…Microsoft Co-founder, Paul Allen is — in a big way.  His “first love”*1, the Portland Trail Blazers, a team that he’s owned for the past 21 years,  has made it into the Playoffs, and no one is more excited than the owner.   One of the most devoted owners in the NBA, Paul Allen has always been his team’s biggest fan.   

Allen attends a majority of the Blazers games, bought the team’s game stadium twice and weighs in enthusiastically on every decision, often splurging on players and expenses.  He installed equipment aboard his ships that lets him watch Blazers games when he is away from home.  And when Allen was asked to give the commencement speech to the graduating class at WSU in 1999, he graciously agreed, but gave it long distance via satellite uplink, speaking to Washington graduates from the Portland Rose Garden Arena so he wouldn’t miss a Playoff game.

So his Trail Blazers’ entry this year into yet another Playoffs series is a thrill—still a major thrill— to a guy who has had more than a few thrilling moments in his lifetime.  Blazermania is back and no one is more caught up in the wave of excitement than the owner himself.

Current adventure, Trail Blazers. Past adventures?  This guy’s had a few.  Hopefully he’ll tell us more about all of them in his upcoming memoirs.  http://www.businessinsider.com/paul-allens-newest-venture-a-memoir-2009-3   Don’t hold back, Paul—we want to know EVERYTHING !!!!!

In the meantime, here is a sampling of Paul Allen’s ideas about — Paul Allen, of course — from his statements to the press through the years.  So, here you go….Part Three of Paul Allen: In His Own Words:

The projects you have funded so far cover a wide range of fields. What are the criteria you look for?

“I ask myself: What are the great questions in science, the knowledge that we are just scratching the surface of?  The chance that we are going to pick up the phone and an alien is going to be on the other end is small, but it is certainly worth—on a modest scale, for me—seeing if we can enable some of that research.  There are these greenfield areas like the human brain, systems biology, ­understanding how cells work internally, and how the proteins interact inside the cell. That’s an area I’m thinking about. Then there are the global issues we have today: global warming, the environment, and disease. I don’t know that I could make a difference in theoretical physics; that’s basically a bunch of mathematical and theoretical geniuses at different places. I’m not sure how anyone could make them work any faster than they are.” http://discovermagazine.com/2007/apr/the-discover-interview-paul-allen/article_view?b_start:int=1&-C=
The Discover Interview, Evan Ratliff

On Advice to Young People
 
If you are starting any new venture, try to find people who share your
dreams with the same enthusiasm that you do and that can complement your
strengths and bolster your weaknesses.  Start with small but achievable
dreams and under the right circumstances, these small dreams can lead to
bigger ones. Remember that you have all of the open-mindedness,
fearlessness and enthusiasm of youth.  Believe in the possibility of success.
From Paul Allen’s WSU Speech to graduating class via satellite uplink from the Rose Garden Arena upon receiving the Distinguished Alumnus Award—1999

Quote from the paulallen.com website (years ago):
  “What is the best advice, business or otherwise, you’ve had and from whom?
The best advice I’ve received came many years ago from my father.  He told me that you should love whatever work you do, you should try to find something you truly enjoy.  And I’ve been lucky through the years that the work I’ve been involved with has been challenging and for the most part, fun.”

On Trying New Things:

 You have to find and appreciate the joy and beauty of the world.  And
many times that comes if you force yourself to try things that you
otherwise might be skeptical of beginning.  In my case I discovered
scuba diving, but any kind of adventure that takes you totally out of
your normal life and into a different environment or meeting different
people can be very rewarding. Also, if you force yourself to be more
adventurous, the more ideas and different types of people you will meet
and the richer your life will become intellectually and otherwise…….
 
 From Paul Allen’s WSU Speech to graduating class via satellite uplink from the Rose Garden Arena upon receiving the Distinguished Alumnus Award–1999
  http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/12439/
 

On His Childhood in Seattle:
 
From “Paul Allen Unplugged” Dec. 2003 Columns UW Magazine
Tom Griffin
 While many of our alumni know of your generous contributions to the University, most don’t know of the UW connections going back to your childhood. Your father Ken Allen began his career with the University libraries in 1951, two years before you were born, and was Associate Director of the libraries from 1960-1982. Did your Dad open the resources of the UW  libraries to you when you were a child?
A. I spent many weekends in Suzzallo Library as I was growing up. I remember spending hours just combing through the stacks of musty books, including early books about computers. Books about science and aviation in particular were some of my favorites.
Did your family have season tickets to Husky games?
A. Yes, my father had season tickets for the Huskies for my whole childhood and I remember going to many Husky games with him. One of the reasons that I really wanted to have an open-air stadium for SeahawksStadium is that I have fond memories of wandering around Husky Stadium with my Dad, eating hot dogs and being able to watch the Huskies play outdoors in the elements—I think it’s one of the best parts about football!
Do you recall attending any open houses or science fairs at the UW that might have sparked your interest in computers?
I went to science fairs many times and had a lot of fun. More than anything it enhanced my love of science— and I carry that excitement with me today. I am particularly interested in how the brain works, and what we might be able to learn by looking at the role of the human genome in the function and anatomy of the brain. 

