In Memory of Joe Blenkle — A Pillar of the Coleco ADAM Community
Posted: Tue Feb 17, 2026 5:00 pm
The Coleco ADAM community has lost one of its longest-serving and most dedicated members. Joe Blenkle, creator and webmaster of ColecoAdam.net, passed away on February 17, 2026.
Joe was an ADAMite from the very beginning. He was active in the ADAM community since the computer's release in 1983 and never stopped contributing. For nearly three decades, he maintained ColecoAdam.net — "The ADAM Family Computer System" page — which he founded in 1997. The site became one of the most important preservation resources in the ADAM world, housing the complete digitized run of all 24 issues of Expandable Computer News (ECN), the beloved ADAM newsletter published by Sage Enterprises from 1984 to 1988. Joe received personal permission from the widow of ECN founder Darrell Sage to reproduce the newsletter's contents online, ensuring this vital piece of ADAM history would never be lost.
Joe was himself a regular contributor to ECN and other ADAM publications during the 1980s, writing numerous software and game reviews that helped fellow ADAM owners make informed decisions about their purchases. The ADAM News Network described him as "an ADAMite from WAY BACK" and "an avid gamer" who contributed reviews throughout the early ADAM years.
In more recent years, Joe became prolific in creating original multimedia disks for the ADAM — interactive presentations combining graphics and MIDI music that showcased what the humble 8-bit computer could still do. His output was remarkable: holiday-themed disks for Christmas, Halloween, Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, and the 4th of July, released year after year. He created trivia game volumes covering topics from Star Trek to James Bond, multimedia tributes to classic TV shows like Battlestar Galactica, The Invaders, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, and Space: 1999, and educational presentations on the U.S. space program. His very first multimedia effort, the Ghostbusters disk, went through multiple revisions over the years — a testament to his perfectionism and ongoing dedication. His most recent release, a Valentine's Day 2026 disk, was uploaded just weeks before his passing.
Joe also preserved and made available the complete ADAM's Jukebox music collection, the Multimedia Utilities created by Chris Brayman, and maintained a comprehensive ADAM news section on his site that kept the community informed about new hardware from Lundy Electronics, the FujiNet project, and other developments keeping the ADAM alive in the 21st century.
Joe proved that a small community, sustained by passionate individuals, can keep a platform alive and vibrant long after the manufacturer has gone. The ADAM community is smaller today without him, but immeasurably richer for everything he built and preserved.
Rest in peace, Joe. The ADAM world will miss you.
Read this on the ColecoVision & ADAM Museum site
Joe was an ADAMite from the very beginning. He was active in the ADAM community since the computer's release in 1983 and never stopped contributing. For nearly three decades, he maintained ColecoAdam.net — "The ADAM Family Computer System" page — which he founded in 1997. The site became one of the most important preservation resources in the ADAM world, housing the complete digitized run of all 24 issues of Expandable Computer News (ECN), the beloved ADAM newsletter published by Sage Enterprises from 1984 to 1988. Joe received personal permission from the widow of ECN founder Darrell Sage to reproduce the newsletter's contents online, ensuring this vital piece of ADAM history would never be lost.
Joe was himself a regular contributor to ECN and other ADAM publications during the 1980s, writing numerous software and game reviews that helped fellow ADAM owners make informed decisions about their purchases. The ADAM News Network described him as "an ADAMite from WAY BACK" and "an avid gamer" who contributed reviews throughout the early ADAM years.
In more recent years, Joe became prolific in creating original multimedia disks for the ADAM — interactive presentations combining graphics and MIDI music that showcased what the humble 8-bit computer could still do. His output was remarkable: holiday-themed disks for Christmas, Halloween, Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, and the 4th of July, released year after year. He created trivia game volumes covering topics from Star Trek to James Bond, multimedia tributes to classic TV shows like Battlestar Galactica, The Invaders, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, and Space: 1999, and educational presentations on the U.S. space program. His very first multimedia effort, the Ghostbusters disk, went through multiple revisions over the years — a testament to his perfectionism and ongoing dedication. His most recent release, a Valentine's Day 2026 disk, was uploaded just weeks before his passing.
Joe also preserved and made available the complete ADAM's Jukebox music collection, the Multimedia Utilities created by Chris Brayman, and maintained a comprehensive ADAM news section on his site that kept the community informed about new hardware from Lundy Electronics, the FujiNet project, and other developments keeping the ADAM alive in the 21st century.
Joe proved that a small community, sustained by passionate individuals, can keep a platform alive and vibrant long after the manufacturer has gone. The ADAM community is smaller today without him, but immeasurably richer for everything he built and preserved.
Rest in peace, Joe. The ADAM world will miss you.
Read this on the ColecoVision & ADAM Museum site