TITLE
The True Face of Mario
AUTHOR
Benj Edwards
PUBLICATION
Technologizer
YEAR
2010
ARTICLE TYPE
Article
FROM THE ARTICLE
Regarding Mario’s origins, it’s common knowledge among game fans that legendary game designer Shigeru Miyamoto created him for 1981’s Donkey Kong arcade game. But few know that Nintendo borrowed Mario’s name and Italian heritage from a real man.That man’s name is Mario Segale, and he’s not a plumber. He’s a wealthy real estate developer in Tukwila, Washington. Segale unwittingly stepped into video game history by renting out a warehouse that served as Nintendo’s U.S. headquarters in the early 1980s. At that time, a financially struggling Nintendo of America (NOA) was preparing the U.S. launch of Donkey Kong. Legend has it that NOA President Minoru Arakawa noticed physical similarities between Donkey Kong’s short, dark-haired protagonist and the landlord. So the crew at NOA nicknamed the character Mario, and it stuck.
COMPANIES MENTIONED
Nintendo
GAMES MENTIONED
Donkey Kong
PEOPLE MENTIONED
Mario Segale