raskar42 Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 how much would it be worth intact today? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 how much would it be worth intact today? By metal weight/value or collector value? If someone has the specs we could figure out the "scrap" value...the collector value though would be hard to guess. Probably only a handfull of collectors that would/could actually plunk down the coin on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raskar42 Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 how much would it be worth intact today? By metal weight/value or collector value? If someone has the specs we could figure out the "scrap" value...the collector value though would be hard to guess. Probably only a handfull of collectors that would/could actually plunk down the coin on it. i meant the collector value. but yes, i realize it would be hard to guess. i don't think i'm going too much on a limb to say that intact and authenticated would have to be worth more than scrap weight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 how much would it be worth intact today? By metal weight/value or collector value? If someone has the specs we could figure out the "scrap" value...the collector value though would be hard to guess. Probably only a handfull of collectors that would/could actually plunk down the coin on it. i meant the collector value. but yes, i realize it would be hard to guess. i don't think i'm going too much on a limb to say that intact and authenticated would have to be worth more than scrap weight. Well yeah, Intact would be worth more of course but scrap weight would be a start. Lets say it's worth 10k just in metal (I'm absolutely guessing, I don't even know what it's made of) once you hit a certain point (5 digit pricetags for example) your down to only a few Atari collectors that could/would actually purchase it. Guess it all depends on how bad the big dogs wanted it. A core group of collectors may feel comfortable bidding up to it's "scrap" price knowing they could recoup if need be but how far would the die hards go? maybe 2 or 3 thousand higher? maybe more? Hard to say.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raskar42 Posted September 10, 2012 Share Posted September 10, 2012 i guess the only way to know would be to see if the chalice ever goes to market. i may be wrong, but that is the only piece out of the 5 treasures that is in the hands of a consumer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jinks Posted September 11, 2012 Share Posted September 11, 2012 so who has the sword? any pics? anyone seen it in person? if not its fake vaporware as the kiddies would call it and not epic sweet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retro Rogue Posted September 12, 2012 Share Posted September 12, 2012 Atari would have to exume Tramiel since the prizes were buried with him. He never had any of them, that's a myth started by someone claiming he saw the sword at Tramiel's house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaGtGruff Posted September 12, 2012 Share Posted September 12, 2012 He never had any of them, that's a myth started by someone claiming he saw the sword at Tramiel's house. Let's call it an "unsubstantiated report" rather than a "myth." If he *had* taken possession of the remaining unawarded prizes, but hadn't properly reported it to the IRS or whatever, I can understand why he'd have denied it when someone said they saw the sword at his house, so that just turns into a "he said, he said" argument where we the people don't really have a clue who to believe. On the other hand, if the remaining prizes were property of Atari, does that mean some sort of paperwork must have existed detailing (to the satisfaction of the IRS) what happened to them when Atari changed hands? Does the IRS need to know the details of how company property is disposed of when a company is sold? If so, and if someone could get that paperwork released, it might help solve this little mystery once and for all. Note, even if Tramiel did *not* ever (legally or illegally) take personal "ownership" of the prizes, and they remained the property of Atari and were kept locked away in a bank safety deposit box or whatever (rather than being melted down and converted to cash), it isn't inconceivable that he might have taken the sword out of the bank and displayed it at his home for a time, then returned it to the bank aferward. The only reason I mention that as a possibility is to point out that even if someone truly did see the sword at Tramiel's house, that doesn't mean it was always there and remained there. Then again, I imagine there are plenty of people who have swords mounted above their mantlepieces at home. So even if someone really did see a sword on display at Tramiel's house, it doesn't mean it was "the" sword. I'd expect that it would be difficult to mistake a run-of-the-mill sword for the SwordQuest sword, but I don't know the details of the story about someone reportedly having said they saw the sword at Tramiel's house-- did they claim to have gotten close enough to it to identify it conclusively, or did they just see it from a distance across the room, were they even familiar with what the SwordQuest sword looked like, etc.? And perhaps more to the point, are they willing to come forward, be identified (rather than being some mysterious "guy that someone once told me that some other guy had heard about from his cousin's girlfriend's brother"), and go on record with a statement that they're prepared to stand by? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted September 12, 2012 Share Posted September 12, 2012 Then again, I imagine there are plenty of people who have swords mounted above their mantlepieces at home. So even if someone really did see a sword on display at Tramiel's house, it doesn't mean it was "the" sword. I'd expect that it would be difficult to mistake a run-of-the-mill sword for the SwordQuest sword, but I don't know the details of the story about someone reportedly having said they saw the sword at Tramiel's house-- did they claim to have gotten close enough to it to identify it conclusively, or did they just see it from a distance across the room, were they even familiar with what the SwordQuest sword looked like, etc.? And perhaps more to the point, are they willing to come forward, be identified (rather than being some mysterious "guy that someone once told me that some other guy had heard about from his cousin's girlfriend's brother"), and go on record with a statement that they're prepared