On His Eclectic Interests

“Allen says his business success is partly a result of his wide range of interests, which he thinks allows him to see connections between disparate areas that others may miss. His credits his parents, who gave him an open-minded start, dragging  Paul and his sister Jody to galleries, the opera, science museums, dance concerts and aviation exhibits. “Even as a kid, every year I was interested in something different,” Allen says, “whether it was chemistry or cards or physics or electronics or space travel or music.”    (Over the Horizon with Paul Allen: Another Microsoft Billionaire Speaks. Fortune: 7/11/1994 by David Kirkpatrick.)

On  SETI

From The Discover Interview with Paul Allen (by Evan Ratliff )   http://discovermagazine.com/2007/apr/the-discover-interview-paul-allen
What do you think are the chances of SETI’s succeeding—in other words, of finding intelligent life beyond our world?
“The scientists are optimistic because they think that if they have better instruments that look deeper or on more frequencies, there should be civilizations out there broadcasting. I think everybody would admit it’s a long shot, but if that long shot comes in… wow.”
If they do get the signal, will you be the first person they call?
“Actually, first they call the White House. At one point they told me I was third or fourth on the list. So I guess that’s one of the benefits of funding the project. But the phone hasn’t rung yet.”
What would that kind of discovery mean to you?
“That would be such a life-changing thing, for us all to know that there are other beings out there who we could potentially communicate with, or maybe we are listening to a signal that they transmitted hundreds of millennia ago. And then we’d say, “Well, what was in the message? Can we decode the message, and can we communicate back? What are they really like? Are they oxygen-breathing bipeds, or are they a gas cloud on some gas-giant planet?”

On Music

 http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/emp/allen.shtml   Gene Stout Seattle P-I
June 22, 2000   The Visionary: Jimi Hendrix set off a spark in Paul Allen’s Imagination  (On Jimi Hendrix, music and the Experience Music Project Music Museum):
I think Jimi expressed in some of his interviews, and in his songs, the idea that music serves as a magic carpet that can take you to different places,” Allen says. “There’s a churchlike feeling there, and great music makes the spirit soar.”  …..

“………..”It was really a challenge to come up with things that were hands-on, yet robust enough to stand up to thousands of people using them and still allow a level of instruction for someone who hasn’t had much experience playing an instrument,” Allen says. 
“We just want to get them excited about music and think, ‘Hey, here’s a door I can go through.’ There’s a lot of fun and excitement in self-expression.” 

 On Football:

“Hail From the Chief” by Brian Davis from the Seahawks’ website:   http://www.seahawks.com/ardisplay.aspx?ID=1002
“My experience with football goes back to watching Husky games with my father when I was under the age of 10—outdoors, eating a hot dog and cracking open some peanuts and seeing a game played out in the elements. That’s real football to me, so that was my dream and I think we’re delivering on that.”

On Science Fiction and  the Science Fiction Museum

 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=3203151
  “The Microsoft billionaire, whose personal collection inspired the idea for a museum, hopes the facility attracts droves of sci-fi fans from around the galaxy.
“I was exposed to science fiction at an early age,” Allen says. “I think… it’s actually about science and where science is going to take humanity and culture in the future.”

On The Allen Institute for Brain Science

From “Piece of Mind” The Economist  http://www.economist.com/theworldin/displayStory.cfm?story_id=12494720&d=2009 
   “The scientists used state-of-the-art technology to dissect a mouse brain, photographed it sliver section by section, then reassembled it in a computer database that would allow easy access. But it was the speed at which the project was accomplished and what they did with it afterwards that changed the game.
They released it to the public. Over the Internet. Free.
When we first put the mouse-brain atlas online free, it was met by the research world with suspicion. People wondered what the catch was. Scientific research has long been a solitary endeavour—one researcher, one microscope. Findings are protected so that discovery credit can be clearly defined and awarded. This is a successful model and will continue to be.
However, the Human Genome Project demonstrated a different path: multiple teams working collaboratively towards a common goal. I believe a real acceleration in progress and innovation comes from the open sharing of ideas and collaboration. We wanted the mouse atlas to be free and available for all to use as the basis for foundational research and discovery.
A new generation of implantable pacemakers for the brain will be widely used to treat everything from depression to addiction and Parkinson’s disease
If we thought it would be a hit right out of the gate, we were slightly wrong. It took a while for people to trust that it really was free to use. No one believed in a free lunch.
Now, things have changed. Today we have many scientists using the atlas for their research into Alzheimer’s, bipolar disorders, Down’s syndrome, Parkinson’s, fragile x mental retardation and epilepsy. The atlas is also giving scientists insight into alcoholism, obesity, sleep, hearing and memory.”

