Pioneers of CGI – Part I – 1930 to 1980 – analog to digital

https://ohiostate.pressbooks.pub/graphicshistory/back-matter/cg-historical-timeline/

1938

Valensi proposes color TV

1939

Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard design the Audio Oscillator  

1949

• John Whitney enters first International Experimental Film Competition in Belgium

• Mary Ellen Butte

 

1950

• Cybernetics and Society – Norbert Weiner (MIT)
• Ben Laposky uses oscilloscope to display waveforms which were photographed as artwork

 

1951

• Graphics display on vectorscope on Whirlwind computer in first public demonstration

 

1955

• SAGE system at Lincoln Lab uses first light pen (Ivan Sutherland)

 

1956

• Lawrence Livermore National Labs connects graphics display to IBM 704; use film recorder for color images

 

1958

• Saul Bass creates titles for Hitchcock’s Vertigo

• Integrated circuit (IC, or Chip) invented by Jack St. Clair Kilby of Texas Instruments and Robert Noyce of Fairchild Electronics
• John Whitney Sr. uses analog computer to make art

 

1960

• William Fetter of Boeing coins the term “computer graphics” for his human factors cockpit drawings
• John Whitney Sr. founds Motion Graphics, Inc.
• LISP developed by John McCarthy
• DEC PDP-1 introduced

 

1961

• Spacewars, 1st video game, developed by Steve Russell at MIT for the PDP-1

1963

• 1st computer art competition, sponsored by Computers and Automation
• Sketchpad developed beginning in 1961 by Ivan Sutherland at MIT is unveiled Mouse invented by Doug Englebart of SRI
• Coons’ patches
• Early computer generated film by Edward Zajac (Bell Labs)
• Michael Noll (Bell Labs) starts his Gaussian Quadratic series of artwork
• 
• Roberts hidden line algorithm (MIT)
• The Society for Information Display established
• Fetter of Boeing creates the “First Man” digital human for cockpit studies

1964

• Project MAC (MIT)
• IBM 2250 console ($125,000) introduced with IBM 360 computer
• Poem Field by Stan Vanderbeek and Ken Knowlton
• Ruth Weiss introduces drawing software that performs hidden line elimination
• Electronic character generator
• RAND tablet input device (commercially known as Grafacon)

1965

• 1st computer art exhibition, at Technische Hochschule in Stuttgart
• Utah computer science department founded
• Bresenham Algorithm for plotting lines
  

  

• Tektronix Direct View Storage Tube (DVST)
• 1st U.S. computer art exhibition, at Howard Wise Gallery in New York

1966

• Odyssey, home video game developed by Ralph Baer of Sanders Assoc., is 1st consumer CG product
• Plasma Panel introduced (first developed at Illinois in 1964 as part of the PLATO project)
• Studies in Perception I by Ken Knowlton and Leon Harmon (Bell Labs)
  

  

• MAGI founded by Phil Mittleman
• Experiments in Art and Technology (E.A.T.) started in New York by artist Robert Rauschenberg and Bell Labs engineer Billy Klüver
• IBM awards Artist-in-Residence to John Whitney, Sr.
• Loutrel hidden line algorithm
• Lincoln Wand developed

1967

• Appel hidden line algorithm
• Steven Coons publishes his surface patch “little red book” (Ref: Coons, Steven A. 1967. Surfaces for Computer-aided Design of Space Forms , Project MAC Report MAC-TR-41. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Mass.)
  

