Hi group, and hello new member conradargo, whose posts today pinged my inbox and
reminded me I've been meaning to post a few things.

First off, thanks to Jesse for including my link in the links section, and
calling me a propellerhead! Both made my day. Now a brief bit about Mr. T.

Awhile back when I started getting heavily into Flipsiders, as can be attested
to by my said Flickr gallery linked in the links section here, I noticed while
taking photos and scans of Checkered Flag that it said "Patent Pending."
Wondering if it ever received its patent, I went on a hunt at the USPTO. And <a
href=http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=/ne\
tahtml/search-bool.html&r=3&f=G&l=50&co1=AND&d=ptxt&s1=anjar.ASNM.&OS=AN/anjar&R\
S=AN/anjar>found it!</a> You'll likely need to download their weird tiff viewing
plugin, but it's worth it if you want to see the original Flipsiders patent
image drawings. There are some notable differences between the original sketch,
and the eventual reality, at least for those released here in the US. I could
not find this through traditional means, like searching for "Flipsiders," as the
patents don't include the marketed name, just the invention idea. I had to first
search MB's stuff, and then Anjar's stuff, one-by-one, and finally struck gold.
It was a nerdily exciting moment.

I noticed the patent claims they were invented by a David E. Titchener of
Swindon, GB. I searched him out, and found a David Titchener in a <a
href=http://www.slowtwitch.com/headings/sciencebiz/industryold1.html>news
article</a> on his selling of his UK-based "220" magazine, devoted to
triathlons, and it mentioned Swindon, so it seemed like it might be the same
guy. There was no more info on him online, but that news item mentioned that his
daughter, Gail was staying on as the editor of the magazine. That was 2000,
though. Her 220 magazine email address bounced back as no longer valid, but
searching out her name revealed a freelance writer, which seemed a valid
transition for an editor. In several online sites she (or at least someone with
her name) was asking people for their true-life stories for inclusion in I
believe another magazine, so I figured she wouldn't mind me popping in with some
of my own searchings and questions. She was intrigued by my first vague email
about some "80s toys" to which she might be linked, so I wrote to ask if she was
the daughter of the man who invented Flipsiders. She was!

I sent her a probably frighteninly long email about my love of these old bits of
nostalgia, including how I found her out through my dogged online searching, and
if she and her father wouldn't mind, I included a little email interview
questionnaire. These were the questions I included:

-Tell us Flipsiders fans a bit about Anjar. How many people?
-How did you end with Anjar? Was it exciting, dull, rewarding?
-From where did the idea for Flipsiders come?
-Was it a moment of inspiration, a design-by-committee?
-Was this the first design, or was it previously, say, a Walkman?
-How quickly did the design work finish up? 2 months? a year?
-Were you there for all (I believe) 3 sets? ('87, '88, '93)
-There were 6 originally ('87), but how many in '88, if you know?
-What happened with the '93 set? According to a source online, they
seem to have been sold below cost through a liquidator.
-Did you design other things while at Anjar?
-How did you transition into magazine publishing?

Gail replied that she would forward the info on to her father, and so I waited
for awhile. Perhaps a week. Then one morning I awoke to find a nice note from
Mr. Titchener himself. It was exciting to have tracked down the original man
himself, and though he opted not to really answer any of the questions, he did
generously provide me with a brief bit of backstory. Here's the text of his
email for you, his other fans:

--------------------------------------------
Hi Gary,
I have received your email via my daughter Gail, I am afraid there is
no Big Story for you re; the Flipsiders.
Anjar made contact with me back in the 80s at The Toy Fair in London.
I was showing the games at a trade stand when I was approached by Jim
Becker (from Anjar ) who said, they (Anjar) could be interested in
marketing the game in the USA. They subsequently designed the versions
that were eventually marketed by MB. in the States. I believe
somewhere, I have one of the original prototypes from that show. I
think it was designed on the theme of "Spider Man"
Your email brought back many memories to me, and I am pleased that the
Flipsiders gave you so much pleasure in your childhood, and even it
seems now!
I wish you well with your designs. Perhaps you will come up with some
type of game in the future....maybe you already have???
Sorry there's not more,
Best Regards, David.
--------------------------------------------

I sent a little a thank you note for his time and info, and offered a final
thank you for providing us fans with fun that has lasted through nearly 20
years, and provided such great nostalgia.

I would love to see that original Spider Man prototype :) And I'm interested in
this so-called "Chequered Flag" variant that conradargo mentioned. Got any pics
of that one? Seems that even if we ever do find a full list, it won't be the
fully full list, what with other country versions to account for...

As far as what other Flipsiders there were out there, I made another of my
dogged researchings into the interwebs to find the answer to this, but it
remains somewhat of a mystery. I will post of my findings next under another
heading, such that it may be more easily findable in the post list.

-gary