Lauren Elliott
Encyclopedia
Lauren Roosevelt Elliott (born August 29, 1946 in Boston
, Massachusetts
) is an American video game designer, internet entrepreneur, publisher and inventor. He is recognized as one of the pioneers in the Edutainment
video game industry.
Elliott’s greatest success to date came as the original co-designer for the Carmen Sandiego
game series which remains the best-selling Edutainment game in history.
, Massachusetts
. He is the grandson of Hall Roosevelt
, brother of Eleanor Roosevelt
.
, transferring three years later to the University of Colorado in Boulder where he received his degree in architecture. Becoming interested in environmental design he then studied briefly at the University of Pennsylvania
under Ian McHarg
, followed by two years of graduate work in ecology at the University of California at Davis.
While at Broderbund Software he and Gene Portwood were Will Wright’s project manager on his first video game Raid on Bungeling Bay
Bay in 1984.
In 1996 he left to form Elliott Portwood productions with his partner Gene Portwood. During the next 4 years, they produced titles for The Learning Company
, Maxis Software, Virgin Software, and The Software Toolworks.
In 2002 he formed Dream Zero an internet gaming company, later acquired by The Big Network.
In 2005 Lauren published a book by his mother, With Love, Aunt Eleanorhttp://www.educationupdate.com/archives/2004/june/html/books_withlove.html, who is the niece of Eleanor Roosevelt
.
and Blog
Saysher.comhttp://www.saysher.com, a women’s search engine
SaveThisPlacehttp://www.savethisplace.com, a social enterprise
SeePorthttp://www.ufone.me.com a video chat company
Where in the U.S.A. Is Carmen Sandiego?
Where in Time Is Carmen Sandiego?
Where in America's Past Is Carmen Sandiego?
Where in North Dakota is Carmen Sandiego?
Widget Workshop
Marty in Where’s Morgan
Marty and the Trouble with Cheese
Reader Rabbit’s Ready for Letters
Time Riders in American History
Mario is Missing
Mario’s Time Machine
Science Toolkit Master Module
Science Toolkit Speed and Motion
Science Toolkit Body Module
Science Toolkit Earthquake Lab
Whistler's Brother
Captain Goodnight and the Islands of Fear
Galleons of Glory – The Secret Voyage of Magellan
VCR Companion
Shufflepuck Café
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
) is an American video game designer, internet entrepreneur, publisher and inventor. He is recognized as one of the pioneers in the Edutainment
Edutainment
Edutainment is a form of entertainment designed to educate as well as to amuse.-Overview:...
video game industry.
Elliott’s greatest success to date came as the original co-designer for the Carmen Sandiego
Carmen Sandiego
Carmen Sandiego is a media franchise of educational computer and video games, television programs, books and other media featuring a thieving villain of the same name. The basic premise of the franchise lets the user or protagonists become agents of the ACME Detective Agency, who attempts to thwart...
game series which remains the best-selling Edutainment game in history.
Biography
He was born Lauren Roosevelt Elliott on August 29, 1946 in BostonBoston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. He is the grandson of Hall Roosevelt
Hall Roosevelt
Gracie Hall Roosevelt was the youngest brother of former First Lady of the United States, Eleanor Roosevelt and the nephew of Theodore Roosevelt. He was usually called Hall....
, brother of Eleanor Roosevelt
Eleanor Roosevelt
Anna Eleanor Roosevelt was the First Lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945. She supported the New Deal policies of her husband, distant cousin Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and became an advocate for civil rights. After her husband's death in 1945, Roosevelt continued to be an international...
.
Education
After graduating from the Millbrook School for Boys, he attended Cornell UniversityCornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
, transferring three years later to the University of Colorado in Boulder where he received his degree in architecture. Becoming interested in environmental design he then studied briefly at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
under Ian McHarg
Ian McHarg
Ian L. McHarg was born in Clydebank, Scotland and became a landscape architect and a renowned writer on regional planning using natural systems. He was the founder of the department of landscape architecture at the University of Pennsylvania in the United States. His 1969 book Design with Nature...
