> For those who don't know, Marc Thorpe was a brilliant special effects artist and inventor who was the original creative visionary organized the first Robot Wars events starting in 1994, created the concept of robot combat as we know it, and brought together the community of builders that makes the sport what it is. Battlebots and all other robot combat events picked up where Marc left off when he was sadly forced out of direct involvement with Robot Wars. We are all here because of Marc.

> You can read more about his life and the tumultuous early history of the sport in Gearheads, considered the definitive history of the early years of robot combat.

https://www.amazon.com/Gearheads-Turbulent-Rise-Robotic-Spor...

> Here is some footage of a watch party hosted at Marc's workshop in 2019, featuring the original robotic vacuum cleaner that inspired the concept.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=3020390768032429

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