Jerry Lawson (engineer)

Jerry Lawson
Alma mater Queens College
Occupation Computer engineer
Children 2

Gerald Anderson "Jerry" Lawson (December 1, 1940 – April 9, 2011)[1][2] was an American electronic engineer known for his work in designing the Fairchild Channel F video game console.[3]

During development of in the early-mid 1970s, Lawson was Chief Hardware Engineer[4] and director of engineering and marketing for Fairchild Semiconductor's video game division.[5][6] He also founded and ran Videosoft, a video game development company which made software for the Atari 2600 in the early 1980s, as the 2600 had displaced the Channel F as the top system in the market.[3]

Lawson and Ron Jones were the sole black members of the Homebrew Computer Club, a group of early computer hobbyists which would produce a number of industry legends, including Apple founders Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak.[5] Lawson also produced one of the earliest arcade games, Demolition Derby,[7] which debuted in a southern California pizzeria shortly after Pong. Lawson later worked with the Stanford mentor program and was preparing to write a book on his career.[5]

In March 2011, Lawson was honored as an industry pioneer by the International Game Developers Association.[8] One month later, he died of complications from diabetes.[9] At the time of his death, he resided in Santa Clara, California.

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