Drive" was nominated for an MTV Video Music Award in the category of Best Group Video.


title: Incubus (band)

text: Continuing to tour, Incubus released their first single, "Wish You Were Here", from their upcoming record, "Morning View", on August 21, 2001. The single instantly began to climb up the Alternative charts, reaching No. 2 by early September. The music video was released at the end of that month, after being re-cut to make it more viewable in the wake of the 9/11 disaster. The video earned viewings on MTV's TRL, VH1, and MuchMusic. Their follow-up single was "Nice to Know You."


title: Incubus (band)

text: On October 23, 2001, the band released their fourth full-length major label album. The name was taken from the street on which the band's recording studio was situated. Incubus continued to headline dates after its release, and "Wish You Were Here" continued to sit among the top 10 on "Billboard"s Alternative charts. "Morning View" debuted on the Billboard Top 200 at the No. 2 spot (266,000 copies were sold in its first week). This was the highest ever placement for Incubus. At the same time, "Wish You Were Here" was at No. 2 on the Alternative Charts, and "Drive" sat at No. 48 on the Hot 100 chart. The band won an award for Billboard's Alternative Single of the Year for "Drive". By December, "Morning View" was certified platinum, "Wish You Were Here" was No. 4 on Alternative charts, and "Morning View" was No. 38 on top 200.


title: Incubus (band)

text: On December 11, Incubus released "When Incubus Attacks (Vol. 2)", a DVD-Video that featured music videos for "Take Me to Your Leader", "A Certain Shade of Green", "Pardon Me", "Stellar", "Drive", "I Miss You", and "Summer Romance (Anti-Gravity Love Song)", live footage, backstage video, and more. Director Bill Draheim documented the making of "Drive". Save Me from my Half-Life Drive is the result of that edited EPK footage.


title: Incubus (band)

text: To begin 2002, Incubus was No. 9 with "Drive", No. 12 with "Stellar", No. 20 with "Wish You Were Here", No. 75 with "Nice To Know You" and No. 31 with the album "Morning View". On January 24, 2002, MTV's TRL premiered the "Nice to Know You" video, and Boyd called in from Europe where the band was on tour with 311 and Hoobastank. The band was then featured on MTV's "Becoming", TRL, "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno", and played the "Late Show with David Letterman" on February 14, 2002, all before heading off to play dates in Japan and Australia for the remainder of February and March. While in Sydney, the band shot the video for their next single, "Warning", from March 7 until March 11.


title: Incubus (band)

text: The band then released the DVD "The Morning View Sessions" on May 28, shortly before playing the Weenie Roast on June 8 for KROQ.


title: Incubus (band)

text: Incubus issued a limited-edition version of "Morning View" on October 1 to coincide with their fall headlining tour. The new version of the album contained a DVD dubbed the "Morning After View Session". It featured the UK video for the group's track "Are You In?", tour footage, new artwork, behind-the-scenes material, and more. Incubus's last performance in 2002 (on November 1) brought several eras for the band to a close. Their last show of the tour would be their last show touring behind 2001's "Morning View", as the band looked on to playing new music. The show would also prove to be their last with bass player Dirk Lance, who left the band due to personal differences.


title: Incubus (band)

text: Lance was quietly replaced by former the Roots guitarist Ben Kenney, who began working with Einziger on new songs for a psychedelic jazz-funk project called Time-Lapse Consortium. Incubus ended the year on the charts, having "Wish You Were Here" (#10), "Warning" (#16), and "Nice To Know You" (#26) on the alternative rock format chart, joining "Wish You Were Here" (#25) and "Nice To Know You" (#36). "Morning View" was the 40th-best-selling album of 2002.


title: Incubus (band)

text: On January 6, 2003, the band began writing for their next record. The next month, on February 7, the band began to renegotiate their record contract. The band, which had been signed to Epic/Immortal for seven years, cited the fact that state law limits the amount of time that an artist can be bound to a company. The band had been signed to the label for 7 years, and used California's "Seven Years Law" as a negotiating tool with Epic/Immortal. After releasing three successful albums, the band had been compensated poorly compared to the revenue that they had generated for Sony. The band entered a lawsuit against their label in order to break from their contract, to which Sony responded with a lawsuit of their own. On March 1, Einziger, along with Scott Litt, Dave Holdredge, and Rick Will, was nominated for a Grammy in the "Best Engineered Album (Non Classical)" category, for their work on "Morning View". On April 3, after weeks of circulating rumors about Dirk Lance's departure from the band, an official announcement was made by the band. A decision had been reached amongst members of Incubus in a face-to-face meeting at the end of the "Morning View" tour to discuss his involvement in the band. The band said that the split had become necessary due to "irreconcilable creative differences".


