Release Date: January 6th, 2021
I was honored to be a guest on the very first episode of the Video Game History Hour Podcast, hosted by Kelsey Lewin and Frank Cifaldi of the Video game History Foundation. During our conversation about Mario Paint, we talked about parental concerns about video games during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Kelsey mentioned a product called “Homework First.” It was a lock for the Nintendo Entertainment System that prevented you from putting a cartridge into the console! For some reason, I couldn’t stop thinking about the concept, and setup an eBay alert for the lock. Sure enough, a BRAND NEW one came up for sale. The price? A whopping $300.
This is the first episode filmed in my new basement setup and the first video of 2021! I live in a 100+ year old house that, surprisingly, has a decent basement. I did have to battle unlevel floors though. If you look closely at a few shots in the video, you might notice things are leaning slightly!
Sources
Bishop, Pete. “Kids Finding Nintendo Too Hard to Resist.” Daily Journal, August 3, 1989.
Clark, Don. “Gadget Controls Kids’ Access to Video Games.” Record-Journal. May 17, 1991.
Fasoldt, Al. “Nintendo Has Hands-Free Controls for Handicapped.” Star Tribune, June 8, 1990.
“Lock Helps Prevent Nintendo Overdose.” Spokane Chronicle, June 12, 1989.
“Mother’s Helpers.” The Indianapolis Star, July 6, 1990.
“Nintendomania: Peripherals Take Off.” ACE, August 1989.
Oakes, Elizabeth, and John Bradford, eds. Resources For People With Disabilities. Chicago, IL: Ferguson Publishing Company, 1998.
“Paparazzi News.” Joystick Hebdo, September 1989.
Takiff, Jonathan. “Now Parents Can Lock up Those CDs and Nintendos.” The Miami Herald, November 24, 1989.
Warshaw, Michael. “The Thing That Would Not Die.” Inc.com, March 15, 2000. https://www.inc.com/magazine/20000315/17875.html.
Wharton, David. “VIEW FINDER: ODDS & ENDS AROUND THE VALLEY.” Los Angeles Times, July 5, 1990.
“Whatta Catch! Advertisment.” Electronic Gaming Monthly, November 1992.