• Sine Curve Man and Hummingbird created by Chuck Csuri
• MIT’s Center for Advanced Visual Studies founded by Gyorgy Kepes

1968

• DEC 338 intelligent graphics terminal
• Tektronix 4010
• Intel founded
• University of Utah asks Dave Evans to form a CG department in computer science
• Warnock algorithm
• Watkins algorithm
• Permutations – John Whitney, Sr.
• Sutherland Head Mounted Display
• Evans & Sutherland Calma, Computek, Houston Instrument, Imlac founded

1969

• Computer Space arcade game built by Nolan Bushnell
• Xerox PARC founded
• Lee Harrison’s CAESAR animation system
• Bell Labs builds first framebuffer (3 bits)
  

  

• Sony U-Matic 3/4″ video cassette
• 1st use of CGI for commercials – MAGI for IBM
• SIGGRAPH formed
• ComputerVision, Applicon, Vector General founded
• ARPANET is born
• Graphical User Interface (GUI) developed by Xerox (Alan Kay)

1970

• Sonic Pen 3-D input device
• Watkins algorithm for visible surfaces
• Lillian Schwartz produces Pixellation at Bell Labs
• Pierre Bezier from Renault develops Bezier freeform curve representation
  

  

1971

• Gouraud shading
• Ramtek founded
• GINO – Cambridge University
  

  

• Intel 4004 4-bit processor
• Interactive Graphics for Computer-Aided Design (Prince) published
  

  

• Floppy disk (8″) – IBM

1972

• MAGI Synthevision started
• CGRG founded at Ohio State
• NASA IPAD initiative started
• Graphics Standards Planning Committee organized by ACM-SIGGRAPH
• The @ symbol selected for email addresses by BBN
• Emmy awarded to Lee Harrison for SCANIMATE
• Alto computer introduced by Xerox PARC (Alan Kay)
  

  

• Megatek, Summagraphics, Computervision, Applicon founded
• Utah hand (Catmull) and face (Parke) animations produced
• Computer Graphics and Image Processing journal begins publication
• 8-bit frame buffer developed by Dick Shoup at Xerox PARC
• Sandin Image Processor – Dan Sandin, Univ. Illinois-Chicago Circle
• Atari formed (Nolan Bushnell)
• Newell, Newell and Sancha visible surface algorithm
  

  

• Video game Pong developed for Atari
• Graphics Symbiosis System (GRASS) developed at Ohio State by Tom DeFanti

1973

• E&S begins marketing first commercial frame buffer
• Ethernet – Bob Metcalf (Harvard)
• Quantel founded
• Westworld – uses 2D graphics
• Circle Graphics Habitat founded at Univ. Illinois Chicago (Tom DeFanti & Dan Sandin)
• Moore’s Law (the number of transistors on a microchip will double every year and a half) by Intel’s chairman, Mr. Gordon Moore
• Nolan Bushnell’s video game Computer Space appears in movie Soylent Green
  

  

• 3/4 inch Portapack replaces 16mm film for news gathering
• Richard Shoup develops PARC raster display
• Rich Riesenfeld (Syracuse) introduces b-splines for geometric design

 

1974

• Motion Pictures Product Group formed at III by John Whitney, Jr. and Gary Demos
• Alex Schure opens CGL at NYIT, with Ed Catmull as Director
• Barnhill and Riesenfeld introduce the name “Computer-Aided Geometric Design” (CAGD)
• SuperPaint developed by Dick Shoup and Alvy Ray Smith
• TCP protocol (Vint Cerf, Bob Kahn)
  

• Intel (Zilog) 8080
• Z-buffer developed by Ed Catmull (University of Utah)
• Futureworld (sequel to Westworld) uses 3D CGI (III)
• Hunger/La Faim produced by Peter Foldes at National Research Council of Canada; wins Cannes Film Festival Prix de Jury award for animation

1975

• Phong shading – Bui-Tuong Phong (University of Utah)
• fractals – Benoit Mandelbrot (IBM)
• Winged edge polyhedra representation (Bruce Baumgart)
• Catmull curved surface rendering algorithm
• Bill Gates starts Microsoft
• Quantel (QUANtized TELevision) introduces the DFS3000 Digital Framestore
  

  

• Martin Newell (Utah) develops CGI teapot (physical teapot now in the Computer Museum in Boston)
• JPL Graphics Lab developed (Bob Holzman)
• Arabesque completed (John Whitney)
• Anima animation system developed at CGRG at Ohio State (Csuri)

