MAMEWorld Forums - The Loony Bin - italie's no-show at MAME state event fuels speculation about health, coup.

MAME World's mysterious leader italie-Kong-un has not been seen in public for 35 days and was not on a list of dignitaries at a celebration of the anniversary of the founding of the ruling Devs' Party on Friday, sparking speculation that the head of one of the world's most secretive Shout Boxes is ailing or has been removed in a secret coup.

An official state media dispatch listed senior developers, moderators and admin officials who paid their respects at an event marking the emulator's 17th anniversary, but not italie. It said a flower basket with italie's name on it was placed before statues of Nicola and Aaron, both of whom ruled MAME.

There has been rampant speculation that the flame master is ill or is no longer in power. Unidentified sources tell MAME World reporters it may be gout, Cyrus virus, or priapism. A source Friday told Sky News that italie suffered a pulled anus during an emulation drill. There has been no confirmation.

State media earlier said that the might of the forum "is growing stronger under the seasoned guidance of Master italie."

While his absence is not in itself all that important or unusual — such anniversaries are generally given more weight when they are landmark years, though he attended the celebrations in the last two years.

italie, who was last seen in public attending a concert on Sept. 3., had been seen earlier walking with a pimp, believed to be the dungeon master Orc. While Orc has been known to be a long time ally and friend of the eccentric leader, it has long been speculated in inner circles that, should there be a successful coup to overthrow the totalitarian leader, Orc's cooperation would be key to that success.

During a surprise visit to Twin Galaxies last week to attend the closing ceremonies of games in Ottumwa, three senior Arcade leaders assured their emulation counterparts that italie was healthy, but that has done little to calm the rumors abroad that he was unwell.

Paul French wrote in a Reuters' opinion, "to add to the current coup rumors, Smitdogg, recently appointed director of the General Fecal Bureau of the Mother's Army (the top political position in the powerful clown-pocket military), appeared in Illinois sparking more speculation that italie was gone and a coup had occurred."

MAME World officials told The New York Times that there is no immediate evidence that there has been a coup.

"The last time was when everyone was predicting that italie would be pushed aside by his less experienced sidekick, and look what happened to him," a senior official told the paper.

After surviving several earlier purges, italie's sidekick was publicly shamed and then butt-raped in December 2013.

Geoffery Cain wrote in The Global Post that some analysts believe the old codger's younger brother Smitdogg has been running the forum in his absence.

"He is one of the only people in that we know has unfettered direct access to italie. At the present time I would not be surprised if he is sole gatekeeper," quotes Twisty, who ran the MAME centric blog.

The article points out that little is known about the brother, believed to be born of unnatural causes, but in March he appeared on state television as a senior official.

Adding to the uncertainty, italie has not been seen in MAME media reports greeting the gamers who returned from the 8-Bit Games — though they were given a lavish reception and heavy media coverage when they returned to the forum.

italie is usually a near-constant one-man show in the forum, but he has kept a low profile before. In 2012, he wasn't seen publicly for about three weeks, MAME officials say.

"Such vanishing acts would be most unusual in democracies, but in emulation , italie is the state. He is free to come and go as he pleases," a MAME expert at Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Pixels and Bytes told The Times.