title: Incubus (band)

text: Almost immediately after the announcement of a new bass player, the 2003 Incubus vs. Sony case had been settled. The two sides settled on a new contract that delivers three albums to Epic/Immortal with an option on a fourth. The first album would be worth $8 million in advances to the band, with another $2.5 million for each one thereafter.


title: Incubus (band)

text: By December the new album, which was recorded at Southern Tracks Recording Studios in Atlanta, Georgia was recorded live, opposed to recording each instrument at separate times, and was produced by Brendan O'Brien (Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Rage Against the Machine, Stone Temple Pilots) was completed and scheduled for release. Titled "A Crow Left of the Murder...", the album was to be an enhanced CD with behind-the-scenes video. In the videos, Einziger and Boyd discussed their new songs. Einziger described them as "like the old shit, but older. It's very different. It's very energetic and fast, and a lot of it is more technical. I guess maybe in the vein of more of our older songs; they don't sound like our older songs. They are more exploratory." It was the last Incubus album to be labelled as "alternative metal" by the media, with subsequent albums from the band diverting even further from this sound. On December 15, 2003, the first single, "Megalomaniac", was released. It raised controversy when it was said to be an attack on the Bush administration, and was banned from daytime view on MTV (despite the band saying that it was not an attack on a particular person, rather a comment on some people's negative attitudes). However, the band was actually pleased with this nighttime viewing restriction. Says Boyd, "When we heard our video had been relegated to late night rotation, I think that all of us were secretly like, 'Yes!' ". Pasillas reflected Boyd's sentiments, saying, "I think it's okay if people think that we're trying to make a political statement. Whatever anyone conjures up or takes from our music is good; I mean, our point is to get people thinking."


title: Incubus (band)

text: "A Crow Left of the Murder..." was released in 2004, showcasing a new turn for the band. The second single released was "Talk Shows on Mute", featuring a video that was inspired by George Orwell's "Animal Farm".


title: Incubus (band)

text: Incubus toured worldwide in 2004 with many bands, including Ben Kweller, the Walkmen, Hundred Reasons, the Music, Brand New and Sparta, to promote their new album after their original support act the Vines pulled out due to exhaustion. One song left off the album, the 27-minute-long instrumental entitled "The Odyssey", was later featured on soundtrack for the video game, "Halo 2".


title: Incubus (band)

text: In November 2004, the band released a live DVD entitled "Alive at Red Rocks", filmed in Red Rocks Park, Colorado, during their world tour for "A Crow Left of the Murder...". Along with the DVD came a bonus CD featuring five tracks, including a studio version of live favorite "Pantomime", "Follow" (a lyrical version, different from the First Movement of the Odyssey version), and the UK B-side "Monuments and Melodies". Two live tracks were also included. The performance was also sold in high definition via Blu-ray Disc. A high definition version of the entire song "Pardon Me" is also available for free download from the PlayStation Store, an online service for PlayStation 3 users.


title: Incubus (band)

text: In December 2004, at a gig in Los Angeles the band played the Police hits "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da", "Message in a Bottle" and "Roxanne" with Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers from the former band.


title: Incubus (band)

text: In the spring of 2005, the band went back into the studio with Brendan O'Brien. Three new songs were released in late July 2005 as part of the soundtrack album to the Sony film "Stealth". The track ""Make a Move"", was released to radio in late May, and song reached No. 17 (Alternative Charts) and No. 19 (Mainstream Rock Charts). Fan reaction towards "Make a Move" was lukewarm, but the other two new songs, "Admiration" and "Neither of Us Can See" (a duet with Chrissie Hynde), seemed to be much more well-liked. In January 2006, the first of a series of Incubus podcasts was released by the band via internet. Among other things, the podcast featured the band's thoughts about their 2005 South American tour, some information on their new album, a mash-up of "Drive" and Tupac Shakur's "Better Dayz", a cover of Soundgarden's "Black Hole Sun", and a few live interludes.


title: Incubus (band)

text: On August 1, 2006, the band announced that album number six, "Light Grenades", was soon to be released and that it was being produced by Brendan O'Brien. A few weeks afterward, the release date was confirmed to be Tuesday, November 28. Upon release, "Light Grenades" debuted No. 1 on the "Billboard" 200, the first time Incubus has ever sat atop the album charts, despite only selling 165,000 copies (their lowest debut for an album since "Make Yourself") in the first week.


