Rest In Play - 2020 - 2029

Gordon Otis was born on may 11, 1946 and passed away on December 22, 2021. Gordon graduated from SUNY at Alfred, where he met his wife of almost 52 years, Janet. During a career that spanned nearl...y 4 decades, Gordon bought and sold toys for Twin Fair, a chain in Buffalo, NY, and a a Buffalo based catalog showroom chain called Century Housewares. One of his career highlights was buying Trvial Pursuit from Selchow & Righter. Gordon then became an independent New England rep with a NYC agency, Ray Larson Associates. After RL he started his own agency under the name Playtime Ventures.Show more

Sir Clive Sinclair was born on July 30, 1940 and passed away on September 16, 2021. He was best known for being a pioneer in the computing industry and the founder of several companies that developed ...consumer electronics in the 1970s and 1980s. One of his companies was Sinclair Radionics Ltd. Through this venture, he produced the world's first slimline electronic pocket calculator (1972). By 1980, he had moved into the production of home computers with Sinclair Research Ltd. Sinclair Research is widely known throughout England and the rest of Europe in the computer industry and the British video game industry. Clive became Sir Clive in 1983 when he was appointed Knight Bachelor for his contributions to the personal computer industry. Clive has several Honorary Degrees: from University of Bath, Heriot-Watt University, and University of Warwick. He was honored and made a fellow by Imperial College London, and London's National Portrait Gallery purchased a portrait of him by a photographer for its permanent collection. Outside of his passion for electronics, Clive was an avid poker player, even appearing in the first three series of the Late Night Poker on Channel 4. He was a member of British Mensa, and ran several marathons, including a few New York City Marathons. In 2010, he said that he did not use computers himself, saying it distracts from the process of invention. In 2014, he famously said, "Once you start to make machines that are rivalling and surpassing humans with intelligence, it's going to be very difficult for us to survive. It's just an inevitability."Show more

Mikael Nermark, longtime Starbreeze executive, passed away in October 2021 at the age of 50. Mikael served as Starbreeze Studio's CEO & president twice during his 11 years at Starbreeze, first in ...2011 and again in 2018. He was also COO for five years. He tragically lost his battle to cancer but is forever remembered by his family, friends, and colleagues.Show more

Rob Smith, former editor-in-chief of PC Gamer, Official Xbox Magazine, and Official Playstation Magazine, passed away in October 2022. Rob also authored a book about LucasArts, called Rogue Leaders: T...he Story of LucasArts, which told the story of how George Lucas formed and shaped the legendary game studio. Rob also served as QA Manager and Community Manager at EA and Treyarch respectively. Most recently, he spent time as a copywriter at Xsolla and was involved in producing the 2022 New York Game Awards.Show more

Kim Jung-Ju, also known as Jay Kim, was born on February 22, 1968 and passed away on February 28, 2022. Kim was the founder of Nexon, Korea's largest gaming company. He was also the CEO and chairma...n of NVC Corportation, the holding company of Nexon. At the time of his death, the was the third-wealthiest person in Korea. Kim attended Seoul National University for college before founding Nexon in 1994. Under his leadership, the company launched the world's first graphic massively multiplayer online role-playing game, Nexus: The Kingdom of Winds. Nexon had offices worldwide and services over 100 online and mobile games to over 190 countries. Kim was also very involved with philanthropy, contributing over $18M towards the establishment of Korea's first pediatric rehabilitation hospital, Purme Foundation Nexon Children's Rehabilitation Hospital in Seoul, South Korea. He also established the Nexon Foundation, which continues Nexon's corporate social responsibility activities dedicated to children.Show more

William "Bill" Celeste was born on August 30, 1947 and passed away on July 18, 2021. Bill attended Dominican College for college and then joined the Purchasing Department of Western Publishing, whe...re he spent the first 28 years of his career. Then, he became the Vice President at Patch Products for 16 years before retiring in 2011. Outside of work, he was extremely active at Holy Name Parish, where he was a volunteer coach for 25 years. He also enjoyed playing bocce ball and watching the Chicago Cubs. Bill leaves behind his loving wife of 45 years, Laurel, as well as his sons, Marco and Vincent, his grandson, Will, and many other loving family members and friends.Show more

Don Poynter was born on May 14, 1925 and passed away on August 13, 2021. Don was an inventor, an entrepreneur, and an entertainer. His inventions were bold and witty, like the Talking Toilet, a co...ncealable gadget that shouted out things like "Move over, you're blocking the light!" when people sat down. Or, the Jayne Mansfield-shaped hot-water bottle. Or the Go-Go Girl Drink Mixer, a skimpily dressed glass-holding doll that mixed drinks by rotating her pelvis. Or one of his biggest hits, whiskey-flavored toothpaste. Or Little Black Box, the box that solely exists to turn itself off. These and so many more captured the inventor's fun, passionate, and wacky way of living life. Outside of inventing, he was also a baton twirler, a ventriloquist, a magician, and a drum major. He even joined the Harlem Globetrotters and performed all around the world for three summers. He opened his own company, Poynter Products Inc., to manufacture and sell his wacky novelty items. He loved and lived for making people laugh. In a 2015 interview, he said, "Almost everything I’ve ever done is either making someone laugh or giving them pleasure, and if I didn’t, I’d be out of business." Many of his inventions are located in the Cincinnati Museum Center for the Made, which opened in 2022.Show more

Mark Kaplan was born on September 15, 1944 and passed away on August 25, 2023. Mark spent over four decades in the toy industry, and loved every second of it. His career began at Times Square Store...s, followed by Enchanted Village, where he met his wife, Monica. Then, he moved to Jamesway, where he was the merchandise manager. After that, he moved to Ames, where he was the Vice President of merchandise. Mark loved sports, especially bowling with his family. He was a lifelong Yankees fan, even naming his two cats Derek and Jeter. After retiring and moving to Florida, he became a loyal fan of the Tampa Bay Rays. Mark leaves behind his loving wife, Monica, and their two daughters, Ellen and Dawn. He will be deeply and dearly missed by all who knew and loved him.Show more

Tony Miller passed away in June 2024 after suffering a stroke just before his 84th birthday. Tony worked at Mattel from 1968 - 1974 as a Project Engineer and Product Manager, and then again from 1...999-2003 as Vice President of Design for hot Wheels. He retired in 2003, but maintained his passion for all things cars by being active in the design and creation of a wild custom 1940 Ford coupe, the reworking and additional customization of his shoebox 1951 Ford Victoria, being a docent at the Petersen Automotive Museum for a decade, actively participating on the H.A.M.B., a hot rod message board at jalopyjournal.com as @50Fraud, and of course, attending a slew of car shows.Show more

Peter Renaday was born on June 9, 1935 and passed away on September 8, 2024. Peter was an American character and voice artist for over 6 decades, appearing in 2000 film and TV roles. Peter was bor...n in Louisiana, born as Pierre Laurent Renoudet. He made his acting debut in 1965 with the television series Combat!, but his career truly took off in the 1980s, when he was cast in the first animated TV adaptation of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as Splinter, the sensei and martial arts trainer that made the turtles into the warriors they are. He held this role until the show's finale in 1996. Other films he was in are The Aristocats, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Mulan, Scooby-Doo! and the Witch's Ghost, Shrek, Madagascar, The Transformers, Aladdin, and many, many more. Peter was married to Florence "Flo" June Daniel from 1979 until her death in 2011. She worked as a secretary in the music department at Walt Disney Studios.Show more