Rest In Play - 2020 - 2029

Barry Walker, owner of Conways toy stores and a former member, director, and chairman of the Toymaster buying group, passed away in April 2021 after a long battle with cancer. Barry was described ...as instrumental in the formation of the Toymaster buying group and the Toymaster brand. He also served on the board of the British Association of Toy Retailers. Much of Barry's work has laid the foundation for the modern independent buying group structure. He was one of the founder members of the White Rose buying group, which ultimately joined with other groups to form Toymaster. He also broke the mould in the way he ran his toy store, which eventually saw Conways grow from a single store into a chain which spanned Yorkshire and the North of England. He will be deeply missed by all those that knew and loved him.Show more

Ryu Asada, a well known Hot Wheels designer, passed away on March 23, 2021 after a long battle with cancer. He was 42 years old. Ryu was born in Osaka, Japan and came to the US for college, where h...e attended the Art Center College of Design. After graduating, he worked for Matchbox from 2004 to 2012. His first time designing for Hot Wheels was in 2009, and joined the team officially in 2012. Over the course of his 17-year career, Ryu designed dozens of vehicles for the $1 Hot Wheels mainline assortment, most recently serving as designer project lead. Some of his designs include the '94 Audi Avant RS2, ’67 Ford GT40 Mk.IV, Lethal Diesel, Tooned Twin Mill, Dodge Van, and the foodie-themed Car-De-Asada. He will be deeply missed by family, friends, and colleagues alike, all of whom have nothing but fond and loving memories of his passionate creator.Show more

Domenic Bettini was born on February 4, 1968 and passed away on September 28, 2023. He was 55 years old. Domenic was an expert in the toy industry in his role of Director of Business Development at... Playview Brands. He will be deeply missed by all those who loved him.Show more

Richard Gottlieb, founder and CEO of Global Toy Experts, passed away on October 26, 2023. Richard attended the University of Richmond, and after graduating started with Southern Distributers in 19...71. In 1984, he joined Western Publishing Company. In 1990, he went to Cadaco. Richard founded Global Toy Experts in 1994, where he offered business development consulting, helped manufacturers enter the North American and global markets, and provided intellectual property development and third-party placement to inventors and designers. In 2010, Richard launched Global Toy News and published his own thoughts on the industry as well as articles from play industry experts on the toy business. In 2019, he began producing and co-hosting The Playground Podcast.Show more

Jim Southworth of Larian Studios passed away in November 2023 after a short battle with cancer. He was 56 years old. Jim led the Baldur's Gate 3 cinematic animation team, and has been working on th...e project since 2019. Baldur's Gate 3 earned one of the highest review scores in PC Gamer's history. Other projects Jim has worked on throughout his career include sandbox MMO Boundless, multiple PlayStation EyeToy games and the early PSVR development, and '90s animated series The Animals of Farthing Wood. Jim's friends, family, and colleagues already miss him dearly. He was a caring and loyal friend and always knew how to bring a smile to the faces of everyone around him.Show more

George Ditomassi, former Milton Bradley chairman and Hasbro executive, was born on October 27, 1934 and passed away on May 31, 2021. He was 86 years old. George spend over 40 years of his career at... Milton Bradley, both before and after it was acquired by Hasbro in 1984. He worked on games that are known worldwide, including Candyland, Life, and Chutes and ladders. He started out as a production trainee in 1960, and by 1970, he was Vice President of Milton Bradley and General Manager of the Whiting Division. In 1982, George joined the Board of Directors at Milton Bradley, and in 1985, was promoted to President of Milton Bradley. In 1990, he was named Chairman of Milton Bradley and COO of Games and International at Hasbro. In 2004, George was inducted into the Toy Associations Toy Industry Hall of Fame. After his time at Milton Bradley and Hasbro, George went on to become CEO of Enesco, CEO of Shop at Home Company, and CEO of Summit America Television. George also received a number of awards throughout the course of his life, including: Business West Business Person of the Year; University of Massachusetts Distinguished Alumnus Award; The Pynchon Award for Outstanding Civic Contributions; UNICO Man of the Year Award; American Cancer Society’s Omar T. Pace Award; Pioneer Valley Boy Scouts of America Distinguished Citizen Award; Holyoke Community College Distinguished Service Award; Urban League Coveted Community Builder Award; Junior Achievement Free Enterprise Hall of Fame Award; and the National Conference of Human Relations Award. George was involved in many institutions from a philanthropic perspective as well. He was Chairman of the Western Massachusetts Children’s Miracle Network; National Chairman of the Child Welfare League of America; and the Corporate Fundraising Chairman of the Ronald McDonald House of Springfield. He also served as Director of the Business Friends of the Arts; as a member of the board of Directors of the Basketball Hall of Fame; a Trustee at Springfield College; a member of the UMass Chancellor’s Executive Committee; and later as a Trustee of the UMass Foundation Board. He was an incorporator of the Community United Way, a Trustee of Baystate Medical Center, Chairman of the Westmass Area Development Corporation, and an appointed member of the Inspector General Council of Massachusetts.Show more