title: Incubus (band)

text: In November, Incubus played two exclusive European shows in Berlin and London. These were both in less than 2,000-capacity venues—a special occasion for the band and the fans (due to Incubus's mainstream success, the band now usually plays at large arenas worldwide). The band used these shows to showcase new material from "Light Grenades". The band's first single, "Anna Molly", had a music video which had mainstream success.


title: Incubus (band)

text: On December 27, 2006, Incubus launched the "I Dig Incubus" contest, in which participants cut together clips of the band performing their single "Dig", to form a complete music video. On February 1, 2007, five finalists were announced for the "I Dig Incubus" contest. In a video interview on "Blender", bassist and vocalist Ben Kenney said, "It's almost something that will happen whether or not we want to do it. People will make their own videos for songs. It's kind of a cool way for us to get together with fans out there who are artistic." On August 4, 2007, Incubus played on the first day at Baltimore's Virgin Festival along with bands such as the Police and Beastie Boys.


title: Incubus (band)

text: Michael Einziger had been suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome and although he had an operation that has corrected the problem, he needed to recuperate for a few months, hence recent tour plans were postponed. Incubus apologized to fans and continued the tour in the summer and autumn.


title: Incubus (band)

text: In February and March 2008, Incubus hit the road again starting in New Zealand and headlining the Soundwave festival in Australia alongside the Offspring and Alexisonfire, and toured Asia performing to sell-out crowds. In Singapore, they met fans at a Meet and Greet session at Changi Airport and performed at Fort Canning Hill.


title: Incubus (band)

text: In April, Incubus performed at the Festival Imperial in Costa Rica, along with the bands the Smashing Pumpkins and Duran Duran, and later in Venezuela at the Poliedro de Caracas.


title: Incubus (band)

text: Incubus also performed a number of shows throughout Europe this summer including the Rock am Ring and Rock im Park Festivals in Germany, the Nova Rock Festival in Austria, Pinkpop Festival in the Netherlands and the Download Festival in England. In July 2008, the band played in a VH1 tribute to the Who alongside Foo Fighters, Pearl Jam and the Flaming Lips.


title: Incubus (band)

text: In April 2008 the band took a break from touring and recording while its members concentrated on school, family and other activities. Brandon Boyd enrolled in a university art program in Los Angeles, while guitarist Mike Einziger went to Harvard music school to study composition. Drummer José Pasillas was also "having a baby, so there's a lot of normal life stuff going on right now—school, babies, mortgages," Boyd said. "I'm of the mind to say it wouldn't be a bad thing to disappear for a year or two years," he said. "A lot of people would say culture moves too fast and you need to remind people, but I would argue there's not any rush."


title: Incubus (band)

text: In mid January 2009, Incubus posted a video to their official site, describing what each band member was currently occupied with in the form of letters to each other. The resolution of the video was that the band was planning on getting back together soon, excited to create new music with their diverse experiences over their respite.


title: Incubus (band)

text: On March 11, 2009, Incubus posted an update to their official site detailing the new greatest hits album, "Monuments and Melodies." The first single for the album was "Black Heart Inertia," released on April 7, 2009 with the album coming two months later on June 16, 2009. Disc one of the album included new singles "Black Heart Inertia" and "Midnight Swim" as well as the top radio hits of the last decade. Then disc two of the album contains songs that have not been released officially on an album, or were rejected demos on prior albums, as well as an acoustic version of "A Certain Shade of Green," and a cover of the Prince song "Let's Go Crazy." The band also announced many confirmed dates for a Summer Amphitheater Tour of the US.


title: Incubus (band)

text: On April 1, 2009, the band posted a fake "making of" video that was filmed on the set of "Black Heart Inertia". In the video, Brandon and his double "swapped places". Brandon fetched coffee for his double, and his double also imitated Christian Bale when the DP annoyed him, shouting at and violently chasing him out off of the set. After the short film, the first full stream of "Black Heart Inertia" was uploaded, clocking in at 4:17. On April 2, the full song was streamed on the band's official site. The song peaked at No. 7 on the Alternative Songs chart, making it the band's 15th Top 10 standing on the list.