And from a recent Wired Article:

In March 2002, Paul Allen—co-founder of Microsoft and 41st-richest person in the world—brought together a dozen neuroscientists for a three-day meeting aboard his 300-foot yacht, Tatoosh, which was anchored in Nassau, Bahamas. At the time, Allen’s philanthropic work consisted of an eclectic (some say frivolous) set of endeavors. There was the Experience Music Project in Seattle, a rock-and-roll museum designed by Frank Gehry; the Allen Telescope Array, 350 radio telescopes dedicated to deep-space observation and the search for extraterrestrial life; and SpaceShipOne, the first privately funded plane developed to put a human in space. But Allen was eager to start something new: a project involving neuroscience. He was excited by the sheer uncharted mystery of the mind—one of the last, great scientific frontiers—hoping a single large-scale endeavor could transform the field.
“I first got interested in the brain through computers,” Allen says. “There’s a long history of artificial intelligence programs that try to mimic what the brain is doing, but they’ve all fallen short. Here’s this incredible computer, a really astonishing piece of engineering, and we have no idea how it works.”
Over several days, Allen asked the neuroscientists to imagine a way to move their field forward dramatically. “I wanted them to think big,” he says. “Like the Human Genome Project, only for the brain.”

http://www.wired.com/medtech/health/magazine/17-04/ff_brainatlas (Jonah Lehrer 3/23/09)

and from The Discover Interview: Paul Allen by Evan Ratliff  

http://discovermagazine.com/2007/apr/the-discover-interview-paul-allen/article_view?b_start:int=0&-C=
Your interest in the workings of the brain seems like a logical step for someone who started out writing software.
“Yeah, if you are involved in computers, at some point you end up being fascinated by the idea of the human brain. The human brain works in a completely different fashion from a computer and does some things so much better than a computer, and this may remain true for the next 100, 200 years. How can that be? So I brought a bunch of neuroscientists together and asked, “What can I do that would be interesting and different that would potentially help the field of neuroscience move forward?” The answer was a genetic database of the mouse brain.”

 
On Space Travel:

THE ROBERT J. COLLIER TROPHY 

Paul G. Allen
Remarks on Winning ‘The Robert J. Collier Trophy’
National Air and Space Museum
Washington, DC
April 19, 2005
from www.paulallen.com website

  “I feel I’ve been lucky to be part of three great waves of change—the personal computer, the Internet, and now private space travel.  All were extraordinary, but for sheer adrenaline, nothing will ever top that day last June when we first sent Mike Melvill to the edge of space in SpaceShipOne. 
I was always interested in flight and growing up in Seattle in the 1950s and ’60s was a great place to explore those interests. We had the World’s Fair, a strong local aeronautics industry, and I loved going to the library with my mother where I found books like Robert Heinlein’s “Rocketship Galileo,” or Willy Ley’s “Rockets, Missiles and Space Travel.” 
Science fiction was great back then, but it was amazing how much trouble it had keeping up with the reality of actual space travel. Like millions of American kids, I followed the Mercury suborbital flights, then Gemini, and then the Apollo lunar missions. I remember how exciting it was to watch those events on our grainy black and white TV set. Like many kids back then, I built scores of airplane and rocket models, and naturally, I had a plastic Air Force helmet with a flip-down visor. I even had hopes to become an astronaut one day. But after my 5th grade teacher realized I was sitting in the front row of class and squinting—it became apparent that I was nearsighted and I realized that becoming an astronaut was not in the cards for me. 
I have no doubt that these formative early experiences with space exploration helped fuel my desire to build and program computers. That same spirit of invention was always in the air in the early days of Microsoft. With SpaceShipOne, the work we did with Burt Rutan and his team at Scaled reminded me in many ways of the work Bill Gates and I were doing when we were just starting out. There aren’t that many times in your life you get to work on a project that is challenging, groundbreaking, and just plain fun.”

Recently on space travel, while watching friend Charles Simonyi blast off into space for a trip to the International Space Station:

“It’s fantastic to see a launch, but when it’s one of your friends it’s just something so special,”  Allen told Associated Press.   Allen said he would not be interested into getting into orbit using Russian technology, but is hoping to using his own spacecraft. He is a major investor in SpaceShipOne, the first commercial space operation.
http://www.vinunet.com/vinunet/news/2239325/simoni-sets-iss-space-tourist 
http://www.personalspaceflight.info/2009/03/27/paul-allen-future-space-tourist/     http://content.usatoday.com/topics/photo/People/Business,+Science+and+Technology+Figures/Paul+Allen/0dnL0857t8gym/4 )
 
 
 On SpaceShipOne:

“ As an engineer, I’ve learned to avoid words like “awesome” or “amazing” that don’t describe things specifically; but I can’t think of any other way to describe Burt’s team and what they have achieved. With only 20-odd people, working out of a simple hangar in the Mojave Desert, they reinvented, for all time, the way we view space exploration—that we can accomplish it in new and cost-effective ways as private enterprise, and that soon it will be a possibility for a great many of us.

I’d also like to say a word about courage. Never in my career have I put my own life on the line to advance knowledge. Our pilots did just that. I can’t say enough to convey my thanks to Mike Melvill, Brian Binnie and their families for their commitment to SpaceShipOne. Without them, none of us would be here today. The early aircraft pioneer Otto Lilienthal once said, “To invent an airplane is nothing. To build one is something. To fly is everything.”…………………..
 
