I have been invited to join the Advisory Board on Toy Collector.com, and thank Anika for her trust.
I have multiple interests in toys, being a former toy designer for the Heller plastic model kit company in the 1960s, to various toy companies in the USA that include Dynamic, Riggen and Cox Hobbies in the 1970s. After a long hiatus away from toys, I am now back full time, involved in many aspects of the hobby. First as a collector of prewar Tootsietoy models as well as pre-1960s Dinky Toys and other fine die-cast automobiles as long as they retain a toy aspect, second of large German and Japanese tinplate automobiles and aircraft.
At this time, I run a small manufacturing company that produces 1/24 and 1/32 scale electric slot cars for use on home racing tracks (please see
www.tsrfcars.com for details).
I also wrote a small history of that hobby in a successful but now out of print book in 1997, published by Motorbooks, and am presently completing a much more extensive volume for the Los Angeles Slot Car Museum (
www.lascm.com), a book that will have an interactive website to add and complete what will be in print.
I am presently the curator of that museum that has the largest collection of American-made 1/24 and 1/32 scale slot cars and kits from the 1960s, and also in charge of restoring the rare hand-built professional racing cars we keep discovering.
Thing is, this keeps me quite busy since we also have some activity in full-size vintage car collecting and racing...
So far I have written a few articles and stories for online magazines at the invitation of their owners (Collectors Weekly is one ad an example) but would be pleased to help develop Toy Collectors as long as time permits. Please let me know of your own interests and on how I could be of some help.
Regards,
Philippe de Lespinay