title: Incubus (band)

text: On June 16, 2009, "Monuments and Melodies" was released to the public, and opened at No. 5 on the "Billboard" 200. "Monuments and Melodies" was the band's fourth album to reach the top 5 on the "Billboard" 200. The next month, on July 1, 2009, Boyd stated to "North County Times", "We are definitely going to be writing ... in hopes of putting out a record sometime in 2010. That's the hope. We can never force anything. I definitely have the suspicion that we're going to get on the road together this summer, and we're just going to start playing and stuff is going to start brewing, and we're going to light that fire again."


title: Incubus (band)

text: In January 2010, it was revealed that former turntablist Gavin "DJ Lyfe" Koppell threatened current turntablist Chris Kilmore in a store on December 28, 2009. Kilmore, who replaced Gavin Koppell in 1998 claimed that Koppell, "asked me to fight him right there and raised his fists to me." As result of the incident, a judge has granted a new restraining order against Koppell. Kilmore also had a previous restraining order issued against Koppell in 2003 after Koppell allegedly spat in his face.


title: Incubus (band)

text: After the release of Boyd's first solo album, "The Wild Trapeze" on July 6, 2010, it was announced that Incubus would head back into the studio to begin writing and recording a new studio album, to be released on July 12. The band played a handful of South American tour dates in October 2010, also debuting a new song "Surface to Air."


title: Incubus (band)

text: Incubus announced in March 2011 that the new album was complete and would be released in "August or September" according to Brandon Boyd. Boyd also stated that "this new record is different from anything that we've done."


title: Incubus (band)

text: On April 2, 2011, band manager Steve Rennie confirmed that the new album had been named, "If Not Now, When?". It was released on July 12, 2011. The album's lead single is "Adolescents" and it was posted on the band's website on April 4, 2011.


title: Incubus (band)

text: On April 28, 2011, Incubus premiered the video for "Adolescents" and also released a video with behind the scenes footage.


title: Incubus (band)

text: To promote the release of "If Not Now, When?", the band took part in a participatory media exhibit and real-time documentary called Incubus HQ Live that allowed unprecedented fan access and interaction. Footage, music and art from the seven-day event became available as a special edition box set in July 2012.


title: Incubus (band)

text: Mike has said that he is writing music for an orchestral project and also for Incubus. He states in a video (Mikey Gear Tour part II), "My hope is to just write lots of music and then by the time we get to the point to where we're going to finish the tour I'll have a lot of music written and then people won't have to wait five more years for another album (laughs)."


title: Incubus (band)

text: The band joined Linkin Park as co-headliners on the 2012 edition of the Honda Civic Tour. Incubus hinted that they would go on hiatus following the end of the 2012 Honda Civic Tour, but their manager stated that Incubus would only take a break after the tour, not a hiatus.


title: Incubus (band)

text: In October 2012, the band released their second compilation album. The album, entitled "The Essential Incubus", included songs spanning the band's major label career, from 1997's "Enjoy Incubus" EP to 2011's "If Not Now, When?".


title: Incubus (band)

text: In a radio interview while on the road with his solo band Sons of the Sea, Brandon Boyd announced that fans can expect some new Incubus music in 2015, followed by a tour. Mike Einziger also reinforced this statement when asked on his Twitter page.


title: Incubus (band)

text: In August 2014, Einziger posted a picture of the band on his Instagram in a studio, alluding to the fact they were in the process of creating their album. Subsequently, a few days following the images of the band in a studio, they announced they would be attending the 2015 Soundwave music festival in Australia, alongside Faith No More and Soundgarden. They played at the KROQ's Almost Acoustic Christmas 2014 on December 14, their first full band appearance since December 2013. During their performance they debuted a new song called "Trust Fall". Incubus announced they will release two EP's in 2015 with the first, "Trust Fall (Side A)" set for release on May 12, 2015, having been delayed from March 24, 2015. The first single, "Absolution Calling", was released February 5, 2015, to be followed by the second single, "Trust Fall", on March 10, 2015.


title: Incubus (band)

text: They performed at Australia's Soundwave festival and two other concerts in Australia. In March 2015, they toured Japan, Hawaii and "Festival Cumbre Tajín" in Mexico. They headlined the DC101 Kerfuffle on May 4, 2015. In May and June 2015, they will play at two festivals in Germany ("Rockavaria" and "Grüne Hölle"), one concert in Milan and at Donauinselfest in Vienna. They will also be in London's Hammersmith Apollo on the June 16, 2015. Incubus also announced a joint 2015 North American Summer Tour with Deftones. Support will be provided by Death from Above 1979 for most concerts of the tour. The tour began on July 22, 2015, in Clarkston, Michigan at the DTE Energy Music Theatre and with the final concert of the tour occurring on August 30, 2015, in Chula Vista, California at the Sleep Train Amphitheatre.


