Playmobil Inventor Hans Beck (1939 - 2009)

With all the commotion around Toy Fair this month, somehow we missed that Hans Beck, inventor of Playmobil toys, passed away late last month.  For millions of kids (and a few adults in my office) Playmobil toys were -- and continue to be -- a favorite.  

The toys were created in 1974 when Mr. Beck (who actually trained as a furniture carpenter) was asked to invent a collectible toy.  (Interestingly, the company assumed he was going to present a line of toy cars.)  He worked as a designer with the Geobra Brandstaetter company (the parent company of Playmobil) until 1998.  There have been over 2.2 billion of the dolls sold in 70 countries, with Mr. Beck's motto about Playmobil being, "No horror, no superficial violence, not short-lived trends."  You can click here to learn more about the inventor and his creations. -- E. Christian Moore