…………..But I hope SpaceShipOne does more than just bring people to the edge of space. I hope it helps to rekindle a passion for aviation, rocketry and exploration among kids. And I hope it motivates educators to lay the important foundation of making science and math really engaging to a new generation of students. ” (Collier speech as posted on paulallen.com)
 
On the Biggest Thrill: 

 ”I feel I’ve been lucky to be part of three great waves of change—the personal computer, the Internet, and now private space travel. All were extraordinary, but for sheer adrenaline, nothing will ever top that day last June when we first sent Mike Melvill to the edge of space in SpaceShipOne.” (Collier)
 
On what he wants to be his legacy:

http://www.sportsbusinessradio.com/node/1423
 ”You just try to create things or look for opportunities to do things for the world at large that are going to make the world a better place.”

 
On The Future:

 
 ”I was always thinking about the future as a kid,” he says. “When you’re
a kid, you think anything is possible. You don’t know about constraints.”

  Living: Sunday, June 14, 1998  A Wealth Of Interests — The Big-Idea Billionaire — Paul Allen Is Into
Sports, Technology, Music, Real Estate, Movies – And He’s Not Done Yet”  by Richard Seven
  (He still does think anything is possible, or at least he seems to….)
 
 “From technology to science to music to art, I’m inspired by those who’ve blurred the boundaries, who’ve looked at the possibilities, and said, “What if…? 
 In my own work, I’ve tried to anticipate what’s coming over the horizon, to hasten its arrival, and to apply it to people’s lives in a meaningful way. Challenges inspire me, whether it’s pushing further into space than any private citizen ever has, as with SpaceShipOne or into the inner reaches of the human mind, as with the Allen Brain Atlas initiative. The varied possibilities of the universe have dazzled me since I was a child, and they continue to drive my work, my investments, and my philanthropy.”
 I hope you believe, as I do, in the inexhaustible ability of human beings to find answers to problems, to create works of beauty and originality, and to craft vital new ideas inspired by those who’ve gone before. The possible is constantly being redefined, and I care deeply about helping humanity move forward. ” (From Paul Allen’s website www.paulallen.com)
 And as he said a couple of years ago, in Paul Allen’s own words…..

 
  “I’m not near the end of the story.” 

 http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2005-01-17-paul-allen_x.htm  (Microsoft Co-founder’s Dreams Funded into Reality  by Allison Linn   1/17/05)
 
I can’t wait to hear more…..looking forward to hearing the rest of the story in your memoirs, Paul!!!!….

______________________________________________

*From Jason Quick of the Oregonian: (http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2009/04/behind_the_blazers_locker_room_13.html)

“A scene that shows how fired up owner Paul Allen is: As the media was waiting to get inside the postgamelocker room, Allen emerged from his private suite. As he walked through the gauntlet of reporters he looked at me and smiled. “Are you ready? Ready for the playoffs?” And with that, he extended a fist for a fist-bump. I think it’s safe to say Paul is ready for the playoffs. And I think it’s safe to say Paul is glad he didn’t sell the team a couple of years ago. I still contend he is one of the best owners in sports.”

*1 http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/sports/2009076872_blazers18.html

• What has been the greatest source of happiness in your life?
• What do you consider your greatest achievement(s)?
• And, perhaps the biggest question of all:   Do you believe that money can buy happiness?

 ALLEN’S INTERESTS WIDE-RANGING SEAHAWKS ANOTHER PIECE OF PUZZLE.(Sports)
Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Seattle, WA)
Date: 7/1/1997
Author: Wallace, James 

 The turning point in Allen’s once hard-driving life came in 1982, when he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease, a form of cancer. He underwent months of painful radiation and chemotherapy while trying to continue the demanding pace required at Microsoft. He could not. So he quit the company that he and Gates had founded in 1975. He later returned to serve on the board of directors.
“To be 30 years old and have that kind of shock – to face your mortality – really makes you feel like you should do some of the things that you haven’t done,” Allen said in an interview with Fortune magazine two years ago on the occasion of Microsoft’s 20th birthday.
Allen’s cancer went into remission. It has not returned. But the illness changed his life.  

On Being Recognized in Public 

 I do get recognized when I go out in public sometimes, but it just depends on the time and place – and it never deters me from doing anything. It’s nice when people say “hi” or “thanks” – it helps me remember that I’m able to help the community in some way and that my charitable work is making a   difference for people.  

On Paul’s Father:

Paul Allen’s Thoughts Drift to His Father 

Steve Kelley 

 2/4/06 

Seattle Times  

 http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=kell04&date=20060204&query=whitsitt 

Part of the bond between Allen and his father developed while watching and playing games. Father and son rooting hard for the home team. Father and son playing catch in the street. 

“My dad had a real love of sports, and I feel sad that he’s not able to be here to share in the enjoyment of being here at the Super Bowl,” Allen said Friday afternoon, sitting in a small conference room on the 39th floor of the Renaissance Center.”You share all those sports moments  growing up. Then you’re in something like the Super Bowl, and unfortunately he can’t be there with you. That was true as well of being in the NBA Finals with the [Portland Trail] Blazers.” 

Kenneth Allen, who died in November 1983, taught his son how to throw a tight spiral. He took Paul to Washington games at Husky Stadium. They saw their first great sports spectacle together, the 1964 Rose Bowl, where Washington lost to Illinois, 17-7. 

For Kenneth and Paul Allen, sports were always there. The common language. The shared experience. Kenneth Allen would understand how difficult it was for Paul to get to this game. He would appreciate the heartbreaks and heartthrobs his son experienced since purchasing the Seahawks in 1997. 

