Rest In Play - 2020 - 2029

Vince Zampella was born on October 1, 1970 and passed away on December 21, 2025. Vince's interest in video games started at an early age, and his first job in the industry was at GameTrek doing cu...stomer service and game testing. Over the years, he also worked at Atari, Panasonic, and SegaSoft, the latter at which he met Jason West, with whom he later founded Infinity Ward with. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Vince worked at 2015 Inc. There, he was credited as being the lead designer of Medal of Honor: Allied Assault. In May 2022, Vince Zampella, Jason West, and Grant Collier founded Infinity Ward, the video game developer responsible for the Call of Duty franchise. They struck a deal with Activision to create the game, and Activision acquired Infinity Ward shortly after Call of Duty was released. Vince and Jason were fired by Activision shortly after the successful release of Modern Warfare 2, and the pair then sued Activision for wrongful termination. Later on, they were awarded $42M in a non-settlement, mid-trial payment. Vince and Jason founded Respawn Entertainment in April 2010 and released two Titanfall games before EA acquired them. EA put Vince in charge of the Battlefield franchise and let him lead the Los Angeles branch of DICE. Vince died in a tragic accident in 2025. He was driving a 2026 Ferrari 296 GTS when he lost control of the vehicle and struck a concrete barrier. Vince, 55, and the other passenger in the car, both died as a result of their injuries.Show more

Jim Ward was born on May 19, 1959 and passed away on December 10, 2025. He was a voice actor and radio personality best known for his roles in The Fairly OddParents, Ratchet & Clank, and Ben10. Jim...'s voice acting career started in 1976 with a minor role in How the West Was Won. His break didn't come until 1993, when he landed the role of Spider-Man in the video game Spider-Man vs. The Kingpin. From there, he scored roles like Captain Qwark in Ratchet & Clank, and Chet Ubetcha and Doug Dimmadome in The Fairly OddParents. In 2009, he won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program for his role as Eyemore in Biker Mice from Mars. From 2004-2017, Jim co-hosted The Stephanie Miller Show. Jim married his wife, Janice, in 2009, after meeting her on a cruise to Mexico in 2000.Show more

Michihiro Maeda passed away in September 2025 at the age of 67. He was the president and CEO of Epoch Making Toys. Michihiro first joined the company in 1989 and was appointed president in 1995. In... addition to this role, he was also the chairman of the Japan Toy association, taking on this role in 2021. He specifically focused on the recovery of the Japanese toy business from the COVID-19 pandemic, finding success by restarting the Tokyo toy show.Show more

James Carter Cathcart, also known was Jimmy Zoppi, was born on March 8, 1954 and passed away on July 8, 2025. A voice actor, script adaptor, voice director, pianist, and vocalist, he is best known for... voicing Gary Oak, James, Meowth, and Professor Oak in the Pokemon franchise. Jimmy's voice acting career began in the 1980s with the character Cap'n O. G. Readmore on the ABC Weekend Special anthology series. Later on, he appeared in over 15 Pokemon films and over 700 episodes of the Pokemon anime. Aside from Pokemon, he also had roles in shows including Sonic X, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters, One Piece, Kirby: Right Back at Ya!, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Mission Odyssey, among others. Jimmy married Martha Jacobi, and they had three children together: Nicole, Mackenzie, and Carter.Show more

Don Kipper was born in 1946 and passed away on October 29, 2025. Don Kipper was the second generation owner of Kip's Toyland in Los Angeles, which happens to be the oldest toy store in Los Angeles, an...d one of the few remaining independent toy stores. Don took over the store from his father, Irvin Kipper, who founded it in 1945. Irvin was a prisoner of war during World War II, and when he returned home, he wanted to do something happy for the rest of his life. He opened Kip's Toyland, where you can purchase classic and retro toys—no electronics. Don loved working at the toy store and was always a friendly face behind the counter. After losing his battle with cancer, his daughter, Lilly, has taken over the family business.Show more

Terence Stamp was born on July 22, 1938 and passed away on August 17, 2025. He was an accomplished actor, having won a Golden Globe Award and a Cannes Film Festival award, in addition to receiving nom...inations for an Academy Award and two BAFTA Awards. He was best known for his role as General Zod in the early Superman films. After studying at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London, he quickly made a name for himself in the film world. He played the title roll in the film Billy Budd in 1962, which is where he earned his Golden Globe and his nominations for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award. Later, he starred in The Collector and won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor. In 1978, he played archvillain General Zod in SuperMan and Superman II. For many more decades, he played many different roles, with his final performance being the upcoming sequel to The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.Show more

Scott Adams was born on June 8, 1957 and passed away on January 13, 2026. He was best known as the creator of the Dilbert comic strip. Scott didn't start creating comics full-time until 1995, and h...ad worked in corporate in the years prior. In the mid 1990s, his comic strip, Dilbert, which was a satirical commentary on white collar working environments, became popular globally. He eventually went on to write several books, and in the 2010s, he emerged as a conservative commentator. Unfortunately, many of his takes emerged as racist and he even made comments questioning the Holocaust and opposing the COVID-19 vaccine. This led to many newspapers dropping Dilbert. In May 2025, Scott revealed he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer, and in early January 2026, he said his chances of recovering were "essentially zero." He passed less than a month later.Show more

Julien Mayot passed away in November 2025. He was one of the co-founders of Blue Orange Games, and was heavily involved in the design and sale of Gobblet, the first Blue Orange game. At the beginning,... he took a three-month road trip across the country, covering 22,000 miles and visiting 500 stores with a jeep packed with 1,000 Gobblet games. The trip and the subsequent 10,000 games sale marked the official start of the business. He had a passion for creativity and kindness, and is fondly remembered by all those who knew him.Show more

Burt Meyer was born on April 18, 1926 and passed away on October 30, 2025. He is best known for his toy and game inventions, including Lite Brite, Mouse Trap, and Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots. Burt gra...duated from the Institute of Design at the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1952. He worked as a design director and teacher at the Atlanta Art Institute and also designed trade show displays, cabinets, and jukeboxes. In 1960, Burt joined Marvin Glass & Associates, where he invited Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots, Lite-Brite, and Mouse Trap, among other toys and games. After leaving Marvin Glass in the mid 1980s, he started his own firm: Meyer/Glass Design. During this time period, he created the Pretty Pretty Princess board game; Catch Phrase, a word-guessing game; and Gooey Louie, which invited children to pick “gooeys” out of Louie’s nose. Burt was married to Marcia "Kass" Meyer, who passed in 2001. Together they had three children, six grandchildren, and six great grandchildren.Show more

Leigh Anne Brodsky was born on February 26, 1958 and passed away on October 3, 2025. Leigh Anne grew up in Glen View, IL, and Wyckoff, NJ, and went to Holy Cross for college. After graduating, she joi...ned United Media, which began her career in licensing. She is most well known for her role as President of Consumer Products for Nickelodeon, where she led the company's purchase of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Nickelodeon's first acquired property. She also worked on brands including Dora the Explorer, Spongebob, South Park, and Beavis and Butthead. In 2011, she was inducted into the Licensing Industry Hall of Fame. Under her leadership, Nickelodeon earned more than 35 industry awards including top licensing and Parent’s Choice honors in the toy, video, interactive gaming and apparel categories, according to Licensing International. Leigh Anne leaves behind a loving husband and two wonderful children.Show more