Personal life

Gygax married his first wife, Mary Jo Gygax, in 1958. By 1961 they had two children – Ernie and Elise – who would later assist with play-testing Dungeons & Dragons.1 Three more children were to follow - Heidi, Cindy, and Lucion (Luke)2 - before the marriage ended in divorce. On August 15, 1987, (the same day as his parents' 50th wedding anniversary), he married his second wife, Gail Carpenter,3 and together they had his sixth (and last) child, Alexander. By 2005, Gygax had seven grandchildren. He continued to reside in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, as he had since his family first arrived in 1946.4

Gygax died the morning of March 4, 2008, at his home in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, aged 69.56 He was in semi-retirement,7 having almost suffered a heart attack after receiving incorrect medication to prevent further strokes after those on April 1 and May 4, 2004. He was diagnosed with an inoperable abdominal aortic aneurysm. Gygax was a lifelong smoker, but was forced to switch to cigars after his strokes. Even while his health failed, gaming remained very much a part of his life. Gygax was still active in the gaming community and had active Q & A forums on gaming websites such as Dragonsfoot and EN World.

I would like the world to remember me as the guy who really enjoyed playing games and sharing his knowledge and his fun pastimes with everybody else.8

• 1. Kushner, David. "Dungeon Master: The Life and Legacy of Gary Gygax". Wired.com. Retrieved on 2008-10-16.
• 2. Gygax, Gary. Long Biography of E(rnest) Gary Gygax (revision 6-05), ©2005
• 3. "Obituary of Gary Gygax; Godfather of Role-Playing Games and Co-Creator of Dungeons & Dragons", The Daily Telegraph (2008-03-06), p. 25. Retrieved on 20 December 2008. (Registration required)
• 4. "Gary Gygax", The Times (March 6, 2008). Retrieved on 7 October 2008.
• 5. "Dungeons & Dragons co-creator Gary Gygax dies at 69". WKBT-La Crosse, Wisconsin (2008-03-04). Archived from the original on 2008-10-04. Retrieved on 2008-03-04.
• 6. Sullivan, Patricia (March 5, 2008). "E. Gary Gygax; Co-Creator Of Dungeons & Dragons", Washington Post. Retrieved on 17 October 2008.
• 7. Rausch, Allen. "Gary Gygax Interview - Part I (page 1)". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment, Inc.. Archived from the original on 2008-10-04. Retrieved on 2005-01-03.
• 8. Rausch, Allen (2004-08-16). "Gary Gygax Interview - Part 2 (page 3)". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment, Inc.. Archived from the original on 2008-10-04. Retrieved on 2008-10-03.