Rest In Play - 2020 - 2029

Tony Mines, Pioneer Of Modern Lego Animation, Dies At 44. Tony was a pioneer of the brickfilm movement as it shifted online around the turn of the century. READ MORE...

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Alice Bergman, 'Strong and Fierce'. Alice Bergman, an early feminist, civil rights activist, and founder of the iconic Upper West Side toy store, West Side Kids, died peacefully on Saturday morning, h...er daughter Jennifer Bergman informed the community in an email. The cause was pneumonia. Alice was 86. “Friday, she had a good day,” Jennifer wrote. “She spoke to friends on the phone, spent time with each of us and talked about her goals. Both Les [Jen’s younger sister] and I were by her side when she died. Her body was so fragile, but her mind and spirit were strong and fierce.” Those words seemed to define Alice Bergman, who arrived on the Upper West Side in 1961. In 1971, she started a handmade toy company, called Toys for All Children, eschewing the then-standard blond, blue-eyed, male-dominated version of reality for a more ethnically diverse, non-sexist one. “She made an African-American, woman-doctor puppet – in 1971!” Jennifer exulted. “She was way ahead of her time.” In 1981, she opened West Side Kids. “I haven’t really changed very much about the store since she retired in 2014,” Jennifer said. And why should she? It is a beautiful, old space – brightly painted, covered from polished-wood floor to painted-tin ceiling with shelves and stacks of toys and books. (There’s even a copy of the Constitution!) “My mother’s philosophy about toys was very strong,” Jennifer told WSR in an earlier interview. “Play is a child’s work, and toys are the tools for that work. You need the correct tools to grow into a creative, interesting adult.”Show more

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Hell Let Loose producer James Light has passed away due to complications resulting from cardiac surgery. He was 28. The Hell Let Loose dev team shared the news on Reddit and said Light is "one of ...the key reasons" the project has achieved success. Light began his career in video games in 2018, joining Hell Let Loose publisher Team17's QA department to work on the multiplayer shooter. He quickly rose through the ranks to eventually become a producer on the project, and is described by his colleagues as someone who possessed an "incredible work ethic, humility, and enduring kindness." "Despite being extremely effective, he was always the first to champion the efforts of others and bring praise to the team as a whole," wrote Team17 community manager Greg Medlin. "His achievements -- though quiet -- saw him develop into the role of production assistant, and then several months ago receive his final promotion to the position of producer -- formalizing his role in overseeing the entire PC development side of Hell Let Loose. "He had more knowledge of the game than perhaps anyone else -- certainly more than me -- having reported and studied thousands of bugs -- knowing every intricacy and nuance across every aspect of the game." The team said Light made an "indelible impression on the game," before adding that he also "made that same impression on us."t;Show more

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Penny Sawyer LIEBERMAN, born April 18th, 1941 in Brooklyn, NY, died peacefully in her sleep after a long battle with pancreatic cancer on July 9th, 2022 in New York, NY. Penny is survived by her husba...nd, Jay; her children, Juliet and Matthew Lublin, Erik and Alexis Ekstein, Andrea Lieberman and her husband Vincent Passeri; along with her beloved grandchildren, Jordan, Tyler, Garrett, Evan, Owen, Paloma, Leonardo; and her beloved dog, Bebe. Penny was a toy inventor extraordinaire, responsible for creating Puffy Stickers and The Pillow People, a line of soft pillow dolls developed to help children deal with their fear of the dark. From her linkedin profile: Inventor of the first PILLOW DOLL, a patented design. Creator of the PILLOW PEOPLE that helped kids not be afraid of the dark. Animation, PILLOW PEOPLE SAVES CHRISTMAS syndicated on TV for 10 years. Springs Industries manufactured and distributed and sold over $120million.Show more