title: Incubus (band)

text: The band reconvened in 2016 to work on their eighth full-length studio album. On February 16, 2017, the lead single "Nimble Bastard" was released, and it was announced that the new album would be titled "8", with a projected April 21 release date, with Skrillex contributing to the production and mixing of the album. A summer 2017 tour was announced with Jimmy Eat World and Judah & the Lion supporting, and was followed by a world tour across several continents including South America, Asia, and Europe.


title: Incubus (band)

text: The band announced via its Twitter page that a new single titled "Into the Summer" would be released on August 23, 2019. The release of the single coincides with a US tour, to mark the 20th anniversary of "Make Yourself". In an interview with Loudwire on October 20, 2019, bassist Ben Kenney confirmed the band had completely finished four new songs and were currently working on more, but didn't confirm whether these songs would be released in the form of a new studio album or if they would be released as individual songs. On the matter he said "We don't want to get stacked up in a studio making an album. We have to adapt our process 'cause the albums themselves don't actually make as big a splash as they used to. We're just trying to experiment and explore what we're capable of doing, and all the while not take ourselves too seriously and just really enjoy what we get to do." On January 1, 2020, singer Brandon Boyd announced their next single, "Our Love" will be released on January 31, 2020. The band were scheduled to tour the UK and other European destinations in 2020 but were forced to cancel their shows due to the COVID-19 pandemic.


title: Incubus (band)

text: Over the course of their career, Incubus has incorporated elements from a variety of genres and styles, including alternative metal, alternative rock, art rock, heavy metal, electro, funk, funk metal, jazz, hip hop, nu metal, pop, rap metal, techno, thrash metal, psychedelic music, post-grunge, pop metal, and trip hop. With many critics praising the band's ambition, it has also made them difficult to correctly classify. Guitarist Mike Einziger stated in 2017 that the band's diversity is "our greatest asset and our biggest flaw. We don't fit anywhere and we never have. We were never punk rock enough for the Warped Tour, we were never metal enough for Ozzfest, we were never quite indie rock or cool enough for Lollapalooza. We've carved our own path, and we're really humbled by the fact that we've had so many supporters and people who appreciate our music." The band has also used a wide variety of instruments in their music that are not traditionally associated with use in rock music, including a djembe, sitar, didgeridoo, and bongos on many of their earlier tracks and during live performances, and with the use of a pipa given to the band by rock musician Steve Vai which is played by Einziger in the song "Aqueous Transmission".


title: Incubus (band)

text: Prior to finding mainstream success in the early 2000s, Incubus was often grouped in with the nu/alternative metal movement of the 1990s, alongside other Californian bands such as Korn and Deftones. When asked about his thoughts on the scene in a 2013 interview, Brandon Boyd reflected "Something I know that separated us from nu-metal was a lot of those bands had misogynist lyrics, and we never wrote stuff like that. I never wrote lyrics like that. I guess there were similarities in some of my musical and vocal stylings, but then we came off tour for "S.C.I.E.N.C.E." around early '99, and wrote "Make Yourself", which was a vastly different album but we were still the same band. We don't try and create any kind of album really. I don't attempt to write any kind of music, this is just what comes out." The "Chicago Tribune" stated in 2001 that Incubus is "Cheerful, melodic and polite, a nu-metal band for people who don't like nu-metal bands" and also claimed that Boyd was the genre's "first official pinup boy". The "Los Angeles Times" similarly wrote in 2004 that "Incubus always stood out from the rest of the mid-'90s alt-metal crowd, its positive lyrical approach and musical versatility far richer than the overworked wallowing in misery of such acts as Korn and later arrival Staind."


title: Incubus (band)

text: From the mid 2000s, Incubus began to adopt a softer sound, moving from rock towards a more pop music tone. This was particularly apparent by "If Not Now, When?" (2011), which was described by "Rolling Stone" as "slick, inert ripples of interchangeable power pop". "The Guardian" compared the sound of "8" (2017) and its more ballad-like moments to Ed Sheeran. Their 2020 EP "Trust Fall (side B)" was described by "Sputnik music" as "inoffensive pop".


