UPDATE: Personally-owned by Apple executive Del Yocam.
Remarkably early, cosmetically pristine Apple Lisa computer personally-owned by Apple executive Del Yocam, who was the executive vice president and general manager of the Apple II group (1983-1985), Apple's first chief operating officer (COO) (1986-1988), and president of Apple Pacific (1989). The historic computer features an engraved presentation plate on the front: "Thank You, Del Yocam, From the First Production Build, May 1983." It is housed in its original Apple box, stamped "A6SB108, Early Release," and marked "Del Yocam" in thick black felt tip. The machine retains its Apple label reading "Serial No: B08B830530373, Applenet No: 00100372," and features its extremely rare original 'Twiggy' floppy drives as issued.
Includes several peripherals and accessories, most with their original boxes: original power cord; Apple mouse (Model No. A9M0050, Serial No. 000550); Apple Lisa keyboard in OEM box (Model No. A6MB101, Serial No. 1002458); two external Apple ProFile hard drives in OEM boxes; and Lisa Applications Software Bundle (LisaWrite, LisaProject, LisaList, LisaGraph, LisaCalc, and LisaDraw) in its original OEM box (Model No. A6P0150, Serial No. B200). Except for LisaDraw, all of the software remains factory sealed. Additionally includes an original "A6D2000 Lisa Software/Bezel Kit" in its original OEM shipping box, with attached packing list and shipping label addressed to Del Yocam in Scotts Valley, California.
This Lisa is in excellent cosmetic condition, with no notable scratches or blemishes on the case, which retains its original creamy gray color—unlike most examples, it has not yellowed. Given the historic nature of the computer, RR Auction has not had it restored to a fully operational state; a detailed condition report is available that outlines the maintenance items necessary to return it to full function. The CPU board, analog board, CRT, keyboard, mouse, and one RAM board all functioned appropriately during testing. Any Apple Lisa 1 with its original 'Twiggy' drives is extremely desirable; to have such an attractive example, connected to a significant figure in the history of Apple Computer, is truly extraordinary.
The Lisa computer was the very first GUI (“graphical user interface”) computer imagined by Steve Jobs and his team after their 1979 seminal visit to Xerox PARC and seeing the Xerox Alto computer. The Lisa was a major project at Apple, with more than $50 million reportedly spent on its development, and is recognized by many as the functional prototype for the Macintosh.
Officially, "Lisa" stood for 'Local Integrated Software Architecture,' but it was also the name of Steve Jobs' daughter. The Lisa was first introduced in January 1983 at a cost of $9,995, as one of the first commercial personal computers to have a GUI and a mouse. This initial, original model of Lisa computer features the dual, custom, 5 1/4" 'Twiggy' drives. These floppy drives, designed in-house at Apple, were innovative—featuring a high capacity, variable spindle speed, and were double-sided. The Lisa had initially been designed with the idea of running its operating system entirely from these disks. But due to the lack of speed, and the increasing needs of the operating system, the Lisa shipped with an external 5MB ProFile hard drive.
The Twiggy drives, with their unique custom diskettes, high manufacture cost, and field unreliability, were soon replaced by Apple with a free upgrade to the later "Lisa 2" machine, which replaced disk drives with a single 3 1/2" Sony drive, and a new faceplate to accommodate it. As this was offered to customers at no charge, and Apple required the return of the original disk drives and faceplate, it is incredibly rare to find a surviving machine with the original Twiggy drives.
Ultimately, the Lisa didn't find commercial success, and sold only 10,000 units before being discontinued in 1985. Many units were traded in to Apple for a substantial discount on the Macintosh Plus—another factor in the rarity of the Lisa today. A rare, desirable example of a famed Apple product.