1976

• MIT’s Visible Language Workshop founded by Muriel Cooper
• Ed Catmull develops “tweening” software (NYIT)
• Jim Clark’s Hierarchical model for visible surface detection
• Jim Blinn develops reflectance and environment mapping (University of Utah)
• Nelson Max’s sphere inversion film
  

  

• Ukrainian Pysanka Egg erected in Vegraville, Canada by Ron Resch
• Sony Beta home video
• Floppy disk (5 1/4″)
• Apple 1 (Wozniak)
• Computer Graphics Newsletter started by Joel Orr;
• Peter Fonda’s head digitized and rendered by III for Futureworld
  

  

• Artist and Computer, by Ruth Leavitt
• Mathematical Elements for Computer Graphics (David Rogers) published
• Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak start Apple computer.

1977

• Apple Computer incorporated
• Frank Crow introduces antialiasing
• Jim Blinn introduces a new illumination model that considers surface “facets”
• Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences introduces Visual Effects category for Oscars
• R/Greenberg founded (Richard and Robert Greenberg)
• SIGGRAPH CORE Graphics standard
• Ampex ESSTM (Electronic Still Store) system introduced for network sports slo-mo
• Larry Cuba produces Death Star simulation for Star Wars

1978

• Tom DeFanti’s GRASS system rewritten for Bally home computer (Zgrass)
• Digital Effects founded (Judson Rosebush, Jeff Kleiser, et al)
• Lance Williams curved shadows paper
• Ikonas frame buffer – England/Whitton
  

  

• Leroy Neiman uses Ampex AVA-1TM video art system to draw (on air) football players in Super Bowl XII
• 1st CGI film title – Superman (R. Greenberg)
• James Blinn produces the first of a series of animations titled The Mechanical Universe
• Bump mapping introduced

1979

• National Computer Graphics Association (NCGA) organized by Peter Preuss of ISSCO and Joel Orr
• IGES graphics file format specified
  

  

• Motorola 68000 32-bit processor
• Atari 8-bit computers introduced
• Disney produces The Black Hole using CGI for the opening
• George Lucas hires Ed Catmull, Ralph Guggenheim and Alvy Ray Smith to form Lucasfilm
• Sunstone – Ed Emshwiller (NYIT)

1980s

1980

• Vol Libre – Loren Carpenter of Boeing
  

  

• Apollo Computer founded – introduces the 68000 based DN100 workstation
• Turner Whitted of Bell Labs publishes ray tracing paper
• First NCGA conference – Arlington, Virginia – Steven Levine, President
  

  

• Donkey Kong introduced by Nintendo (Mario named in US release)
• IBM licenses DOS from Microsoft
• Apple Computer IPO – 4.6M shares @ $22
• Aurora Systems founded by Richard Shoup
• SIGGRAPH Core standard reorganized as ANSC X3H3.1
• EUROGRAPHICS (The European Association for Computer Graphics) formed; first conference at Geneva
• Disney contracts Abel, III, MAGI and DE for computer graphics for the movie Tron
• MIT Media Lab founded by Nicholas Negroponte
• Pacific Data Images founded by Carl Rosendahl
• Hanna-Barbera, largest producer of animation in the U.S., begins computer automation
• Quantel introduces Paintbox

1981

• Sony Betacam
• Tom DeFanti expands GRASS to Bally Z-50 machine (ZGRASS) – University Illinois – Chicago Circle
• IBM introduces the first IBM PC (16 bit 8088 chip)
• DEC introduces VT100
• IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications published by IEEE Computer Society and NCGA
• Ampex ADO® system introduced; garners an Emmy award in 1983
• Digital Productions formed by Whitney and Demos
• Cranston/Csuri Productions founded by Chuck Csuri, Robert Kanuth and Jim Kristoff.
• R/Greenberg opens CGI division (Chris Woods)
• MITI Fifth Generation Computer Project announced by Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry
• REYES renderer written at LucasFilm
• Penguin Software (now Polarware) introduces the Complete Graphics System
• Looker includes the virtual human character Cindy (Susan Dey) – 1st film with shaded graphics(III)
  

