People
The named individuals, in and around the series. Designers, writers, artists, composers, executives, actors, campaigners and lawyers. Living people are handled conservatively here: confidential settlements imply no outcome, and a disbarment is described by what it was for.
Part of Grand Theft Auto
69 moments in this segment.
- - President Ronald Reagan Watches The Swearing-In Ceremony for Chief Justice Rehnquist and Associate Justice Antonin Scalia of The United States Supreme Court with Warren Burger in Th. Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the majority opinion in Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association in 2011, which struck down a California law banning the sale of violent games to minors and held that video games are protected speech. The vote was 7 to 2. President Ronald Reagan Watches The Swearing-In Ceremony for Chief Justice Rehnquist and Associate Justice Antonin Scalia of The United States Supreme Court with Warren Burger in Th - DPLA - 32adedbd016ec59e33fe91bf20c9741c.
- - U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia -- Ellis Island (NY NJ) September 1990. Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the majority opinion in Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association in 2011, which struck down a California law banning the sale of violent games to minors and held that video games are protected speech. The vote was 7 to 2. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, Ellis Island (NY/NJ) September 1990.
- - British Interview with DMA Design in 1996 about Grand Theft Auto. A 1996 UK television interview with the DMA Design team while the first Grand Theft Auto was still being built. The game shipped in Europe on 28 November 1997.
- - Chuck D-mika. Chuck D in Hamburg/Germany 2000. Chuck D of Public Enemy voices Forth Right MC on Playback FM in San Andreas.
- - Leslie Benzies Discussing GTA 3. Rockstar North's producer during the Grand Theft Auto III era. Benzies remained president of the studio until 2016 and is now president of Build A Rocket Boy in Edinburgh.
- - The U.S. Senator, Ms. Hillary Rodham Clinton calling on the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in New Delhi on February 25, 2005. Senator Hillary Clinton petitioned the FTC over Hot Coffee on 14 July 2005, and with Joe Lieberman and Evan Bayh introduced the Family Entertainment Protection Act that December. The bill was referred to committee and died there; it never became law. The U.S. Senator, Ms. Hillary Rodham Clinton calling on the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in New Delhi on February 25, 2005.
- - Hillary Clinton (1). Senator Hillary Clinton petitioned the FTC over Hot Coffee on 14 July 2005, and with Joe Lieberman and Evan Bayh introduced the Family Entertainment Protection Act that December. The bill was referred to committee and died there; it never became law.
- - Rockstar Games President Talks PS3 in 2005. Sam Houser on camera in 2005, the year of the Hot Coffee affair and the Adults Only re-rating that forced a recall costing Take-Two US$24.5 million.
- - Iggy Pop (16). Live on the 15th of August, 2006. Budapest, Sziget Festival. Grand Stage. Iggy Pop. Iggy Pop hosts Liberty Rock Radio in GTA IV as himself.
- - GTA IV Katt Williams Stand up Act from Liberty City Split Sides Comedy Club vice city. Katt Williams' in-game routine from Grand Theft Auto IV. The comedy club was a full production with performers captured for the game rather than voiced from a booth.
- - GTA IV Ricky Gervais Stand Act from Liberty city Split Sides Comedy Club. Ricky Gervais performs a motion-captured stand-up set inside Grand Theft Auto IV. Celebrities appearing as themselves across the series include Gervais, Katt Williams, Frankie Boyle, Phil Collins and Jesco White.
- - Frankie Boyle Split Sides Comedy Club All shows GTA IV. Frankie Boyle's routine in Grand Theft Auto IV, a Scottish comedian appearing in a game built in Edinburgh.
- - David Jones - The Spielberg of Gaming. A profile of David Jones, who founded DMA Design in Dundee in 1988 at the age of 22. Lemmings, released February 1991 through Psygnosis, sold 20 million copies across 21 platforms and made him a millionaire at 25.
- - Boy wearing a Grand Theft Auto V T-shirt. Dan Houser and Sam Houser with a fan at Rockstar Games. Sam Houser remains president of Rockstar Games as of 2026. His brother Dan, co-founder and lead writer across the series, left on 11 March 2020.
- - Ricky Gervais 2010. Ricky Gervais performs as himself at the Split Sides comedy club in GTA IV. Ricky Gervais at Comedy Central 's "Night of Too Many Stars" in 2010.