“My dad was a pretty good high-school athlete,” Allen said. “He was a center on the football team in Oklahoma and a forward on the basketball team. I still have a picture of me wearing the leather helmet he wore when he played in high school. 

“I think he’d be happy that the team was able to get here. I just wish he’d gotten the chance to talk with Mike [Holmgren] and some of the players on the team and enjoy some of those kinds of things.” 

When you moved the company from Albuquerque, was there some consideration of moving to the Silicon Valley? Was the UW also a factor in coming back to Seattle?
Albuquerque was a great place, but I missed my family and missed living in the Northwest. I’m a Seattle native and my roots are deep here—Bill and I thought it was time to go home and see what we could accomplish in Seattle. Bill and I also thought that people in the Bay Area seemed to change jobs every 18 months, and we would have a more stable and focused workforce up in Seattle than if we moved to the Bay Area—and is was much easier to hire people and relocate them to Seattle than to Albuquerque.
Jumping ahead a few years, you left Microsoft in 1983 and took some time off. Sadly, your father died that same year. Just five years later, you decided to make what I believe is your first major philanthropic gift: $11.9 million to create the Kenneth S. Allen Endowment at the UW. Can you tell us how you got the idea for the gift?
My father had worked at UW as the associate director of libraries and obviously I had many great experiences on campus—from the library to the early computer experiences we talked about. My family wanted to give back to the University to help make sure that students for many generations to come have access to the tools they need—whether it’s an outstanding library or a great computer center or a top-notch arts center (the Faye Allen Center for the Visual Arts at the Henry) that can make a difference in their lives. 

 Paul Allen Unplugged Dec. 2003 Columns UW magazine
Tom Griffin   http://www.washington.edu/alumni/columns/dec03/allen01.html 

Of course, not all challenges spring from technology.  Many of the
toughest problems we face today, hunger, the environment, population
growth and violence desperately need people who want to attack these
problems and make a difference in the lives of others.
In my experience, nothing is as rewarding as teamwork that results in
something that helps and benefits many people. 

The same mindset of fearlessness, new thinking and passion applies at
least as much as in technology, and the personal rewards in these areas
can be just as great if not greater. 

My mother’s passion, for example, was teaching elementary  school after
she was a librarian.  I have heard on many occasions how her former
students have expressed how she enriched and influenced their lives.
A legacy like this is just as essential to building our society as any
corporate success. 

“When you and Gates started out, how ambitious were you?
We knew that microcomputers with software on them could have some impact, and certainly they were cheap. A big part of the success of Microsoft was that every year, the chips our software ran on got faster and cheaper. They doubled in capability every 18 months under Moore’s law. Even to this day, every year they get better and the price doesn’t change. It’s amazing, and that was a huge driver of our success. When we were starting Microsoft, we were thinking if we were really successful we would have something like 35 employees. On the other hand, in the back of our minds we were thinking, “Wow, if a lot of people bought a cheap computer . . . ” We had glimmerings of it.
How did the collaboration between the two of you work in those early days?
We split the programming tasks. I was familiar with the software that ran on mainframes and minicomputers that will let you emulate chips. And Bill bit off some of the really complicated stuff and did a great job architecting the overall design of the Basic program. Bill was always very focused on the external relationships and the business management part of it, whereas I was more attracted toward seeing where the leading edge of the technology was going. So we were a good complement to each other.
Do you guys reminisce about the old times?
Yes, we always have a laugh because it’s hard to explain the incredible level of fun we had. We talk about how Bill would sleep on the carpet at the office. The secretary would come in and see Bill’s feet sticking out of the door. We were very hard-core. Our only recreational activity was going to the movies. And then we would program until two, three, four in the morning and then get up fairly late, go back, and do it again. We just loved it. We had a great time.
In a weird way you and Gates still seem to follow parallel paths. Do you ever talk about entering a philanthropic collaboration?
We are always looking to find some areas of overlap in our philanthropic stuff. We’ve had so much success doing things before; it feels good. Recently we’ve been talking about doing something together on the frontiers of energy.” 

On Whether He Would have Done Anything Differently in the Early Days of Microsoft: 

Paul Allen Q & A 

 Q&A: Paul Allen reflects on early days at Microsoft, friendship with Gates
Friday, September 23, 2005   By TODD BISHOP
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER    http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/241942_allenqa23.html 

 ”Q: Is there anything that you would have done differently in the early days of the company? 

Allen: Not really. … We had a lot of fun back in those days. We worked tremendously long hours. Of course, Bill was going to Harvard, and I was working in Albuquerque. I kept trying to persuade him to leave school and was able to finally convince him that working at Microsoft was more important than going to Harvard, which it took his parents a long time to forgive me for, but I think they did in the end. 

On Microsoft’s Success: 

“We were in the right place at the right time. Certainly, we had dreams that we could start a successful company. But to look back and say in hindsight that we knew it would amount to all this—I don’t think that would be accurate.”   Inside Out: Microsoft—In our own words Sept. 2000 Microsoft 

On What Might Have Happened Had He Stayed at Microsoft: 

  http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/241942_allenqa23.html 

Q: Obviously, you left (Microsoft) under circumstances that were beyond your control. (Allen left his executive position with the company in 1983 as he battled Hodgkin’s disease.) Do you ever stop and think about what things would have been like had you remained? 