  

• Adam Powers, the Juggler produced by III
• Carla’s Island – Nelson Max

1982

• The Last Starfighter (Digital Productions) begins production
• Tron released
• The Geometry Engine (Clark)
• Jim Clark founds Silicon Graphics Inc.
• Sun Microsystems founded (sun := Stanford University Network)
• Alain Fournier , Don Fussell , Loren Carpenter, Computer Rendering of Stochastic Models. Communications of the ACM, v.25 n.6, p.371-384, June 1982 (Fractal Rendering paper)
• Skeleton Animation System (SAS) developed at CGRG at Ohio State (Dave Zeltzer)
  

  

• Sony still frame video camera (Mavica)
• ACM begins publication of TOG (Transactions on Graphics)
• Tom Brighham develops morphing (NYIT)
• Adobe founded by John Warnock
• Toyo Links established in Tokyo
• Quantel Mirage
• Symbolics Graphics Division founded
• EPCOT Center opens
• Atari develops the data glove.
• Where the Wild Things Are test (MAGI) – digital compositing used to combine CG backgrounds and traditional animation
• AutoDesk founded; AutoCAD released
  

  

• ILM computer graphics division develops “Genesis effect” for Star Trek II – The Wrath of Khan

1983

• Particle systems (Reeves – Lucasfilm)
• Computer Graphics SGI IRIS 1000 graphics workstation
• Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines (NURBS) introduced by Tiller (Note: this date is somewhat misleading, since the concept built on the work of Vesprille (1975), Riesenfeld (1973), Knapp (1979), Coons (1968) and Forrest (1972))
• Road to Point Reyes created – Lucasfilm
• The Last Starfighter released
• Jim Blinn receives the first (1983) ACM SIGGRAPH CG Achievement Award
• Ivan Sutherland receives the first (1983) ACM SIGGRAPH Steven A. Coons Award
• Steve Dompier’s “Micro Illustrator”
• UNIX System V
• Utah Raster Toolkit introduced (Spencer Thomas)
• Autodesk introduces first PC-based CAD software
• Alias founded in Toronto by Stephen Bingham, Nigel McGrath, Susan McKenna and David Springer mip-mapping introduced for efficient texture mapping (Williams – NYIT) (Ref: Williams, Lance. Pyramidal Parametrics. Computer Graphics (SIGGRAPH 83 Proceedings) 17(3) July 1983, p. 1-11.
  

  

• Sony and Philips introduce 1st CD player
• Wacom Co., Ltd started in Japan

1984

• Robert Abel & Associates produces the 1st computer generated 30 second commercial used for Super Bowl (Brilliance)
  

  

• Wavefront Technologies is the first commercially available 3D software package (founded by Mark Sylvester, Larry Barels and Bill Kovacs )
• Thomson Digital Image (TDI) founded
• Jim Clark receives the 1984 ACM SIGGRAPH CG Achievement Award
• International Resource Development report predicts the extinction of the keyboard in the next decade
• A-buffer (or alpha-buffer) introduced by Carpenter of Lucasfilm
• Distributed ray tracing introduced by Lucasfilm
• Cook shading model (Lucasfilm)
• 14.5 minute computer generated IMAX film (The Magic Egg) shown at SIGGRAPH 84
• Universal Studios opens CG department
• First Macintosh computer is sold; introduced with Clio award winning commercial 1984 during Super Bowl
• McDonnel Douglas introduces the Polhemus 3Space digitizer and body Tracker
  

  

• The Cornell Box invented by Cohen
• Radiosity born – Cornell University
• John Lasseter joins Lucasfilm
• Motorola 68020
• Digital Productions (Whitney and Demos) get Academy Technical Achievement Award for CGI simulation of motion picture photography
  

  

• Lucasfilms introduces motion blur effects
• Porter and Duff compositing algorithm (Lucasfilm)
• The Adventures of Andre and Wally B. (Lucasfilm)

1985

• Commodore launches the new Amiga
• Max Headroom – computer-mediated live action figure
• Judson Rosebush Co. started
• Abel Image Research takes Robert Abel & Associates to shaded graphics business
  