Nick Hancock, founder and senior producer of Active Pictures, passed away on September 17, 2023, after a long battle with cancer. Nick started Active Pictures 23 years ago, and since then, he's mad...e nearly 6,000 commercials, employed hundreds of freelancers, and formed bonds with others in the industry who already miss him dearly. Some of Nick's clients included Brainstorm Toys and Leapfrog. Nick leaves behind a wife, two daughters, and two dogs, all of whom love and miss him very much.Show more

Stuart Crawford, toy industry veteran, passed away on August 19, 2021 after a prolonged illness. Stuart Crawford worked in the toy industry for over 40 years, and spent 22 of them at MV Sports and ...Leisure. His first toy industry job was in 1976 with Burbank Toys. In 1981 he moved onto Acamas Toys, in 1987, he worked at Pikit Toys, in 1992 he worked at PMS, and he found his home at MV in 1997. He worked with major and independent retails as the national account controller, and he won a Teddy award in 2018 for his contribution to the industry. He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him.Show more

Akira Toriyama was born on April 5, 1955 and passed away on March 1, 2024. He was a Japanese manga artist and character designer, best known as the creator of the Dragon Ball, Sand Lord, and Dr. Slump... manga and the character design for Dragon Quest. Akira is regarded as one of the most important authors in the history of manga. Akira's first published work was Wonder Island, and it appeared in Weekly Shōnen Jump in 1978. His first real success, though, came in 1980, when he created Dr. Slump, which made him a household name. In 1983, Akira created Dragon Boy, which evolved into Dragon Ball, which is now one of the best selling manga series of all time. It led to film adaptations, video games, and merchandise. Its popularity spread all over the globe. In 1981, Akira won the Shogakukan Manga Award for best shōnen manga with Dr. Slump, which was adapted into a successful anime series. His series, Dragon Ball, is one of the most popular and successful manga in the world, and having sold 260 million copies world wide, it is also one of the best-selling manga series of all time.Show more

James "Jim" Ward was born on May 23, 1951 and passed away on March 18, 2024 at the age of 72. He was an American game designer and fantasy author most known for his work on Dungeons & Dragons. Jim ...worked for TSR, and was one of the players in Gary Gygax's early Greyhawk games as Gygax developed the Dungeons & Dragons and game—in fact, the character Drawjim is named after him (spell Jim Ward backwards!). Jim and Rob Kuntz worked together to make Gods, Demi-Gods, & Heroes , introducing gods into the original D&D game. Ward also designed Metamorphosis Alpha, the first science-fantasy role-playing game, and co-authored Deities & Demigods. Ward also wrote Greyhawk Adventures, and along with David Cook, Steve Winter, and Mike Breault, co-wrote Ruins of Adventure, which was adapted into the game Pool of Radiance. In 1989, he was inducted into the Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts & Design Hall of Fame. Jim also designed the Spellfire collectible card game and the Dragon Ball Z Collectible Card Game. He was the co-founder of the d2- company Fast Forward Entertainment, and was the President from 2000-2005.Show more