to stand by? I find the below comment interesting.... well back in the jag days when i managed a game store i would occasionally talk to gary tramiel, asking him questions like 'when is breakout 2000 coming out? when is avp coming out? where is our shipment of (x)? etc.' and we would talk 2600 from time to time and he joked about the swordquest prizes jack had one time i was asking about the swordquest games continuing on the jag. and this was before i had heard about it anywhere... Sounds like Godzilla heard Tramiels own Brother "joke" about Jack having the swordquest prizes...long before the rumors...No, not proof but interesting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retro Rogue Posted September 12, 2012 Share Posted September 12, 2012 Let's call it an "unsubstantiated report" rather than a "myth." If he *had* taken possession of the remaining unawarded prizes, but hadn't properly reported it to the IRS or whatever, I can understand why he'd have denied it when someone said they saw the sword at his house, so that just turns into a "he said, he said" argument where we the people don't really have a clue who to believe. No, I'm calling it exactly what it is, a myth. There is no "he said she said," we talked to Manny and found out what happened to the prizes. They didn't go to Jack, it wasn't his to have. As with most deal's that Warner had their hand in (GCC/7800, the Amiga contract, etc.) those sorts of things stayed with Warner during the split. The prizes were done in partnership with the Fanklin Mint, another Warner subsidiary at the time. They were returned there when the contest was cancelled because of the split. If someone saw a sword at Jack's house, then it was "a" sword, not "the" sword. Just another one of the many myths we got to the bottom of when researching for the book, leaving no (philosopher's) stone unturned. I find the below comment interesting.... Sounds like Godzilla heard Tramiels own Brother "joke" about Jack having the swordquest prizes...long before the rumors...No, not proof but interesting The rumors started back in the 80's, and the active rumors in the collectors/retro "scene" started back in the early to mid- 90's. So no, that wouldn't have been long before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaGtGruff Posted September 13, 2012 Share Posted September 13, 2012 No, I'm calling it exactly what it is, a myth. There is no "he said she said," we talked to Manny and found out what happened to the prizes. They didn't go to Jack, it wasn't his to have. As with most deal's that Warner had their hand in (GCC/7800, the Amiga contract, etc.) those sorts of things stayed with Warner during the split. The prizes were done in partnership with the Fanklin Mint, another Warner subsidiary at the time. They were returned there when the contest was cancelled because of the split. Thanks for clearing that up! And I hadn't realized that the Franklin Mint was a Warner subsidiary at the time-- very interesting to know! And was DC Comics also a subsidiary of Warner at the time? Talk about "keeping it all in the family!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retro Rogue Posted September 13, 2012 Share Posted September 13, 2012 Thanks for clearing that up! And I hadn't realized that the Franklin Mint was a Warner subsidiary at the time-- very interesting to know! And was DC Comics also a subsidiary of Warner at the time? Talk about "keeping it all in the family!" Yes, that's why DC Comics was involved in all the pack-in comics. That's also why they own all the artwork/comics/etc., including the unreleased Swordquest comic. Atari Inc. owned the copyright to the actual brands and titles (i.e. Atari Force). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truthblade Posted May 11, 2014 Share Posted May 11, 2014 I couldn't resist jumping into this thread, because after hearing that the prizes were returned to The Franklin Mint, I emailed them and got a response that the prizes were sold off some time ago, but they no longer had records of who they were sold to. So now, the only thing to do is to contact Warner HQ and find out if someone there purchased the items, or if they know who did. This will be a fun little jaunt of detective work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Guntz Posted May 11, 2014 Share Posted May 11, 2014 The coolest part of this thread is Michael Rideout (sp?) himself casually mentioning he still has the gold chalice from the fireworld competition. Now that is cool. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rom Hunter Posted May 13, 2014 Share Posted May 13, 2014 I couldn't resist jumping into this thread, because after hearing that the prizes were returned to The Franklin Mint, I emailed them and got a response that the prizes were sold off some time ago, but they no longer had records of who they were sold to. So now, the only thing to do is to contact Warner HQ and find out if someone there purchased the items, or if they know who did. This will be a fun little jaunt of detective work. That's interesting. Could you post that E-mail for us? Did they say how long ago they sold them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truthblade Posted May 13, 2014 Share Posted May 13, 2014 That's interesting. Could you post that E-mail for us? Did they say how long ago they sold them? Yes, I will. Here is the whole dialogue, copied and pasted together in time sequence: My first email to them: When the Atari video game company first went bankrupt back in the early 80s, they failed to finish a four-part video game series called SwordQuest, in which the Franklin Mint had created a jeweled talisman, drinking chalice, crown, and sword for whoever won the contest. The first two games were finished and the prizes were won, but the last two games were never done, and the treasure prizes were never awarded. No one knows where they went. I've heard that they went back to you at The Franklin Mint. Is this true? Do you have those last items that you minted way back in the early 1980s? I'd love to know. Their email back to me: Thank you for your email. Unfortunately, all inventory from items manufactured previous to 2004 has been exhausted and no longer remains. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. My follow-up email, back to them again: What do you mean "has been exhausted". Do you mean it's been sold? If so, who did you sell it to? Or do you mean the items have been melted down and destroyed? Their final response back to me: all inventory has been sold and unfortunately we do not have the records that far back to advise who purchased this item. We apologize for this inconvenience. And that's all I know. But at least I've been told by an actual company representative that they don't have the items. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaGtGruff Posted May 13, 2014 Share Posted May 13, 2014 Actually, three games were done, and the third contest was apparently going to be held but then was cancelled after Tramiel bought Atari-- so the final three prizes were never awarded (the crown for WaterWorld, the philosopher's stone for AirWorld, and the sword for the Grand Finale contest). All of the prizes (except for the EarthWorld talisman, which had already been awarded) were on display at the FireWorld contest, so they were all in Atari's possession at that time, therefore the Franklin Mint didn't have them anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X900BattleGrape Posted May 14, 2014 Share Posted May 14, 2014 Sounds like a canned reply from Franklin Mint. I can't find a specific date for the cancellation of the contest, but if it was an ongoing concern at the time Tramiel bought Atari then I have little doubt the items required to continue the competition would have gone to Atari. Not doubting Marty exactly, but.... As an aside, Jack had pretty refined taste and I could easily see him knowing of and wanting the prizes, probably knowing all the while that he'd cancel the competion. Check out his digs, whoa! http://www.houses.com/celebrity-homes/former-home-of-commadore-international-founder-listed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Atari_Warlord Posted May 14, 2014 Share Posted May 14, 2014 I thought the leftover prizes went to one or more of the Tramiel's. This seems the logical route. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Master Phruby Posted May 15, 2014 Share Posted May 15, 2014 I heard they buried the crown and sword with him along with a VIC20. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MagicGamesMC Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 Strangely I had not grown up in the True Gameing eras of Atari 2600 through SNES. Old gameing is my life, my love. I believe Swordquest should countinue, the sword belongs in the hands of true Gamers. however if a new Swordquest was ever to occur, is it not loyal to only play it on a true Atari? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torr Posted April 22, 2015 Share Posted April 22, 2015 (edited) I believe Swordquest should countinue. I take it you never actually tried solving EarthWorld or FireWorld yourself? They're not REALLY video games... They use video... but "game"? If you call asking someone "I'm thinking of a Number between 1 and π, can you guess it?" a game. EarthWorld in particular had ridiculous odds of actually solving it... many people realized you didn't need to even play the cartridge, just find hidden words in the comic. The clues the cartridge gave you WOULD help you, but once you had the right words you still had to guess at the correct order, and even the correct order isn't really a sentence, unless you think NES games have good sentence structure. If they DID try to have an actual "Game" where solving it meant a prize it would still flop... games are hacked, cracked, solved and old hat to some people before they even hit stores/Steam. The solution would be leaked before the game was even DONE, I wouldn't doubt, by somebody working there that's miffed because they're not eligible to win so they might as well ruin it for everyone. Good idea in a "sitting around stoned, wouldn't it be cool if..." scenario, but realistically? It just wouldn't fly... it didn't fly the first time... Atari spent so much money on that... another factor in Atari's demise of the 80's I'm sure. And that's coming from me! I like the game! Honestly I just like my memories of it... I had no idea about any contest (not even sure if us Canadians were eligible...) I thought it was your standard adventure game, I got it as a hand-me-down from a cousin and had no manual or anything. Playing the game by "my own" rules back in the day was actually a lot of fun when I thought I was figuring it out and actually making progress. Boy did I learn a lot when I got savvy with the internet and found AtariAge (or more specifically THIS page... I love that it's still around and hasn't changed a lick in 13 years) Edited April 22, 2015 by Torr 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfriendly Posted April 23, 2015 Share Posted April 23, 2015 Actually, three games were done, and the third contest was apparently going to be held but then was cancelled after Tramiel bought Atari-- so the final three prizes were never awarded (the crown for WaterWorld, the philosopher's stone for AirWorld, and the sword for the Grand Finale contest). All of the prizes (except for the EarthWorld talisman, which had already been awarded) were on display at the FireWorld contest, so they were all in Atari's possession at that time, therefore the Franklin Mint didn't have them anymore. Gotta agree with the other post about you having actually having won the Fireworld contest and still having possession of the challace. I spent an ungodly amount of time trying to find the clues on Earthworld. I remember finding the 2nd clue 8-4 pretty quickly and then going on forever without finding anything. I was just about ready to give up when I found the 3rd clue 25-6. That was as far as I ever got with Earthworld until the early 2000's when I discovered the solution online and finished the game. You know Mike you own probably the most sought after piece of vintage video game memorabilia in the world! You should contact the History channel and see if you could get a spot on Pawn Stars! Not to actually sell the Chalace but to find out what Rick would offer for it. It would make a great story for the show! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris++ Posted April 23, 2015 Share Posted April 23, 2015 (edited) I think it's cool to speculate on what happened to the prizes, simply as a separate subject from the games themselves. Who knows? The treasures might still be found someday in one Tramiel attic or another. It's a fun subject, because we game players tend to like treasure. Edited April 23, 2015 by Chris++ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted April 23, 2015 Share Posted April 23, 2015 The treasures might still be found someday I can almost guarantee they were returned to the Franklin Mint and melted down to recover what money they could. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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