Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Erol Otus Interview

I haven't had the pleasure of interviewing Erol Otus, but Matt Staggs did and the results are available here.

18 comments:

  1. Erol Otus created the Zoq-Fot-Pik? Mind. Blown.

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  2. Looking back on your career, what are you most proud of?

    It is very gratifying to discover that many people like my work for the same reasons I do.
    Gotta love it.

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  3. The Star Control II wikipedia page says that Erol also composed some of the music for its soundtrack!

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  4. Thanks for this. Star Control II is queued up for download...

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  5. Thanks for posting this link, James.

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  6. Funny thing is, StarCon II is my favorite computer game ever, and I didn't know that Otus was involved with it.

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  7. What; there is no mistaking the Mycons. :) They are pure Erol. But I agree, StarCon was probably the best computer game before the release of Thief, and it has stayed remarkably fresh - it is even available now for free as The Ur-Quan Masters.

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  8. Thank's for the link! Erol is a great artist & an extremely hard man to grab for an interview.I think the mystery adds to his mystique? He has also embraced the computer age, and paints digitally
    extremely well.Not many old-school Artists made that transition.Long may his career continue I say! :)

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  9. I should also point out that Erol Otus has a slight connection to the Thief series, as he didn't work on that but he DID work on the original System Shock, which was done by Looking Glass Studios for Origin.

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  10. Thanks for the link. I enjoyed reading that interview. Along with Frazetta and Trampier, Otus is my favourite fantasy artist of all time (and Trampier, alas, is never going to give an interview or do any new work ...).

    Apparently Otus is also an accomplished dart player (if I remember correctly; it may be pool). There is a pub in Berkeley with a plaque commemorating a victory in a tournament in a distant, past year ...

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  11. I just wasted hours playing Ur-Quan Masters.

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  12. There is a plaque at the Triple Rock Brewery in Berkeley with a list of past shuffleboard winners. Erol's name is listed twice. :) Last I checked a few months ago it's still there.

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  13. Thanks for the correction, Andy. (I moved away from the Bay area 4 years ago, and my recollection is rather foggy.)

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  14. Erol was the mad genius of TSR back in the day. I used to love going down to the artists' cells and watching him work and pestering him with questions. Also a helluva of a Federation starship commander.

    There is one alarming comment above. Do I understand correctly? Is Dave Trampier (ulp) dead??

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  15. No, Trampier is not dead. He has withdrawn from the public eye, no longer does art, and reacts rather strongly to being asked about D&D or TSR.

    Fans of his work have made an effort to honor his wishes even if they have difficulty understanding them.

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  16. Trampier is now , most unfortunately, deceased. May he scribble forever in the artists afterworld.

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