title: Incubus (band)

text: Their influences include Faith No More, Mr. Bungle, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alice in Chains, Ani DiFranco, Stone Temple Pilots, Primus, Fishbone, Suicidal Tendencies, Beastie Boys, Soundgarden, Rage Against the Machine, The Police, Jane's Addiction, and Phish. Boyd reflected on the band's initial influences in 2012, stating "At that time [the early '90s] music got turned on its ear. We were listening to bands like Primus, Mr. Bungle, John Zorn, we also got into Soundgarden and Rage Against the Machine. What's amazing is those bands are still good now, they're still relevant now. Alice in Chains, Red Hot Chili Peppers, these bands that were coming of age right when we were growing up, at that most important, kind of pliable time in your youth. We were basically so inspired by music, that we decided to make music on our own." Critics have compared Boyd's deep-voiced style of singing to Faith No More/Mr. Bungle vocalist Mike Patton, whom the band have also credited as a major influence.


title: Atari 2600

text: The Atari 2600, initially branded as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS) from its release until November 1982, is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977, it popularized microprocessor-based hardware and games stored on swappable ROM cartridges, a format first used with the Fairchild Channel F in 1976. The VCS was bundled with two joystick controllers, a conjoined pair of paddle controllers, and a game cartridgeinitially "Combat" and later "Pac-Man".


title: Atari 2600

text: Atari was successful at creating arcade video games, but their development cost and limited lifespan drove CEO Nolan Bushnell to seek a programmable home system. The first inexpensive microprocessors from MOS Technology in late 1975 made this feasible. The console was prototyped as codename Stella by Atari subsidiary Cyan Engineering. Lacking funding to complete the project, Bushnell sold Atari to Warner Communications in 1976.


title: Atari 2600

text: The Atari VCS launched in 1977 with nine simple, low-resolution games in 2 KB cartridges. The system's first killer app was the home conversion of Taito's arcade game "Space Invaders" in 1980. The VCS became widely successful, leading to the founding of Activision and other third-party game developers and to competition from console manufacturers Mattel and Coleco. By the end of its primary lifecycle in 1983–84, games for the 2600 were using more than four times the storage size of the launch games with significantly more advanced visuals and gameplay than the system was designed for, such as Activision's "Pitfall!".


title: Atari 2600

text: In 1982, the Atari 2600 was the dominant game system in North America. Amid competition from both new consoles and game developers, a number of poor decisions from Atari management affected the company and the industry as a whole. The most public was an extreme investment into licensed games for the 2600, including "Pac-Man" and "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial". "Pac-Man" became the system's biggest selling game, but the conversion's poor quality eroded consumer confidence in the console. "E.T." was rushed to market for the holiday shopping season and was critically panned and a commercial failure. Both games, and a glut of third-party shovelware, were factors in ending Atari's relevance in the console market. Atari's downfall reverberated through the industry resulting in the video game crash of 1983.


title: Atari 2600

text: Warner sold Atari's home division to former Commodore CEO Jack Tramiel in 1984. In 1986, the new Atari Corporation under Tramiel released a lower-cost version of the 2600 and the backward-compatible Atari 7800, but it was Nintendo that led the recovery of the industry with its 1985 launch of the Nintendo Entertainment System. Production of the Atari 2600 ended on January 1, 1992, with an estimated 30 million units sold across its lifetime.


title: Atari 2600

text: Atari, Inc. was founded by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney in 1972. Its first major product was "Pong", released in 1972, the first successful coin-operated video game. While Atari continued to develop new arcade games in following years, "Pong" gave rise to a number of competitors to the growing arcade game market. The competition along with other missteps by Atari led to financial problems in 1974, though recovering by the end of the year. By 1975, Atari had released a "Pong" home console, competing against Magnavox, the only other major producer of home consoles at the time. Atari engineers recognized, however, the limitation of custom logic integrated onto the circuit board, permanently confining the whole console to only one game. The increasing competition increased the risk, as Atari had found with past arcade games and again with dedicated home consoles. Both platforms are built from integrating discrete electro-mechanical components into circuits, rather than programmed as on a mainframe computer. Therefore, development of a console had cost at least plus time to complete, but the final product only had about a three-month shelf life until becoming outdated by competition.


title: Atari 2600

text: By 1974, Atari had acquired Cyan Engineering, a Grass Valley electronics company founded by Steve Mayer and Larry Emmons, both former colleagues of Bushnell and Dabney from Ampex, who helped to develop new ideas for Atari's arcade games. Even prior to the release of the home version of "Pong", Cyan's engineers, led by Mayer and Ron Milner, had envisioned a home console powered by new programmable microprocessors capable of playing Atari's current arcade offerings. The programmable microprocessors would make a console's design significantly simpler and more powerful than any dedicated single-game unit. However, the cost of such chips was far outside the range that their market would tolerate. Atari had opened negotiations to use Motorola's new 6800 in future systems.