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Veteran game designer, engineer, and university professor Mike Sellers has passed away. News of his passing was shared on social media by friends and peers, who described Sellers as someone with a gre...at capacity for kindness and generosity. Sellers began his career as a software engineer, working at companies including Tektronix and Mentor Graphics during the '80s. He eventually began applying his talents to games at New World Designers, where he worked as a lead UI and UX designer on a variety of products including children's games. After that, he went on to establish Archetype Interactive and create massively multiplayer title, Meridian 59. After Archetype was acquired by 3DO, Sellers was snapped up by the studio to continue leading production on Meridian 59 and other game projects. Eventually, Sellers would join Electronic Arts and work on titles such as SimCity Online, The Sims 2, and Ultima Online in his role as a senior game designer. After departing EA in 2002, Sellers became a consultant before having stints at Online Alchemy, Kabam, and Rumble -- accepting leadership roles at all three companies. In his later years, Sellers ventured into the world of academia and most recently served as the director and professor of practice on Indiana University's game design degree program.Show more

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Former Sega of America president and Sony Computer Entertainment America vice president Bernie Stolar has passed away. The news was shared by GamesBeat, which said that Stolar's funeral service to...ok place in Los Angeles over the weekend. Stolar was a prominent figure in the games industry for decades and worked on the original PlayStation while at Sony, helping to launch the popular system while also signing key franchises including Crash Bandicoot, Ridge Racer, and Spyro the Dragon. During his time at Sega, Stolar led development on the Dreamcast and acquired Visual Concepts, which was eventually sold to Take-Two Interactive and used by the publisher to create its 2K label. Later on, Stolar became an advisor and director at in-game advertising company Adscape Media, which would later be purchased by Google. Google then brought Stolar on board as its own games evangelist, helping the influential figure add to his already extensive résumé. Those who knew Stolar have been paying tribute on social media after hearing news of his passing.Show more

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Bob was chief executive of Palitoy from the late 1960s through to the early 1980s and was credited with bringing top brands Action Man, Tiny Tears and Star Wars to the company. It is with great sad...ness that we report the passing of Bob Simpson, who was the chief executive at Palitoy during a golden era for the company. Although he was very much a ‘behind the scenes’ director, leaving Harry Trowell and his sales team take a lot of the limelight, he did a great job working with the American owners and helped to bring numerous top brands to the company, including Action Man, Tiny Tears and Star Wars. The funeral service will be held at St. Bartholomew’s Church in Kirby Muxloe, just outside Leicester on Monday 11th July at 12.30pm. Any former colleagues wishing to attend the service and the wake at the Royal Oak should contact Bobwhitworth@btopenworld.com. We are grateful to former Palitoy chief designer Bob Brechin for providing the following obituary: “Born in 1930, Bob Simpson was a proud Scotsman from Edinburgh. During his National Service he was posted to Leicester and met his future wife. Wanting to be near her, he joined the police force and was able to get a transfer to Leicester. He subsequently joined Cascelloid in its sales department, after which he became the marketing manager of the company’s Palitoy toy brand. In the early 1960s, Cascelloid’s owners BXL decided to sell off the toy division, which began with a move of staff including Bob, his boss Miles Fletcher and the design team under Bill Pugh, to the Coalville site, which had been manufacturing toys since 1937, just two years after the Palitoy name was registered. This was when the Palitoy brand entered the modern world of TV advertising with the introduction of Tressy, Tiny Tears and Action Man. Bob was instrumental in gaining licences for all of these products between 1964 and 1966, as well as the licence for G.I. Joe from Hasbro in the USA. Two years later, with three very strong tv-advertised toy lines, Bob played a big part in the sale of the Palitoy brand to General Mills Inc. After a year or so of American control, Bob became chief executive of Palitoy Limited, overseeing a golden era for the company: Tiny Tears was voted best girls toy for three consecutive years, while Action Man also won many awards, including the Toy of the Decade in 1980. The company developed numerous toy ranges, including Discovery Time, Parker Games and award-winning Pippa. From a modest £300,000 turnover pre-Tressy, Bob would steer the company to £30m by the start of the 1980s. Come the start of that decade, the General Mills Toy Group was beginning its strategy of global branding. This involved directing the Palitoy management to close down licence deals with competitors such as Tomy and Mego, helping to make way for new American-designed ranges such as Strawberry Shortcake and Care Bears to join the first global toy brand, Star Wars. Bob decided to depart, taking other senior people with him to set up a new toy importing company, Emblem Toys, in collaboration with David Yeh of Universal Toys of Hong Kong. Shortly afterwards, David Yeh acquired the ailing Matchbox company and persuaded Bob to reverse its fortunes. Having succeeded in doing that, Bob chose to retire from the toy industry. In 2017, Bob unveiled the Leicestershire County Council green plaque on the site of the former Palitoy factory to celebrate 80 years of toy-making in Coalville. He also opened the Many Faces of Palitoy exhibition, held at the former factory in 2019, which commemorated 100 years since Alf Pallett founded Cascelloid in Leicester. Bob should be remembered as the ‘father of Action Man’. There has been much debate about the origins of the name, but in the Coalville Heritage Society interview in 2019, Bob revealed that he briefed the advertising agency, Gee Advertising, and it came up with a long list of names, including ‘Man of Action’. “I like it. But that’s too long to go on the packaging,” was Bob’s opinion – and Action Man was born.” Our condolences to Bob’s family, and friends and colleagues from the toy community.Show more

