Baer, Ralph H. (32887607)

Ralph H. Baer
Personal details
Birth name	Rudolph Baer
Born	1922
Died	2014
Nativity	Germany
Religion	Jewish
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch	United States Army
ASN	32887607
Rank	Private
Camp Ritchie	Class 10 (23 July – 20 September 1943)
Section	5D
Enlisted	New York City, New York
Specialty	Order of battle; weapons instruction
Unit / division	Military intelligence (Tidworth / Normandy MI group)

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Ralph H. Baer (1922–2014), born Rudolph Baer in Pirmasens, was a German-born American order-of-battle specialist and weapons instructor. After serving in Europe, he became a pioneering electronics engineer known as the father of home video games.

Biography

Ralph H. Baer — “Father of Video Games”; Odyssey; Pong. Summary from a Notable Ritchie Boys slide (source).

Ralph H. Baer was born Rudolph Baer in Pirmasens, Germany, in 1922. His Jewish family escaped Nazi Germany and settled in New York City. Interested in electronics, he learned radio repair and worked in that trade before entering the Army.

Baer's technical aptitude, German fluency, and knowledge of the country led to his selection for Camp Ritchie. He trained as an order-of-battle specialist, learning to identify German formations, weapons, commanders, and deployment patterns so that scattered information could be assembled into a useful picture of enemy strength.

In England, Baer was assigned to a military intelligence group at Tidworth. Working with fellow Ritchie Boy Mauksch, he helped establish a weapons museum and instructional collection. The displays gave American soldiers hands-on familiarity with German weapons they might encounter in combat.

Baer later served in Normandy, where his knowledge of enemy equipment and organization supported the Allied campaign. His duties made practical use of the electronics experience he had acquired in New York and the German military expertise taught at Camp Ritchie.

After the war Baer built a career as an electronics engineer and inventor. His experiments with interactive television led to the first home video game console and earned him recognition as the father of video games. The work helped create an entirely new branch of consumer electronics.

Baer received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation in 2006 for his pioneering achievements. He continued inventing and documenting the early history of electronic games until late in life. He died in 2014.

See the full story.

Research notes

• MIS London
• Tidworth
• OSS
• “Father of Video Games”; Odyssey; Pong
• Portrait and summary from Notable Ritchie Boys slides (source).

Gallery

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Technical record

Field	Imported value
Approx Age at Death	92
Nara ASN	32887607
Nara Name	BAER RALPH H
Nara State	23
Nara County	61
Nara POE	2364
Nara DOE	120443
Nara Grade Alpha	PVT
Nara Grade Code	8
Nara Branch Alpha	NO
Nara Branch Code	2
Branch	No branch assignment
Nara Term or Enlistment	5
Term of enlistment	Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law
Defer. Date	0
Nara Source	0
Nara Nativity	N1
Nara Year of Birth	22
Nara Race	J
Nara Race Description	White not yet a citizen
Nara Education	4
Nara Civilian Occupation	583
Nara Marital Status	1
Nara Height (inches)	0
Nara Weight (lbs)	124
Class_ASN	32887607
Class_Name	BAER, Ralph H.
match_method	asn_exact_name_exact
row_source	both
Census_HISTID	BA90D884-AFC9-48F6-B2E2-D53318E31A25
Census_State	NEW YORK
Census_Relate	Child
Census_Sex	Male
Census_Age	18
Census_BirthYear	1922
Census_Marital	Never married/single
Census_Race	White
Census_BPL	453
Census_MBPL	0
Census_FBPL	0
Census_Citizen	Not a citizen
Census_Educ	Grade 11
Census_OCC	226

Sources

• Camp Ritchie class roster (classes 1–31), merged research file
• NARA World War II Army enlistment records (where a NARA ASN is present)
• 1940 U.S. Census (where a census match is present)
• The Stories essay