Allen: I don’t know if I would have been involved with sports teams and different kinds of philanthropy and other kinds of technology explorations if I had been at Microsoft, so my life took a dramatically different turn after I left. Obviously, if I had been at Microsoft, it would have been working on the same kinds of things. Would Microsoft products have been different with my contribution? We’ll never know the answer to that question, but certainly I feel like I’ve had a lot of fun, done a lot of exciting and different, unusual things, like SpaceShipOne, since I left Microsoft.”   Paul Allen Q&A: Paul Allen reflects on early days at Microsoft, friendship with Gates
Friday, September 23, 2005   By TODD BISHOP
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER 

And on those rare occasions throughout the past 30 years he’s given a pretty good glimpse of who he is,
expressing what he cares about, his hopes and dreams, his vision of the
future and even proffering a word of wisdom or two for future generations. 

So, here are some of the best of those speeches, quotes, interviews and
insights into Microsoft co-founder, Paul Allen from the man himself: 

1980’s 

1986 

From Todd Bishop’s former PI blog, here’s a retro of the article that appeared in the Seattle PI on March 14, 1986 when Microsoft went public: 

http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/microsoft/archives/102018.asp 

From the article: 

“Microsoft’s two founders – Bill Gates and Paul Allen – were made instant millionaires by the offering, but they didn’t seem fazed by all the hoopla. Allen went to work as usual at Asymetrix, the company he founded last year in Bellevue. Gates was in Australia on business.  

”I’m pretty happy,” said Allen. ”Everybody involved with Microsoft since the beginning has been looking forward to this day.”  

Then began life after Microsoft. Allen started out with Asymetrix, making “software specifically designed for the new, more powerful 286 and 386 microprocessors.” Forbes, 4/6/1987 “The Next Chapter (Microsoft’s Paul Allen founds Asymetrix) by Edward F. Cone. 

From the article: 

“Microsoft has been phenomenally successful, which has been great for me,” says Allen. “Now we just want to have some fun and push back the existing boundaries of applications software.” 

1990’s 

 In 1993, few envisioned the enormous possibilities of the Internet, and yet Allen was already viewing the computer as an interactive multimedia device, a window to the “wired world.” One of his early “Wired World” investments was in Ticketmaster. 

See Seattle Times 11/23/93; Paul Andrews “Microsoft Co-founder Allen sees new first as ticket to interactive TV” 

From the article: 

“Allen, who helped jump-start the Information Age in 1975 through his development, with Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, of the BASIC software programming language for the first personal computer–has assembled an intriguing cast of investments potentially tied to a nationwide Data Highway. 

And check out this 1994 article from Computerworld “Paul Allen’s On-line Kingdom” 10/3/94 Stuart J. Johnston. 

“What I call the “wired world” is a scenario where everybody is basically on-line via inexpensive, high-bandwidth digital channels into pretty much everybody’s home and place of business,” Allen said.  

 “The marriage of video technology, computer technology, and networking is another sea change, where you try to ride the incredible wave that’s coming. That’s the core convergence of ideas for the information superhighway,” says Allen, gazing out of the giant picture windows and seeing the future. “So you say, ‘Okay, we’re getting a whole new medium here, what can we really do that people haven’t thought about in their individual areas?’ It’s not just showing movies on demand. What wholly new applications and user interfaces and products and services can you deliver?” 

So in 1995, Allen invested in yet another wired world venture, this time in Hollywood. See “Allen Shares Belief with Dreamworks” USA Today; 3/20/95; by Dottie Enrico.  

From the article: 

Fifty six years ago, on January 21, 1953, the day that Paul Allen was born in Seattle, Washington to Edna Faye and Kenneth Samuel Allen,  also marked the first day of a new Presidency—that of 34th U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower.  

On January 21st, 1953 the world was a much different place. Among other things, the U.S. experienced its leader’s inauguration in a very different way.  President Eisenhower’s Inaugural Address  was broadcast live—-just as it was yesterday—from the steps of the Capitol in Washington, D.C.,  but his speech was received by the U.S. people only through radio, televison or newspaper.  http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/dwighteisenhowerfirstinaugural.htm  

http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=9600

 Fast forward 56 years later to 2009 and President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address was viewed by millions; shot around the globe via a thousand different media. The Internet buzzed with the excitement of the moment—people “Twittered”  or “Tweeted” every line of the new President’s speech and about everything that was happening at the Capitol  http://search.twitter.com/search?q=Inauguration ; the Internet’s Hulu streamed the entire ceremony from beginning to end  http://www.hulu.com/spotlight/obamapresidency ; celebrities were sharing their private backstage views of the festivities surrounding the welcoming of a new President http://www.kyte.tv/ch/11105-johnlegendtv/321483-mobile-show-137  ; Satellite photos were taken http://www.foxnews.com/photoessay/0,4644,6338,00.html# and by the evening of January 20th, Microsoft had designed a composite 3D photo of the scene via “Photosynth” —resulting in a remarkable virtual tour of the event taken from the emailed cell phone and camera pictures of some of the 2 million people who witnessed the Inauguration firsthand.  http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-10146012-75.html

The same ”Wired World” that Microsoft Co-founder, Paul Allen and numerous other Visionaries dreamed about years ago has come of age and has brought the Presidential Inaugural Experience up close and personal in a way never seen before—in a way that couldn’t have been imagined 56 years ago.  