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The founder and managing director of the specialist educational toy retailer Brightminds, Alison Quill, passed away in April.  Toy World is sad to report the passing of Alison Quill, the founder a...nd managing director of Brightminds, on 1st April after a long illness. Brightminds told Toy World that only the day before her passing, Alison had contributed with her usual vigour and good humour at a board meeting, and that her drive, enthusiasm and knowledge shone through to the very end. The specialist retailer’s official statement read: “Her colleagues will miss those attributes terribly but, above all, they – like us – will miss Alison the person. She was a regular fixture at various toy fairs at home and abroad, well known and respected throughout the industry. This world of ours now has one less genuinely good person.” Alison was a science teacher who left the profession to form Brightminds in 1998. In her own words: “The National Curriculum became like teaching by recipe and I want to set off that spark in childrens’ minds.” Alison was clear from the outset that the key was sourcing educational toys that inspire children to be curious about the world around them. Consequently, every product in the Brightminds range was tested and hand-picked to these guidelines. Alison had been ill for some time and when news of her prognosis became apparent, she embarked upon a handover process as best she could, though her involvement in the day to day business had to be reduced. Her wish, according to her friends and colleagues, was that the company she had given so much to create and build continued to prosper and realise the aspirations of all of its employees, shareholders and loyal customers and suppliers. The running of Brightminds is now being assumed by the remaining directors, led by David Crellin as interim CEO. David says: “We have no greater desire than to carry on fulfilling Alison’s wishes in bringing a little joy and inspiration to the young people of this world. Whilst Alison can never be replaced, we do have the privilege of being given the opportunity to carry on her ethos and legacy. It is a mantle we intend to pursue to the best of our abilities”. Toy World would like to join Alison’s friends and colleagues at Brightminds in sending condolences to her husband, John, and wider family.Show more

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Mark Hatherill died on June 13, 2022. Hatherill’s career spanned 35 years in the toy industry, including positions at Mattel, Playmates Toys, and Munchkin Inc., working with iconic brands such as B...arbie, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Star Trek. He also consulted with multiple start-ups throughout his career. He is remembered as a mentor, advisor, and inspiration to those who knew and worked with him. He is survived by his daughters Mikayla and Morgan, wife Yvonne, father Donald, and siblings Michele and Michael.Show more

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Billy Kametz, voice actor who worked on numerous video games including Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Triangle Strategy, and 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, has passed away.   Alongside his work in the games in...dustry, Kametz also lent his talents to anime series including Attack on Titan, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, and Pokémon Journeys.  An obituary shared on PennLive explained Kametz had been battling colon cancer and passed on June 9, 2022.  "Anyone who has met Billy will tell you he is one of the most sincere, humble and loving people they have ever met," reads the obituary.  "His infectious personality and smile always lit up a room with so much joy and happiness. Billy always left a positive impression on anyone he came in contact with. His love for his family, friends and girlfriend was always most important to him and that love will carry on forever."Show more

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