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22:49, 28th March 2024 (GMT+0)

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary.

Posted by Yaztromo
Yaztromo
member, 146 posts
Mon 5 Mar 2018
at 04:20
  • msg #1

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

It feels like yesterday...
This message was last edited by the user at 04:24, Mon 05 Mar 2018.
horus
member, 420 posts
Wayfarer of the
Western Wastes
Mon 5 Mar 2018
at 08:56
  • msg #2

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

In reply to Yaztromo (msg # 1):

Yeah, you're right... it does.
OceanLake
member, 1026 posts
Tue 6 Mar 2018
at 00:37
  • msg #3

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

A person's Erdős–Bacon number is the sum of one's Erdős number—which measures the "collaborative distance" in authoring academic papers between that person and Hungarian mathematician Paul Erdős—and one's Bacon number—which represents the number of links, through roles in films, by which the individual is separated from American actor Kevin Bacon.[1][2] The lower the number, the closer a person is to Erdős and Bacon, which reflects a small world phenomenon in academia and entertainment.[3]

The combined Erdős/Bacon number was introduced by mathematicians Tim Hsu and David Grabiner in 1999 or earlier; they pointed out that Daniel Kleitman has a combined number of 3: a Bacon number of 2 and Erdős number of 1.[4]

To have a defined Erdős–Bacon number, it is necessary to have both appeared in a film and co-authored an academic paper, though it is not sufficient.

So...anybody have a Gary number? If you talked with him, your number is 1; if you talked to somebody who talked to him, your number is 2; etc.
horus
member, 421 posts
Wayfarer of the
Western Wastes
Tue 6 Mar 2018
at 01:12
  • msg #4

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

In reply to OceanLake (msg # 3):

My Gary Number would be 1, but it was just, "very pleased to meet you, sir," to which he replied, "The pleasure's mine."
Mad Mick
member, 941 posts
GURPS beyond measure,
outlander
Tue 6 Mar 2018
at 17:18
  • msg #5

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

Sorry, who’s Gary?  He was apparently before my time in Community Chat, anyway.
This message was last edited by the user at 17:19, Tue 06 Mar 2018.
jpetoh
member, 370 posts
As irrational
as pi.
Tue 6 Mar 2018
at 18:06
  • msg #6

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

Gary Gygax, co-creator of Dungeons and Dragons. :)
Mad Mick
member, 942 posts
GURPS beyond measure,
outlander
Wed 7 Mar 2018
at 02:27
  • msg #7

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

Doh!

Has it really been 10 years?  It’s weird, but it feels like he never really left.
Utsukushi
member, 1442 posts
I should really stay out
of this, I know...but...
Wed 7 Mar 2018
at 06:30
  • msg #8

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

OceanLake:
To have a defined Erdős–Bacon number, it is necessary to have both appeared in a film and co-authored an academic paper, though it is not sufficient.

So...anybody have a Gary number? If you talked with him, your number is 1; if you talked to somebody who talked to him, your number is 2; etc.

Well... everybody.  I mean, to have a Gary Number, you'd just have to have talked to anybody ever, and then it's just a matter of finding a line to anyone who ever talked to him, and it's probably less than seven.  Given that we know anyone here is in the same sub-culture, everyone on RPoL can probably claim a 3 or 4, tops.  Or, like...

Hi, Horus.

Woot!  Gary Number: 2!

Don't feel bad, Mick.  It took me a minute too.  Gygax turns out to be the third Gary I think of*, after Larson and Trudeau, so I only would have gotten it because they're both still alive.



*- Well... fourth, actually, but it feels disrespectful to admit that Spongebob's snail came to mind sooner.
Brianna
member, 2147 posts
Wed 7 Mar 2018
at 09:44
  • msg #9

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

My Gary # would be 1.  I think the last convo I had with him was at a party at GenCon the year WotC acquired TSR.
OceanLake
member, 1027 posts
Wed 7 Mar 2018
at 21:19
  • msg #10

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

At the risk of drift, my Donald Trump number is 3. I talk with somebody who talks with somebody who talks with President Trump...though not often.
Dara
member, 376 posts
Wed 7 Mar 2018
at 21:31
  • msg #11

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

Mine is a 2.  Dave Arneson was a member of the RPSIG-Twin Cities and I was a founding member of the RPSIG-Mankato group.  We often went up for their game days and I actually got to play in a few of his games.  He was a lot of fun.

For those not in the know, Dave was the co-creator of D&D and the creative genius of the Blackmoor world.
Prince of Boredom
member, 3 posts
Fri 9 Mar 2018
at 20:45
  • msg #12

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

I am happy to say my Gary number is 1. I got to meet him back around 1992 at a convention in Dallas, TX. He was promoting his new game Dangerous Journeys game and my friend and I got to hang out with him and his wife for probably an hour or more just chatting. And then we talked him into playing a 4-hour slot where we demoed Dangerous Journeys. He didn't run it, the convention coordinator did, but just played a character along with the rest of us.

He was an absolute blast to roleplay with, and of course it was fun when the DM looked up and said, "Gary, what did you mean by this rule?"
praguepride
member, 1235 posts
"Hugs for the Hugs God!"
- Warhammer Fluffy-K
Sat 10 Mar 2018
at 00:00
  • msg #13

4th March 2008-2018: ten years without Gary

Mine is a 2. While I missed Gary at conventions I have spoken to a lot of people who either came out of old school TSR or were burgeoning game designers during the Milwaukee Gen Con Days.

I don't know it for a fact but out of the dozens if not hundreds I would be floored if someone hadn't talked to him personally.
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