  

• Tony de Peltrie airs
• stereo TV
• Biosensor (Toyo Links)
• Cray 2
• GKS standard
• Quantel Harry is first non-linear editor
• UNIX X10R1
• CGW predicts 90s graphics workstation
  

  

• Targa 16 board (AT&T) goes to market
• Pixar Image Computer goes to market
• NeXT Incorporated founded by Steve Jobs and five former Apple senior managers
• Perlin’s noise functions introduced (Ref: Perlin, Ken. An Image Synthesizer. Computer Graphics (SIGGRAPH 85 Proceedings) 19(3) July 1985, p. 287-296.)
• CD-ROMs High Sierra (ISO9660) standard introduced
• PostScript (Adobe – John Warnock)
• PODA creature animation system developed by Girard and Maciejewski at Ohio State (Ref: Girard, Michael and A. A. Maciejewski. Computational Modeling for the Computer Animation of Legged Figures. Computer Graphics (SIGGRAPH 85 Proceedings) 19(3) July 1985, p. 263-270.)
• Boss Films founded by Richard Edlund
  

  

• MIT Media Lab moves to new home
• Young Sherlock Holmes stained glass knight (Lucasfilm), 2010 (Boss Films)and Looker (DP)

1986

• The Great Mouse Detective was the first animated film to be aided by CG.
• Pixar purchased from Lucasfilm by Steve Jobs
• X-Window System (MIT Project Athena)
• Trancept Systems founded by Nick England and Mary Whitton – graphics board for Sun
• CGI group starts at Industrial Light and Magic (Doug Kay and George Joblove)
• Softimage founded by Daniel Langlois in Montreal
• Computer Associates acquires ISSCO
• Microsoft goes public (IPO raises $61M; share prices go from $21 to $28)
• Apple IIgs introduced
• Silicon Graphics Incorporated IPO
• SGI IRIS 3000 (MIPS processor)
• Turner Whitted receives the 1986 ACM SIGGRAPH CG Achievement Award
  

  

• Jim Henson Waldo project introduces motion capture (Digital Productions)
• Kajiya’s Rendering Equation
• Omnibus assumes Robert Able & Associates and Digital Productions
• Whitney/Demos Productions founded
• Luxo Jr. nominated for Oscar (first CGI film to be nominated – Pixar)

• TIFF (Aldus)
• Scitex founded for prepress

 

1987

• GIF format (CompuServe), JPEG format (Joint Photographic Experts Group)
• Willow (Lucasfilm) popularizes morphing
• Max Headroom debuts
• LucasArts formed
• CGM (Computer Graphics Metafile) standard
• Side Effects Software established
• VGA (Video Graphivs Array) invented by IBM
• Windows 2.0, MS/OS 2, Excel
  

  

• Sun 4 SPARC workstation
• Reynolds’ flocking behavior algorithm (Symbolics) (Ref: Reynolds, Craig W. Flocks, Herds and Schools: A Distributed Behavior Model. Computer Graphics (SIGGRAPH 87 Proceedings) 21(4) July 1987, p. 25-34.)
• Stanley and Stella in: Breaking the Ice
• Rob Cook receives the 1987 ACM SIGGRAPH CG Achievement Award
• Don Greenberg receives the 1987 ACM SIGGRAPH Steven A. Coons Award
• Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design (ACCAD) founded at Ohio State (formerly CGRG)
• Omnibus closes, eliminating DP and Abel
• Cranston/Csuri Productions closes
• Marching Cubes algorithm (Lorensen and Cline – GE) (Ref: Lorensen, William and Harvey E. Cline. Marching Cubes: A High Resolution 3D Surface Construction Algorithm. Computer Graphics (SIGGRAPH 87 Proceedings) 21(4) July 1987, p. 163-170. )
• Metrolight Studios, RezN8 Productions, Kleiser/Walczak Construction Co., DeGraf/Wahrman founded
• Adobe Illustrator