@caliban You're absolutely right. They were plenty of offers of help in the dying days, and I recall several posters on the Org even offering to buy the site outright, and yet Val refused to budge. The result? The single greatest resource and archive on the internet for all things MOTU, built over decades by dedicated fans tirelessly pouring their passion into documenting every conceivable nook and cranny of our favourite brand, had to die a needless death because of one man's oversized ego, and he wasn't even the founder - he himself took over the Org from someone else, and yet couldn't bring himself to do the same to pass the torch when the time came for the good of the fandom and community despite ample opportunity to do so amidst the desperate pleas. It's really disgusting when you think about it a bit deeper. That guy is a pariah as far as I'm concerned for pulling that selfish bullshit. Nobody should support any of his future initiatives.

Posted by: @caliban

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Val was done. He said he used to make money on ads and now he was losing money and he wasn't up for a labor of love. He told us he was looking for cheaper hosting options and couldn't find anything afordable. The only party he was willing to sell to was Mattel. If he wanted the Org to live on he would have accepted a buyout offer from one of us or start a gofundme page to raise the money for hosting. I guarantee you he would have raised the money he needed. Val was done and didn't want Org under new management unless there was a big Mattel payday. He took his ball and went home.

 

This was the impression I was under the entire time...

At one point, some of the .orgers petitioned to raise money for the site (I think Jack Olesker took lead on this), and almost unanimously, the core group of members all said we would be more than willing to donate time, money, skills, expertise, etc. to the cause.

Unfortunately, there were a few indiscernible excuses as to why this couldn't happen, and we all know the outcome now. 

@durendal It's hard to imagine someone doing this to something that was enjoyed, used, and referenced by so many like-minded people. Some .org members literally found their soulmates on the site, and many others fashioned longtime friendships - me included.

On a macro level (extreme example, I know), this incident can be likened to Henry Ford shutting down production after his death.

Posted by: @ornclown

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This was the impression I was under the entire time...

At one point, some of the .orgers petitioned to raise money for the site (I think Jack Olesker took lead on this), and almost unanimously, the core group of members all said we would be more than willing to donate time, money, skills, expertise, etc. to the cause.

Unfortunately, there were a few indiscernible excuses as to why this couldn't happen, and we all know the outcome now.

A one-time fundraiser is a Hail, Mary when people have had the option to donate to the site all along and never took advantage of it.

Considering what the fans built over the decades - a massive and invaluable resource for all things MOTU and POP - the closing of the Org was definitely mishandled and frankly traumatic.

All due respect to those who maintained and managed the site for years, but its end was sudden, very upsetting and needlessly mysterious. That folks still don't know what exactly happened and why offers of help were ignored speaks volumes.

I doubt even Mattel knows or keeps track of half of what was said on the Org by people who contributed to the MOTU POP franchises, nevermind what fans internationally shared. There was so much there...and  now it's gone.

I sincerely hope one day Val sees fit to share the contents of the site again.