• News

Dave & Buster's co-founder James 'Buster' Corley passes away at 72

The Dave & Buster's franchise Twitter reported Corley's death at a Dallas hospital this week, but authorities are still investigating the causes.

TJ Denzer

January 4, 2023 3:45 PM

Image via Arkansas Business

2

Dave & Buster’s co-founder James “Buster” Corley has passed away. Having just turned 72, Corley was part of growing one of the most popular restaurant and entertainment franchises in the United States. Unfortunately, Corley also reportedly recently suffered a stroke which damaged his personality and ability to communicate. He was announced dead earlier this week at a Dallas hospital. Authorities are still investigating the cause of death at the moment, but his family has also asked for privacy in this trying time.

James “Buster” Corley’s passing was confirmed by his daughter, Kate Corley, to WFAA-TV, and it was further confirmed by the Dave & Buster’s Twitter. While Kate asked the public to respect the family’s privacy, she also confirmed that Corley had suffered a stroke that “caused severe damage to the communication and personality part of his brain.” Dallas authorities were called to the Corley household earlier this week where there was a reported self-inflicted gun incident. While James Corley was not named at the time, the victim has since been confirmed to have been him.

James Corley started the Dave & Buster’s franchise back in 1982. At the time, Corley was already running a bar while co-founder David Corriveau was running a nearby entertainment venue with games for adults. The two went into business and launched Dave & Buster’s, becoming one of the foremost entertainment restaurant chains over the last few decades. While its dominance has been challenged by the likes of Main Event and other food & entertainment venues, Dave & Buster’s still remains one of the most prominent and recognizable chains around. Notably, when Epic Games bought an entire mall to serve as an extension to its campus in Cary, North Carolina, a Dave & Buster’s that was part of that mall was given permission to stay.

David Corriveau passed away in 2015 at the age of 63 and currently CEO Chris Morris runs the company. Nonetheless, Dave and Buster established something quite remarkable with their franchise. Shacknews wishes them peace and their families well in this difficult time.

TJ Denzer

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on Twitter @JohnnyChugs.