- - Sam Houser and Dan Houser. Dan Houser and Sam Houser with a fan at Rockstar Games. Sam Houser remains president of Rockstar Games as of 2026. His brother Dan, co-founder and lead writer across the series, left on 11 March 2020.
- - DMA Design original team in 2011. The original DMA Design team gathered in Dundee in February 2011 for the twentieth anniversary of Lemmings. David Jones founded the studio in 1988 and drew his first team from the Kingsway Amateur Computer Club. DMA Design original team in.
- - Jesco White 2011. Jesco White appears as himself on Rebel Radio in GTA V. Jesco White with velvet paintings of Elvis Presley in background.
- - Max Clifford at National Fundraising Convention 2011. Max Clifford at the Institute of Fundraising National Convention in 2011. Publisher BMG Interactive hired Max Clifford to publicise the 1997 game, and the strategy was to court outrage rather than avoid it. Clifford built his reputation on claiming credit for manufactured stories, so his own account of the campaign is not neutral. He was convicted of indecent assault in 2014, unrelated to games, and died in prison in 2017.
- - The Lemmings Gang and Lord Provost. The original DMA Design team gathered in Dundee in February 2011 for the twentieth anniversary of Lemmings. David Jones founded the studio in 1988 and drew his first team from the Kingsway Amateur Computer Club. The Lemmings Gang and Lord Provost.
- - Caricature - Antonin Scalia. Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the majority opinion in Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association in 2011, which struck down a California law banning the sale of violent games to minors and held that video games are protected speech. The vote was 7 to 2. Caricature - Antonin Scalia.
- - Antonin Scalia Official SCOTUS Portrait. Antonin Scalia , Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the majority opinion in Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association in 2011, which struck down a California law banning the sale of violent games to minors and held that video games are protected speech. The vote was 7 to 2.
- - GTA 5: Michael, Franklin, and Trevor in the Flesh. The three lead actors of Grand Theft Auto V together. Main characters in the series have generally been voiced by lesser-known actors, with celebrity casting concentrated on the radio DJs.
- - Mike Dailly & Russell Kay - YoYo Games - "GameMaker & History of DMA Design". Mike Dailly and Russell Kay recount the DMA years together. Roughly 23 people worked on Grand Theft Auto III, a scale worth holding against what the franchise became.
- - Jesco White. Melody Inn, Indianapolis. Jesco White appears as himself on Rebel Radio in GTA V. Jesco White. Melody Inn, Indianapolis.
- - The Retro Hour - Episode 6 (Mike Dailly Grand Theft Auto/DMA Design). A long-form interview with Mike Dailly covering DMA Design's Dundee years. The studio that became Rockstar North fielded roughly 23 people on Grand Theft Auto III, a scale worth holding against what the franchise later became.
- - Some words from Dave Jones of DMA/Rockstar. Dave Jones on his DMA and Rockstar years. He founded the studio in 1988 at 22 and sold it to Gremlin Interactive in April 1997 for GBP 4.2 million.
- - Leslie Benzies @ Everywhere Game. Leslie Benzies was Rockstar North president and producer across GTA III, Vice City, San Andreas, IV and V. He sued Rockstar and Take-Two in April 2016; the litigation ended on 7 February 2019 in a confidential settlement, so nothing about who was right is public. He is now president of Build A Rocket Boy in Edinburgh. Leslie Benzies @ Everywhere Game.
- - Chuck D 2017. Chuck D in 2017. Chuck D of Public Enemy voices Forth Right MC on Playback FM in San Andreas.
- - Dave Jones - Creator of Grand Theft Auto Interview. Dave Jones interviewed by Abertay University in Dundee, the institution that became a centre for games education in the city DMA Design came from.
- - Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick and Geoff Keighley Talk About Red Dead Redemption 2. Zelnick interviewed at the Red Dead Redemption 2 moment, weeks before the Kotaku investigation into working conditions at the studio.
- - GervaisBlooms021218-4. Ricky Gervais performs as himself at the Split Sides comedy club in GTA IV.
- - Katt Williams 2018 (UBX0KEMiZUk). Comedian and actor Katt Williams being interviewed for the film Father Figures in 2018. Katt Williams performs a stand-up set as himself in GTA IV.
- - #Gamelab2018 - Dave Jones: From Lemmings and GTA to Fortnite. Dave Jones speaks at Gamelab about the run from Lemmings through Grand Theft Auto. He sold the financially struggling DMA Design to Gremlin Interactive for GBP 4.2 million in April 1997, two years after the Race'n'Chase design document was written.
