Tom Filsinger
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Tom Filsinger (February 11, 1957— ) is the creator of Champions of the Galaxy and Legends of Wrestling card and dice role playing games. He is also a psychology professor and author of Dark Menace of the Universe, an autobiography and treatise on creativity.
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[edit] Life
Filsinger was born Savvos Christos Tsagarakis, a descendant of Greek immigrants. His grandfather Tom Tsoulis and family came to America from Greece in 1917 and settled in Cleveland, Ohio. Tom Tsoulis' daughter Sophie married Christos Tsagarakis and bore a son, who was later to become known as Tom Filsinger. His father skipped town, reuniting with him only briefly 29 years later. His mother married Eugene Filsinger who later adopted her son and changed his name to Tom Filsinger. In 1968, Tom's family moved to Lyndhurst, Ohio. Tom grew up with an interest in wrestling, comic books and finding an outlet for his creative nature.
After graduating from high school, he attended John Carroll University, a Jesuit college in University Heights, Ohio. He went on to graduate school at Northern Illinois University in Dekalb, Illinois and majored in social/personality psychology. After earning a master's degree, he began his career as a psychology teacher. He met his wife Leslie in February 1988, and they were married by the end of the year. Finally settling down with his family in Jamestown, New York in 1989, Tom and Leslie now have four children: Alex, Keri, Dana and Holly.
[edit] Filsinger Games
In 1984, Tom Filsinger proposed a wrestling game to the World Wrestling Federation only to be rejected in favor of a Milton Bradley game. This rejection inadvertently led to the creation and success of Champions of the Galaxy, a sci-fi wrestling dice-and-card game that can be played alone or with two or more friends, and which features hundreds of characters from the future or professional wrestling. Champions of the Galaxy was first released in 1986, and over 30 expansions have followed since then. Because of this, Filsinger has been able to collaborate with some exceptionally talented artists through the years such as Darryl Banks, Scott Rosema, and Hannibal King. The most prolific Champions of the Galaxy artist is Brian Michael Bendis, one of the biggest names in the comic book field. Filsinger Games also released another card game featuring real-life wrestling stars called Legends of Wrestling in 2000.
[edit] Psychology professor
Tom is a mild-mannered associate professor of psychology at Jamestown Community College. Since then he has taught at five colleges in three states, as well as being the Co-Director of Social Sciences and Coordinator of Psychology at Jamestown Community College. In 1998, the New York State Education Commission approved a certificate program created by Tom called Psychology of the Workplace, the first of its kind in the state. Beginning in 2005, students will have the option to earn the degree by taking the classes online.
[edit] Countdown calendars
Tom further expanded his horizons in 2003 when he created and marketed Countdown to Our Wedding Day, the first calendar in a new line of Countdown to the Big Day products. The calendar debuted at Atlanta's Mart in January, 2003 and is currently sold at gift shops throughout the United States. Tom's goal is to increase distribution and expand the line of calendars to include Countdown to Baby's Due Date and several other titles.
[edit] Dark Menace of the Universe
Tom celebrated 20 years of success in 2005 by releasing his first book, The Dark Menace of the Universe. The book is an analysis of creativity as it relates to rebellion and culture. The book also describes how Filsinger Games carved out a successful niche in the independent game industry. In Tom's words the book is "a rallying cry for creative Dark Menaces everywhere."
[edit] Accolades
Tom's accomplishments as a creator have not gone unnoticed. He has been featured in magazines such as Entrepreneur and picked among the 50 Most Interesting People by Cleveland Magazine. He has also been interviewed on television and radio shows both nationally and internationally, as well as making guest appearances at numerous comic book, game, and wrestling conventions.
Stan Lee, creator of Marvel Comics, has worked side-by-side with Tom and remained a supporter of Filsinger Games and the Countdown series. Lee wrote the introduction to The GWF Files: The Second Edition and a rave review of Tom's book.
[edit] Sources
- Filsinger, Tom. Dark Menace of the Universe, New York: Brust Books. An autobiography and treatise on creativity. 2005.