, followed by two years of graduate work in ecology at the University of California at Davis.
Game Designer
In 1983 he walked in to Broderbund Software in San Rafael with a sketchpad full of game designs and was hired on the provision that he could convince a programmer to take on one of his designs. Over the next 13-year period he authored and worked on more than 23 titles. He now has over 30 million copies of his work in circulation and is winner of over 50 awards in originality and lifetime sales categories.While at Broderbund Software he and Gene Portwood were Will Wright’s project manager on his first video game Raid on Bungeling Bay
Raid on Bungeling Bay
Raid on Bungeling Bay was the first video game designed by Will Wright. It was published by Brøderbund for the Commodore 64 in 1984 and the NES and MSX computers in 1985...
Bay in 1984.
In 1996 he left to form Elliott Portwood productions with his partner Gene Portwood. During the next 4 years, they produced titles for The Learning Company
The Learning Company
The Learning Company is an American educational software company, founded in 1980. It produced a grade-based system similar to Knowledge Adventure's JumpStart series. The products for preschoolers through second graders feature Reader Rabbit, and software for more advanced students features The...
, Maxis Software, Virgin Software, and The Software Toolworks.
In 2002 he formed Dream Zero an internet gaming company, later acquired by The Big Network.
In 2005 Lauren published a book by his mother, With Love, Aunt Eleanorhttp://www.educationupdate.com/archives/2004/june/html/books_withlove.html, who is the niece of Eleanor Roosevelt
Eleanor Roosevelt
Anna Eleanor Roosevelt was the First Lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945. She supported the New Deal policies of her husband, distant cousin Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and became an advocate for civil rights. After her husband's death in 1945, Roosevelt continued to be an international...
.
Current Projects
PNN.comhttp://www.pnn.com, a women’s Social network serviceSocial network service
A social networking service is an online service, platform, or site that focuses on building and reflecting of social networks or social relations among people, who, for example, share interests and/or activities. A social network service consists of a representation of each user , his/her social...
and Blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
Saysher.comhttp://www.saysher.com, a women’s search engine
SaveThisPlacehttp://www.savethisplace.com, a social enterprise
SeePorthttp://www.ufone.me.com a video chat company
Games designed by Elliott
Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?
Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? is the title of several edutainment computer games in the Carmen Sandiego series that teach geography. The World games, often marketed as the flagship products of the Carmen series, were created by Brøderbund Software from 1985 to 1996 with another version...
Where in the U.S.A. Is Carmen Sandiego?
Where in the U.S.A. is Carmen Sandiego?
Where in the U.S.A. is Carmen Sandiego? is a computer game based on the popular game, Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? In the game, players, who are ACME agents, travel to 51 locations around the United States in order to find Carmen Sandiego's V.I.L.E. henchmen...
Where in Time Is Carmen Sandiego?
Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego?
Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego? is the title of three edutainment computer games in the Carmen Sandiego series that teach history. The concept was later adapted into a television show on PBS.- Where in Time Is Carmen Sandiego? :...
Where in America's Past Is Carmen Sandiego?
Where in North Dakota is Carmen Sandiego?
Widget Workshop
Widget Workshop
Widget Workshop: A Mad Scientist's Laboratory is a hands-on science kit, for use on the computer and off. It was released in 1995 and is one of the more obscure Maxis products. It was designed by Lauren Elliott, co-author of the Where in the World is Carmen SanDiego game series.The game has two...
Marty in Where’s Morgan
Marty and the Trouble with Cheese
Reader Rabbit’s Ready for Letters
Time Riders in American History
Mario is Missing
Mario’s Time Machine
Science Toolkit Master Module
Science Toolkit Speed and Motion
Science Toolkit Body Module
Science Toolkit Earthquake Lab
Whistler's Brother
Captain Goodnight and the Islands of Fear
Galleons of Glory – The Secret Voyage of Magellan
VCR Companion
Shufflepuck Café
Shufflepuck Cafe
Shufflepuck Café is a computer air hockey game developed by Christopher Gross, Gene Portwood and Lauren Elliott for Brøderbund...