- - Retro Island Diskettes 007 | Steve Hammond of DMA Design. A second, independent interview with Steve Hammond. DMA's 3D experiments Body Harvest and Space Station Silicon Valley were the technical bridge toward the series' move into three dimensions.
- - Rockstar Clarifies Controversy About Working 100 Hour Weeks for Red Dead Redemption 2. Dan Houser's remark about 100-hour weeks and Rockstar's clarification that he meant four senior writers for about three weeks. Schreier's investigation then found nobody had worked 100 hours, and that crunch was nonetheless real, sustained and often mandatory.
- - Rockstar Allows Devs to Speak Publicly About Working Conditions - IGN News. Rockstar lifted the restriction preventing developers from speaking publicly, directly after the crunch coverage. Typical crunch weeks reported were 55 to 60 hours, with Rockstar Lincoln quality assurance described as the harshest.
- - Red Dead Redemption 2 - exclusive Rockstar Games interview. BBC Radio 1 gains rare direct access to Rockstar leads. Aaron Garbut and Rob Nelson took leadership roles at Rockstar North after Benzies left in 2016.
- - Making Grand Theft Auto & Lemmings at DMA Design with Mike Dailly - Retro Tea Break. Mike Dailly was among the founding DMA programmers drawn from the Kingsway Amateur Computer Club alongside Steve Hammond, Russell Kay and Gary Timmons. In 2011 he released the 22 March 1995 Race'n'Chase design document that is the earliest paper record of the project.
- - FBoyleSoho100320-3. Frankie Boyle - Soho Theatre - Tuesday 10th March 2020. Frankie Boyle appears as himself in The Lost and Damned, the GTA IV expansion, rather than in the base game.
- - Lazlow's History with Rockstar, GTA III, & Why He Left. Lazlow Jones from Grand Theft Auto III radio host to writer to departure. He resigned in April 2020, a month after Dan Houser, and was one of the four senior writers named in Rockstar's account of crunch.
- - Audio Interview with Gary Penn. Gary Penn was DMA Design's creative director and is the source of the best-attributed quotation from the early development, that nobody wants to be the cop. The widely repeated story that a police-AI bug accidentally created the game is fan-wiki folklore and appears nowhere in the documented record.
- - Complete interview with Jamie King, Co-founder of Rockstar Games. A Rockstar co-founder gives a first-person account of how the company was formed. Rockstar Games was established in New York and published the games that DMA Design built in Scotland.
- - "Legends in The Cave" Mike Dailly - Lemmings, GTA, Game Maker Studio and more. A long career interview with Mike Dailly, among the founding DMA programmers from the Kingsway Amateur Computer Club. In 2011 he released the 22 March 1995 design document for Race'n'Chase, the project that became Grand Theft Auto.
- - All Footage of Dan & Sam Houser of Rockstar Games. A compilation of the scarce on-camera footage of both Houser brothers. They ran one of the most visible entertainment properties in the world while appearing in public very rarely.
- - Developing Legendary Games with Dave Jones. Dave Jones on a career that ran from Lemmings through Grand Theft Auto to later studios. DMA's 3D experiments Body Harvest and Space Station Silicon Valley were the technical bridge to the series' move into three dimensions.
- - Chuck D's Artist Collective, Art on the Ave, Fulton Center. Taken in New York City in December 2023. Chuck D of Public Enemy voices Forth Right MC on Playback FM in San Andreas.
- - Frankie Boyle (2024). Frankie Boyle appears as himself in The Lost and Damned, the GTA IV expansion, rather than in the base game. Frankie Boyle - Catford Broadway Theatre - Thursday 4th April 2024.
- - Mononeon and katt williams picture. Katt Williams performs a stand-up set as himself in GTA IV. MonoNeon and Katt Williams at Court Square Recordings in Memphis, TN (2024).
- - The Making of Lemmings - Mike Dailly Interview (DMA Design). Dailly on Lemmings, released February 1991 through Psygnosis, which sold 20 million copies across 21 platforms. That success funded the independence in which Grand Theft Auto was developed.
- - DMA Design with Steve Hammond - The Retro Hour EP106. Steve Hammond of DMA Design on the studio's working life. The first office opened in August 1989 above a former fish and chip shop in Dundee.
- - Jamie King | Co-Founder, Rockstar Games | “Why shouldn’t gamers reap the rewards?” | BBW 2024. A Rockstar co-founder on stage at a conference. The publisher was founded in New York in 1998, a year before Take-Two acquired the Scottish studio that made the games.
- - Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick on Gaming, GTA, and Life-Changing Advice for Young People. A long interview with Take-Two's chief executive covering the franchise. Rockstar and Take-Two are interested parties about their own history, which is worth naming whenever they describe it.
- - NEW Aspiring Game Artist Interviews Ex Rockstar Artist (GTA V, RDR2, GTA 6). A Rockstar art-department veteran describes how the environments of Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2 were actually built.
- - Leslie Benzies Reveals Everything You Need to Know About MindsEye | IGN Live 2025. Leslie Benzies discusses MindsEye, released 10 June 2025 to broadly negative reviews. He was Rockstar North president and producer across Grand Theft Auto III, Vice City, San Andreas, IV and V, and is now president of Build A Rocket Boy in Edinburgh.
- - Jason Schreier March 2025. Jason Schreier’s 77-source Kotaku investigation into Rockstar found that no one had worked 100-hour weeks, and also that crunch was real, sustained and often mandatory. Neither "Rockstar admitted it" nor "it was debunked" is an accurate summary.
- - Lokerse Feesten-2025-Iggy Pop-5. Iggy Pop at the Lokerse Feesten 2025. Iggy Pop hosts Liberty Rock Radio in GTA IV as himself.
- - 12 Years at Rockstar Games - Why Did I Leave?. A twelve-year Rockstar artist's own account of the studio and why he left. Rockstar lifted the restriction on developers speaking publicly in 2018, after the crunch coverage.
- - Rockstar Devs Speak About The Houser Brothers. Former Rockstar developers describe working under Sam and Dan Houser. Sam Houser remains President of Rockstar Games; Dan left on 11 March 2020.
- - ЗНАКОМЬТЕСЬ, ДЖЕЙСОН ШРАЙЕР - ГЛАВНЫЙ ИГРОВОЙ ЖУРНАЛИСТ. A profile of Jason Schreier and his method. His 23 October 2018 investigation interviewed 34 current and 43 former Rockstar employees, plus twelve more supplied by Rockstar's own public relations.
- - Dan Houser Interview Sunday Brunch. A mainstream UK television interview with the co-creator of the series. Both Housers are alive, and Sam Houser remains President of Rockstar Games.
- - Dan Houser: "The Games Were So Big, 'They're Like Novels!'" | GRAND THEFT AUTO & RED DEAD REDEMPTION. Houser on the scale of the games he wrote. In February 2021 he registered Absurd Ventures, now headquartered in Santa Monica with a studio in San Rafael, where he is chief executive and creative director.
- - Dan Houser BBC Interview - Dan Explains Why He Left Rockstar Games In 2020. Dan Houser explains leaving Rockstar on 11 March 2020 after an extended leave. He had been Vice President of Creative and lead writer across the series, which makes Grand Theft Auto VI the first mainline entry without his writing.
- - Dan Houser, author of 'A Better Paradise', reveals the routine behind writing 'Grand Theft Auto'. Houser on his writing routine across the series and his later fiction. He was one of the four senior writers named when Rockstar narrowed its account of crunch on Red Dead Redemption 2.
- - RUSSELL KAY (DMA Design) Interview - The Making of Lemmings. Russell Kay, one of the founding DMA programmers alongside Mike Dailly, Steve Hammond and Gary Timmons. The studio began in Dundee in 1988 when David Jones was 22.
- - A Conversation with Leslie Benzies and Mark Gerhard. Benzies speaking about his current work. His 2016 suit against Rockstar and Take-Two ended on 7 February 2019 in a confidential settlement, so nothing about who was right is public.
- - Dan Houser on Physical Games: If People Want That I Think Companies Should Provide It | Comic Con 26. Houser at San Diego Comic-Con in 2026, six years after leaving Rockstar and months before the announced release of a game he did not write.
- - Grand Theft Auto VI Pre-Orders 'Vastly' Beat Expectations, Take-Two CEO Tells Me. Schreier reports his own interview with Strauss Zelnick on pre-orders for a game that has not shipped. Pre-order strength is reported data; sales and reception do not yet exist.
- - [EXCLUSIF] INTERVIEW AVEC LAZLOW POUR PARLER DE LA SORTIE D'AMERICAN CAPER EN FRANCE. Lazlow Jones on Absurd Ventures, the company Dan Houser founded in 2021. Several former Rockstar staff have followed him there.