That's the crazy thing, like what I'm seeing all over the internet with what people are thanking Gary Gygax for: the lasting friendships that were created over D&D. Isn't that a trip!? I guess when you're young and playing RPGs you just BOND with the people you're around. There's definitely a weird sense of comfort that you gain with people in your gaming group (at least when we were kids.) I'm SO glad that I thought it was "cool" to play RPGs. My first exposure to D&D was this crazy public-access-ish show on hobbies that had this nasty neck-beard giving tips on painting D&D miniatures and explaining D&D (it was totally 1st edition.) I remember I was blown away and SO wanted to try it out. It would be a few years (quite a few in fact) before I ever got to play in a group, but man, what a lasting impression it left.

Here's a cool comic about his passing.
Comic
And it's funny, on the news tonight there was some story about WISCONSIN and they were talking to locals about "this tragic loss" and it was about some fucking football player retiring lol. For a SECOND I thought it was about GG. Oh well.