title: Atari 2600

text: In September 1975, MOS Technology debuted the 6502 microprocessor for at the Wescon trade show in San Francisco. Mayer and Milner attended and met with the leader of the team that created the chip, Chuck Peddle, and proposed using the 6502 in a game console, and offered to discuss it further at Cyan's facilities after the show.


title: Atari 2600

text: Over two days, MOS and Cyan engineers sketched out a 6502-based console design by Meyer and Milner's specifications. Financial models showed that even at , the 6502 would be too expensive, and Peddle offered them a planned 6507 microprocessor, a cost-reduced version of the 6502, and MOS's RIOT chip for input/output. Cyan and MOS negotiated the 6507 and RIOT chips at a pair. MOS also introduced Cyan to Microcomputer Associates, who had separately developed debugging software and hardware for MOS, and had developed the JOLT Computer for testing the 6502, which Peddle suggested would be useful for Atari and Cyan to use while developing their system. Milner was able to demonstrate a proof-of-concept for a programmable console by implementing "Tank", an arcade game by Atari's subsidiary Kee Games, on the JOLT.


title: Atari 2600

text: As part of the deal, Atari wanted a second source of the chipset. Peddle and Paivinen suggested Synertek whose co-founder, Bob Schreiner, was a friend of Peddle. In October 1975, Atari informed the market that it was moving forward with MOS. The Motorola sales team had already told its management that the Atari deal was finalized, and Motorola management was livid. They announced a lawsuit against MOS the next week.


title: Atari 2600

text: By December 1975, Atari hired Joe Decuir, a recent graduate from University of California, Berkeley who had been doing his own testing on the 6502. Decuir began debugging the first prototype designed by Mayer and Milner, which gained the codename "Stella" after the brand of Decuir's bicycle. This prototype included a breadboard-level design of the graphics interface to build upon. A second prototype was completed by March 1976 with the help of Jay Miner, who created a chip called the Television Interface Adaptor (TIA) to send graphics and audio to a television. The second prototype included a TIA, a 6507, and a ROM cartridge slot and adapter.


title: Atari 2600

text: As the TIA's design was refined, Al Alcorn brought in Atari's game developers to provide input on features. There are significant limitations in the 6507, the TIA, and other components, so the programmers creatively optimized their games to maximize the console. The console lacks a framebuffer and requires games to instruct the system to generate graphics in synchronization with the electron gun in the cathode-ray tube (CRT) as it scans across rows on the screen. The programmers found ways to "race the beam" to perform other functions while the electron gun scans outside of the visible screen.


title: Atari 2600

text: Alongside the electronics development, Bushnell brought in Gene Landrum, a consultant who had just prior consulted for Fairchild Camera and Instrument for its upcoming Channel F, to determine the consumer requirements for the console. In his final report, Landrum suggested a living room aesthetic, with a wood grain finish, and the cartridges must be "idiot proof, child proof and effective in resisting potential static [electricity] problems in a living room environment". Landrum recommended it include four to five dedicated games in addition to the cartridges, but this was dropped in the final designs. The cartridge design was done by James Asher and Douglas Hardy. Hardy had been an engineer for Fairchild and helped in the initial design of the Channel F cartridges, but he quit to join Atari in 1976. The interior of the cartridge that Asher and Hardy designed was sufficiently different to avoid patent conflicts, but the exterior components were directly influenced by the Channel F to help work around the static electricity concerns.


title: Atari 2600

text: Atari was still recovering from its 1974 financial woes and needed additional capital to fully enter the home console market, though Bushnell was wary of being beholden to outside financial sources. Atari obtained smaller investments through 1975, but not at the scale it needed, and began considering a sale to a larger firm by early 1976. Atari was introduced to Warner Communications, which saw the potential for the growing video game industry to help offset declining profits from its film and music divisions. Negotiations took place during 1976, during which Atari cleared itself of liabilities, including settling a patent infringement lawsuit with Magnavox over Ralph H. Baer's patents that were the basis for the Magnavox Odyssey. In mid-1976, Fairchild announced the Channel F, planned for release later that year, beating Atari to the market.