The world is very different than it was in 1953.  And yet,  in some ways, it is also very much the same:

Fifty six years ago, our 34th U.S. President, Dwight D. Eisenhower, made his Inaugural speech on January 20, 1953 and reflected on our Country’s need for hope, for God’s guidance and help, and the courage to face the challenges of the day:

“The world and we have passed through the midway point of a century of continuing challenge…..in the swift rush of great events, we find ourselves groping to know that full sense and meaning of these times in which we live.   In our quest of understanding, we beseech God’s guidance.  We summon all our knowledge of the past and we scan all signs of the future.   We bring all out wit and our will to meet the question:
 
How far have we come in man’s long pilgrimage from darkness toward light?   Are we nearing the light—a day of freedom and peace for all mankind?  Or are the shadows of another night closing in upon us?”*1
 

And yesterday, January 20th, 2009,  so did America’s 44th President, Barack Hussein Obama.  As the American people face the enormous challenges of the day, we are still searching for an answer to the same question that was asked 56 years ago:

“How far have we come in man’s long pilgrimage from darkness toward light?   Are we nearing the light—a day of freedom and peace for all mankind?  Or are the shadows of another night closing in upon us?”

As Paul Allen celebrates his birthday today, this country welcomes a new President whose eloquent Inaugural speech brings hope that we are in fact drawing towards light and peace, and that despite the significant challenges we face today, we are better than ever before.  Here is the full transcript from yesterday’s address, courtesy of ABC News:

President Barack Obama Delivers Inaugural Address at US Capitol in Washington, D.C.

 —————————————————

LINKS:

President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Speech:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RShdL1jB7-Q

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mrjl8puFROM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCFhpYMhaqY

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Inauguration/story?id=6689022&page=1

President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Inaugural Address:

http://www.bartleby.com/124/pres54.html    

*1 Eisenhower Inaugural Speech
January 20, 1953

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/dwighteisenhowerfirstinaugural.htm

But just in case you never do meet him, you can still see that “Regular Guy” side of Allen via a few videos that have been floating around the Internet lately.

Check it out:

1) Shaq Attack:

Basketball phenom Shaquille O’Neal recovers gracefully from a tumble into the stands by shaking the hand of Trail Blazers owner, Paul Allen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKvm63hfFo8

2) High Five:

A Seahawks win has owner Paul Allen and fans in a very good mood. Check out this video of Allen high-fiving Seattle Seahawks fans as he walks off the field.
 
http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/thebigblog/archives/128891.asp

3) Twice Bitten:

Here Paul Allen is a good sport as he is attacked by a “vampire” while chatting with a comely news reporter about Gwen Stefani and technology.

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/1807044/stylela_paul_allen/

4) Cannes Hello:

Here is a video of Allen in Cannes, France, coming ashore from a trip aboard one of his megayachts, Tatoosh. His lovely home in St. Jean Cap-Ferrat, called Villa Maryland,  was a hangout for Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt during the 61st Cannes Film Festival last summer.

http://x17video.com/celebrity_video/brad_pitt/paul_allens_luxury_yacht.php

5) Blazers Workout:

Here is Paul Allen again after a Blazers workout, chatting about chatting with some dynamic new potential players from France — in French, no less.

http://videos.oregonlive.com/oregonlive/2008/06/paul_allen_on_tuesdays_workout.html

6) Blazers Press Conference:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ur38bh1Ze4A

And here he is again talking about his favorite basketball team.

 7) Beard or No Beard?

 Here is Paul Allen joking around with Bill Gates as the famous photo from 1978 is retaken 30 years later: (2:30 minutes into the program):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HyyYvdswn9Y

(From BBC’s “The Money Programme: Bill Gates: How a Geek Changed the World.” (Part 2)

8 ) A Computer on Every Desk:

And here he is talking about the realization of the dream that he and Bill Gates had of putting a computer in every home and on every desk:
 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOuaT9r-YVk

9) Best Computer History Video of All Time:

If you haven’t seen Robert Cringley’s “Triumph of the Nerds,” in which many of the pioneers of the computer industry, including Paul Allen, were featured, you’ve got to check it out. Here is one place where you can find it :

 http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5816243901626409784&vt=lf&hl=en

10) Jamming with Friends:

Finally, here are a few of my favorites—-Paul Allen performing in concert through the years, just being a regular guy, having a good time and playing some pretty decent guitar rifts besides!

Here he is hamming it up with his band:

http://2008.thecableshow.com/Popups/ContentPopup.aspx?ID=427

And here is a bearded version of Paul Allen in 1995, having a great time performing with some good friends:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7736241993066088463&q=%22paul+allen%22&ei=rC0ZSI9SjqyuA9D3-OoG&hl=en
 

So maybe this post isn’t “Evri”-thing you wanted to know about Paul Allen—

in fact, you can find that here:

http://www.evri.com/person/paul-allen-0x49a77.html

But it’s still fun to see Allen in candid mode. _________________________________________________________________________________

BTW—I know I’ve been away for awhile.

