2436 David Rosen

Details

• Card ID:
  2436 David Rosen
• First Name:
  David
• Last Name:
  Rosen
• Tags: ARCADE 2_0 Arcade Expo Game Designer Legend of Coin-op Industry Superstars of 2016 WDC Trading Card Museum Awards
• Other Notes:

  To honor David Rosen for his important contributions to the gaming culture, this trading card and award were presented at the Walter Day Trading Card Museum Awards Ceremonies, at John Week's legendary Museum of Pinball, in Banning, California, March 15, 2017.

   

  David Rosen is an American businessman and the co-founder of the Japanese video game company SEGA. Rosen served in the USAF from 1948 to 1952. He was primarily in Japan and the Far East during the Korean War, and remained there after the war. In 1954 Rosen started Rosen Enterprises, Inc., which focused on selling art created in Japan to the American market, and photo studios for Japanese identification cards. The photo business was called Photorama and Rosen established studios in hundreds of locations in Japan. In 1957, Rosen Enterprises, Ltd. pioneered the importation and operation of American coin-op amusement machines to Japan to meet the growing leisure market. Rosen used his existing Photorama locations to place the amusement machines. In 1965, Rosen Enterprises, Ltd. merged with Nihon Goraku Bussan, Ltd., a company that used the brand name SEGA (name originates from SErvice GAmes Japan) for their jukeboxes and slot machines which were located on U.S. military bases. After the merger of the two companies, SEGA Enterprises Ltd. was established and Rosen became Chairman, CEO and President. Rosen co-founded the Japan Amusement Association in 1967 and was elected as Chairman. SEGA created its first original game called Periscope which led to the introduction of 25¢ play in the USA and began SEGA's export business. In 1969, Rosen and partners sold SEGA Enterprises Ltd. to Gulf+Western Industries, Inc., although Rosen remained CEO of SEGA. In the early 1970s SEGA was made a subsidiary of Paramount Pictures, which was owned by Gulf+Western. During this period, Paramount's Barry Diller and Michael Eisner joined Rosen on the Board of SEGA and Rosen joined the Board at Paramount. G+W eventually sold SEGA to Bally Manufacturing Corp. In March, 1984, Rosen joined a buyout group led by Isao Okawa and purchased SEGA's Japanese assets. Rosen agreed to set up SEGA of America and oversee the US & overseas operations. He became Chairman of SEGA of America which was headquartered in Los Angeles. Rosen remained a Director of the parent company SEGA (Japan) until 1996 when he resigned from both SEGA (Japan) and SEGA of America and is now retired and living in Los Angeles.