title: Atari 2600

text: By October 1976, Warner and Atari agreed to the purchase of Atari for . Warner provided an estimated which was enough to fast-track Stella. By 1977, development had advanced enough to brand it the "Atari Video Computer System" (VCS) and start developing games.


title: Atari 2600

text: The unit was showcased on June 4, 1977, at the Summer Consumer Electronics Show with plans for retail release in October. The announcement was purportedly delayed to wait out the terms of the Magnavox patent lawsuit settlement, which would have given Magnavox all technical information on any of Atari's products announced between June 1, 1976, and June 1, 1977. However, Atari encountered production problems during its first batch, and its testing was complicated by the use of cartridges.


title: Atari 2600

text: The Atari VCS was launched in September 1977 at , with two joysticks and a "Combat" cartridge; eight additional games were sold separately. Most of the launch games were based on arcade games developed by Atari or its subsidiary Kee Games; for example, "Combat" was based on Kee's "Tank" (1974) and Atari's "Jet Fighter" (1975). Atari sold between 350,000 and 400,000 Atari VCS units during 1977, attributed to the delay in shipping the units and consumers' unfamiliarity with a swappable-cartridge console that is not dedicated to only one game.


title: Atari 2600

text: In 1978, Atari sold only 550,000 of the 800,000 systems manufactured. This required further financial support from Warner to cover losses. Atari sold 1 million consoles in 1979, particularly during the holiday season, but there was new competition from the Mattel Electronics Intellivision and Magnavox Odyssey², which also use swappable ROM cartridges.


title: Atari 2600

text: Atari obtained a license from Taito to develop a VCS conversion of its 1978 arcade hit "Space Invaders". This is the first officially licensed arcade conversion for a home console. Its release in March 1980 doubled the console's sales for the year to more than 2 million units, and was considered the Atari 2600's killer application. Sales then doubled again for the next two years; by 1982, 10 million consoles had been sold in the United States, while its best-selling game was "Pac-Man" at over copies sold by 1990. "Pac-Man" propelled worldwide Atari VCS sales to units during 1982, eventually selling consoles worldwide by the end of the year.


title: Atari 2600

text: In Europe, the Atari VCS sold 125,000 units in the United Kingdom during 1980, and 450,000 in West Germany by 1984. In France, where the VCS released in 1982, the system sold 600,000 units by 1989.


title: Atari 2600

text: In 1982, Atari launched its second programmable console, the Atari 5200. To standardize naming, the VCS was renamed to the "Atari 2600 Video Computer System", or "Atari 2600", derived from the manufacture part number CX2600. By 1982, the 2600 cost Atari about to make and was sold for an average of . The company spent .50 to to manufacture each cartridge, plus to for advertising, wholesaling for .


title: Atari 2600

text: Activision, formed by Crane, Whitehead, and Miller in 1979, started developing third-party VCS games using their knowledge of VCS design and programming tricks, and began releasing games in 1980. "Kaboom!" (1981) and "Pitfall!" (1982) are among the most successful with at least one and four million copies sold, respectively. In 1980, Atari attempted to block the sale of the Activision cartridges, accusing the four of intellectual property infringement. The two companies settled out of court, with Activision agreeing to pay Atari a licensing fee for their games. This made Activision the first third-party video game developer and established the licensing model that continues to be used by console manufacturers for game development.


title: Atari 2600

text: Activision's success led to the establishment of other third-party VCS game developers following Activision's model in the early 1980s, including U.S. Games, Telesys, Games by Apollo, Data Age, Zimag, Mystique, and CommaVid. The founding of Imagic included ex-Atari programmers. Mattel and Coleco, each already producing its own more advanced console, created simplified versions of their existing games for the 2600. Mattel used the M Network brand name for its cartridges. Third-party games accounted for half of VCS game sales by 1982.


title: Atari 2600

text: In addition to third-party game development, Atari also received the first major threat to its hardware dominance from the Colecovision. Coleco had a license from Nintendo to develop a version of the smash hit arcade game "Donkey Kong" (1981), which was bundled with every Colecovision console. Coleco gained about 17% of the hardware market in 1982 compared to Atari's 58%. With third parties competing for market share, Atari worked to maintain dominance in the market by acquiring licenses for popular arcade games and other properties to make games from. "Pac-Man" has numerous technical and aesthetic flaws, but nevertheless more than 7 million copies were sold. Heading into the 1982 holiday shopping season, Atari had placed high sales expectations on "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial", a game programmed in about six weeks. Atari produced an estimated four million cartridges, but the game was poorly reviewed, and only about 1.5 million units were sold.