The Forgotten Genius of Gary Kildall
Gary Kildall is the forgotten geek should be remembered for creating the first programming language and first compiler specifically for microprocessors and the first microprocessor disk operating system.
The mythology tells the story of Gary Kildall as a man who could have been the next Bill Gates, that was screwed over by IBM, cheated by Microsoft, and died in a fight in a biker bar.
Gary Kildall is one of the founders of the personal computer industry, but you probably don’t know his name. Usually when someone talks about DOS referring to the microcomputer Disk Operating System they are usually talking about Microsoft DOS.
Many geek history websites will tell you about Microsoft DOS being created in 1980, they often overlook CP/M developed in 1974 by Gary Kildall. In fact, it makes me angry that the work of Gary Kildall is very often not mentioned in the history of desktop computer operating systems.
I recently stumbled upon some videos from the mid 1980s and watched Gary Kildall explaining CP/M. Those 1980s videos brought back memories as I remembered the first desktop computers, I worked on used CP/M (Control Program for Microcomputers).
Gary Kildall's name doesn't get mentioned much, neither does CP/M, but they are a very important chapter in desktop computer history. Now that I have Kindall's story on my mind and have some old videos to using for creating some geek history snippets, I have more to follow up with in the weeks ahead. For today, I just getting started on telling the story of another often-forgotten geek, Gary Kildall.
Gary Kildall BIO
Gary Kildall grew up in Seattle, Washington, the son of a Norwegian‑heritage sea captain who ran a seamanship school. Maybe that’s where Gary got his love of adventure—because he spent his life chasing the things that made him feel alive: flying, sports cars, racing, boating, and anything that involved motion and risk. He loved the sea, but he also loved the sky.
He earned a bachelor’s in mathematics in 1967 and a master’s in computer science in 1968, both from the University of Washington. When the Vietnam War draft came calling, he fulfilled his obligation by teaching at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. Afterward, he returned to UW and completed his doctorate in computer science in 1972.
Then came the moment that should have made him a household name.
In 1974, in Pacific Grove, California, Gary Kildall demonstrated the first working prototype of CP/M—the operating system that would dominate early microcomputers. And he didn’t stop there. He also created the BIOS, the Basic Input/Output System, the little piece of magic that lets a computer talk to its disk drives. That concept first appeared in CP/M in 1975, and yes, variations of it still exist in modern PCs. Gary wasn’t just ahead of the curve—he drew the curve.
Digital Research is born
In 1976, Gary and his wife Dorothy founded a company with a name only a true geek could love: Intergalactic Digital Research. Eventually they shortened it to Digital Research, Inc., but the spirit stayed the same. They marketed CP/M through hobbyist magazines, and for a while, CP/M was the operating system for microcomputers.
The IBM meeting that became mythology
In 1980, IBM approached Digital Research to license CP/M‑86 for their new IBM PC. Gary did what he often did—he left the initial business negotiations to Dorothy while he and colleague Tom Rolander flew Gary’s private plane to deliver software to a client.
IBM insisted Dorothy sign a non‑disclosure agreement before even explaining why they were there. Dorothy refused without Gary’s approval. When Gary returned later that day, he tried to resume the conversation, but from here the story splinters into competing versions—depending on whether you’re hearing it from IBM, Microsoft, or someone who just likes a good myth.
What we do know is this: IBM walked away frustrated, Microsoft stepped in, and the world got MS‑DOS.
DRI vs. IBM and Microsoft
When Gary later saw an early copy of MS‑DOS, he was furious at the similarities to CP/M. At a meeting with IBM, he agreed not to sue for copyright infringement if IBM would market his version alongside theirs.
IBM agreed—sort of.
What they didn’t tell him was that PC‑DOS would sell for $40, while CP/M‑86 would sell for $240. A six‑to‑one price difference. A rigged game. A “let the market decide” setup where the market had already been told which answer was correct.
In a 1995 episode of Computer Chronicles, Tom Rolander recalled how stunned they were when they learned about the pricing. They had no idea IBM planned to stack the deck that heavily.
Gary believed IBM intentionally priced CP/M‑86 out of the market to marginalize Digital Research. And honestly, looking at the numbers, it’s hard to argue with him.
This was the moment that changed him. The moment the creative technologist became a frustrated businessman. The moment the drinking began. His colleagues said the IBM experience haunted him. He spent years being asked, “Are you the guy who blew off IBM to go flying?”—a myth he never escaped.
In later years, he grew increasingly bitter about being overshadowed by Microsoft. And the alcoholism worsened.