I’ve been a little sidetracked lately, doing some serious cyberspace exploration with my mini-pc, a Flipstart, and I’ve been having just too much fun with it to stop by.   But I’ll be back soon, I promise, with more six degrees connections, and a list of cool sites and other things I’ve discovered lately along the way.

Stay tuned…..

http://2008.thecableshow.com/Popups/ContentPopup.aspx?ID=427

http://2008.thecableshow.com/CableCares/Bands.aspx

Is that great or what?!

Next Tuesday, May 20th at 8 pm in the Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Allen and his band will be among a number of cable industry musicians performing at NCTA’s “Battle of the Bands” Charity Fundraiser.  Proceeds from the Concert will go towards New Orleans schools and libraries, and to other organizations devoted to helping the city of New Orleans to rebuild.

 http://2008.thecableshow.com/CableCares/AboutBattleOfTheBands.aspx

A number of the bands performing that night have submitted their own version of “On the Road to Nola,” but you can imagine which one is my favorite!

Anyway, when you watch the video, keep in mind that the guy sitting in the driver’s seat of that beat up old VW van is one of the most powerful, influential people in the world.  (If you don’t believe me, just ask Time Magazine .

See….

http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1733748_1733754_1735855,00.html

 Wow–what a great video!  Paul Allen must be a really down-to-earth guy to ham it up like that, you know?

———————————

(If you go to the concert,  you will have to bring a fully charged cell phone in order to vote on the best band.*  So…..since you’ve got your camera phone out anyway….what do you think? How about taking a photo or video clip of Paul Allen’s Band? Anyone?) :-)

* http://2008.thecableshow.com/CableCares/EmceeandJudges.aspx

Apparently the concert will also be webcasted by Octoshape:

See..  http://2008.thecableshow.com/CableCares/AboutBattleOfTheBands.aspx ,

         http://www.octoshape.com/

I’ll have to check it out on my Flipstart …..

Starting new companies……
 

 www.mineboxx.com
 
http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/venture/archives/135164.asp
 
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2008/02/18/story4.html
 http://www.evri.com/about.html

 
 
Doing Some Remodeling ….
 
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7761738065392890378&q=south+lake+union&ei=SN4fSNeWNpDCqAPssdm3AQ
 
And Accepting Awards…………
 
http://www.worldscreen.com/newscurrent.php?filename=ncta033107.htm
 
http://www.variety.com/awardcentral_article/VR1117983178.html?nav=news&categoryid=1983&cs=1
 
http://media-newswire.com/release_1064357.html
 
http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/0,28757,1733748,00.html?iid=redirect-time100
 
 
All of those awards…where in the world am I going to keep them all???
 
 
OH, WAIT A SECOND…..THAT’S PAUL ALLEN’S LIFE, NOT MINE…..:-)
 
The truth is, I’ve just been really busy doing a lot of pretty mundane things.
 
This has been a quiet Spring for Microsoft Co-founder, Paul Allen, but I imagine that Allen’s most uneventful day would seem pretty exciting in comparison to mine.

“The Institute will create three new Web-based atlas resources that map gene activity in the brain and spinal cord. These include an atlas designed to provide insight into gene expression in the human brain; an atlas of the developing mouse brain designed to illustrate and enhance understanding of gene activity across multiple stages of development from birth through adulthood; and an atlas of the mouse spinal cord designed to inform research into spinal injuries due to disease, disorder or trauma.

The new atlases will be officially known as the Allen Brain Atlas (ABA)—Human Brain, ABA—Developing Mouse Brain, and ABA—Mouse Spinal Cord. Upon completion, the atlases will be made publicly available on the Internet at no charge to users to encourage widespread use and scientific collaboration.”

At the NCTA conference this month, Allen will be among those receiving the cable industry’s top honor, the Vanguard Award for Distinguished Leadership, which is “presented annually to individuals who excel in both business and personal commitment to their colleagues, and whose accomplishments merit the recognition of the entire cable industry.”
 
 Watch for the “battle of the bands” during the conference, which will include a performance by Paul Allen’s band. http://www.capitolvalley.net/2008/04/im-headed-to-the-big-easy-for.html .
 
(BTW—-If you’ve been invited and have a video camera, please, please, please use it that night, ok? We seriously need a Youtube of Paul Allen in concert!

I’ve already found a few videos of my favorite musician on the Web—but could certainly use another one…

So—check out this video from 1995—many, many years ago. Here is Paul Allen back in his bearded days, performing with “The Paul Allen Group” at a Ticketmaster event in Santa Barbara, California. It’s absolutely priceless, and you’ve got to admit, this guy plays a pretty mean guitar!
 
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7736241993066088463&q=%22paul+allen%22&ei=rC0ZSI9SjqyuA9D3-OoG&hl=en
 
And here is one more site to check out for a taste of Allen’s own music.  Most of the songs on this album were written by Allen, and all of them were performed by his band, Grown Men.
 
http://www.grownmen.com/interior.asp?section=clips