From: Kevin Fass
Date: Wed, Mar 26, 2025 at 7:15 PM
Subject: Genesis One G77 Keyboard
To: KnightRiderHistorians
I just watched your video on the computers of Knight Rider. I recognized the G77 keyboard as soon as I saw it. I actually owned one of these as a child.
Before I continue, let me burst your bubble... the keyboard is long since gone. No idea what happened to it.
When I was 10 or 11 years old (so 1982 or 83) my father brought home a keyboard from work for me to play with. When I asked him about it he said it was from a broken terminal, and I vaguely remember a story about it being a clone of a "real" terminal, and that no one liked the clone (which may be why none of them are around today).
I do have one piece of possibly useful information. I'm almost positive that the keyboard in the episode was painted by the props team. The one I remember had a very 1970s vibe to it - one that seemed dated even to a ten year old in the early 80s.
The red keys on screen were originally an odd combination or orange/yellow/brown - a color that could only be a product of the 1970s. The blue keys on the top row might have been there, I can't remember. I also think that the black/dark brown "plate" behind the keyboard was originally a 1970s brownish-orange. The overall appearance was much brighter than in the episode.
So if you are scrolling through eBay listings don't focus on the color. Then again, they might have manufactured these in different colors, or my 40 year old memories may have faded.
Good luck! I hope you find one. I'll be watching.
Kevin
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Date: Fri, Mar 28, 2025 at 3:36 PM
My dad was the CFO at a small software company (about 50 people) in the Chicago suburbs. They made boring business software (accounting, manufacturing, etc.) for the mini-computers of the era. Hardware vendors were always giving them or loaning them new hardware so they could port their software to new platforms. Every time I went to the office there was something new that I hadn't seen before. I don't remember the Delta 5000 or the Intertec Intertube terminals, but they would have fit right in with all the other gear.
I think that's all I remember, but if you have other questions let me know. My father passed about 10 years, so I can't ask him.
Kevin
