GameSpy: When did you start with Nintendo®? Aonuma: I started
when I was 25, and I have been with Nintendo® for about 16
years. GameSpy: Were you a video-game player before that?
Aonuma: No, I never played video games … not very often. I was
just a poor student. I did not have the money. The Legend of
Zelda: Majora's Mask GameSpy: What is your educational
background? Aonuma: I went to an art university and studied
design. I worked on mechanical figures that moved. (Here the
translator interjects: "I am not exactly sure how to translate
this. What he is describing is not exactly a robot, it is more
of a doll type of figure.) GameSpy: Animatronics? Aonuma: Not
quite to that level. Mr. Miyamoto really enjoys that type of …
puppet. He liked my designs for those types of figures. The name
Mario came from Marionette. GameSpy: I've always heard that the
name Mario came from Mario Segale, the landlord who rented the
warehouse to Nintendo® of America? Aonuma: There are many
different stories. The one I know is Marione