Show HN: 40th Anniversary – Who are you, Mel Kaye?

melsloop.com

4 points·cassiepaper··4 comments

40th Anniversary to the Story of Mel – On this day, four decades ago (May 21st 1983) "The Story of Mel" was published on Usenet by its author.

For years, "Mel" was considered to be a fictional character. Though some details about him were found, still there was not much known about the life and works for Mel Kaye. Until today, when Mel's identity is finally revealed.

After years of researching, digging into public archives, and searching for actual proofs, Mel’s Loop project publishes a new biographical article – "Mel Kaye – CV", and unfolds the true identity of Mel Kaye (born Melvin Kornitsky, 1931), a child to a family of Jewish immigrants in Brooklyn from Poland and Russia, that grew up in Los Angeles, and became a hacking legend.

Happy Mel day, hackers!

Finally, an answer to the question that has plagued me for decades: On what ship did Mel's grandmother sail from Russia to New York? (yes, the CV actually drills down to this level. Uncanny)

Previously on HN:

Mel's Hack – The Missing Bits: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=33392127

Mel's Loop – A Comprehensive Guide to The Story of Mel https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31458048

I love how the Royal McBee was called a "desk computer", not because it fit on a desk, but because it took about as much floor space as a desk.

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