Gary and Dorothy Gary and Dorothy were partners in every sense at the beginning—co‑founders, collaborators, a team. But the years that followed were not kind. By 1983, they separated and later divorced. Dorothy’s role in the early success of Digital Research is undeniable, yet history rarely mentions her.
The ultimate insult In 1992, the University of Washington held a 25th‑anniversary event for its computer science program. Gary, one of its most distinguished graduates, was invited—not to speak, but to sit in the audience. The keynote speaker? Bill Gates. A Harvard dropout who had never attended UW but had donated money.
Gary took it as the insult it was.
The death of a pioneer
On July 8, 1994, at age 52, Gary Kildall sustained a head injury at the Franklin Street Bar & Grill, a biker bar in Monterey, California. The exact circumstances remain unclear. The autopsy found evidence of chronic alcoholism. Early reports considered the possibility of homicide. The coroner noted the injury may have resulted from foul play. Police investigated but never reached a definitive conclusion.
Gary was cremated, and his remains were buried in Evergreen Washelli Memorial Park in north Seattle.
The final battle
The last chapter of Digital Research vs. Microsoft played out after Gary’s death.
Years earlier, Gary had offered to sell Digital Research to Bill Gates for $26 million. Gates told him the company was worth no more than $10 million.
In 1991, Gary sold Digital Research to Novell for $120 million.
Five years later, in 1996, Caldera acquired the Digital Research assets from Novell and immediately filed an antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft—one of the few times the score was even partially settled. Gary never wanted to file suit against Microsoft because he always believed that in the end excellence in programming would win in the marketplace.
Gary wasn't alive to see it, the final battle of Digital Research versus Microsoft was a victory for Digital Research.
Closing thoughts
The article announcing Kildall's death in the Seattle times, Kildall's home town, was titled “A Career Spent In Gates' Shadow”
Writing this script renewed my appreciation of Gary Kildall, as a forgotten geek that deserves to be remember for his many accomplishments.
Writing this script also reminded me of the ruthless nature of Bill Gates.
Written in the months before his death in 1994, Kildall's privately circulated memoir contains the following, “I have grown up in the industry with Gates. He is divisive. He is manipulative. He is a user. He has taken much from me and the industry.”
I wrote this script from perspective of telling the story of Gary Kildall without getting too deep into the geek speak and buzzwords of the personal computer industry.
Kildall had a very kind heart and never sued Microsoft or IBM for cheating him. Instead, he went on to host the show Computer Chronicles and later on died a mysterious death in a biker’s bar, where he sustained multiple head injuries.
Gary Kildall, was one of the founders of the personal computer industry, but you probably don’t know his name.
Gary viewed computers as learning tools rather than profit engines.
He laid the ground work from which all personal computers evolved.
#geek #history #operatingsystems #technology #innovation #inspiration #whatinspiresme
https://www.digitalresearch.biz/DR/Info/f_lw-01-vcontrol_4.html
https://dfarq.homeip.net/gary-kildalls-death-investigation/
https://www.digitalresearch.biz/index.htm
https://archive.org/details/Operatin1984
https://computerhistory.org/blog/in-his-own-words-gary-kildall/
http://www.digitalresearch.biz/CPM.HTM
https://computerhistory.org/press-releases/kildall-memoirs-release/
https://computerhistory.org/blog/in-his-own-words-gary-kildall/
#9 The Forgotten Genius of Gary Kildall The Legacy of Forgotten Genius Gary Kildall
Gary Kildall should have been one of the most famous names in computer history. Instead, he became a footnote. Gary Kildall was overshadowed by IBM, erased by Microsoft, and buried under decades of mythology.
This video tells the real story of Gary Kildall: the creator of CP/M, inventor of the BIOS, co‑founder of Digital Research, and one of the true architects of the personal computer revolution.
He wasn’t the reckless guy who “blew off IBM to go flying.” He wasn’t the myth. He was a brilliant, adventurous, easygoing technologist whose work shaped the desktop computers we still use today.
From the IBM negotiations to the MS‑DOS takeover, from the price‑rigging that crushed CP/M to the personal toll it took on him, this is the story of a pioneer who deserved better—and deserves to be remembered.
#GaryKildall #TechHistory #CPM #DigitalResearch #forgottengeeks #geekhistory #crankycynic
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See the complete video on YouTube @CrankyCynic https://youtu.be/HH7lPXiU2SY
Learn about Gary Kildall. It's a Shakespearean tragedy set in the early 1980s.