Richard O'Brien (author)
{{Other uses|Richard O'Brien (disambiguation)}}
{{Short description|American humor writer (1934–2012)}}
Richard O'Brien (January 13, 1934 – May 18, 2012) was an American humor writer and expert on toy collecting{{cite book|author=Lisa M. DeTora|title=Heroes of Film, Comics and American Culture: Essays on Real and Fictional Defenders of Home|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cZRz9kM-cL4C&pg=PA120|date=19 May 2009|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-0-7864-5143-2|pages=120–}} known primarily for his series of books, "O'Brien's Collecting Toys".{{cite news|title=Soldiers|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=r6AmAAAAIBAJ&sjid=xwEGAAAAIBAJ&pg=4355%2C460016|newspaper=The Miami News|date=August 17, 1985}} His "Collecting American-Made Toy Soldiers," published in 1996, has been extensively used by hobbyists.{{cite web|last=Pauley|first=Ben|title=Soldier Collectibles|url=http://www.soldiercollectibles.com/toysoldiers.htm|work=Collector's Information Site}}{{cite web|last=Steiner|first=Ron|title=Pirated Betons|url=http://www.ponylope.com/pirated/pirated.html|publisher=Ponylope}}
Early life and education
O'Brien was born in New York City on January 13, 1934. He attended Erasmus High and Brooklyn College, and served a brief stint in the United States Army.
Career
O'Brien worked as a press agent, publicizing clients including comedians Woody Allen,{{cite book|last=Lax|first=Eric|title=Woody Allen: A Biography, Updated Edition|orig-date=1990|year=2000|publisher=Da Capo Press|isbn=0-306-80985-0|pages=8}} Bill Cosby, Joan Rivers, Victor Borge, Dick Cavett and Rodney Dangerfield. Writing gags for some of his clients led to him ghost authoring the Woody Allen comic strip, "Inside Woody Allen." From 1979 to 1981 he authored the nationally syndicated strip, "Koky," (Chicago Tribune-New York New Syndicate) illustrated by Mort Gerberg, a comic devoted to the life of a working mom.{{cite book|last=Strickler|first=Dave|title=Syndicated Comic Strips and Artists, 1924-1995: The Complete Index|url=https://archive.org/details/syndicatedcomics0000unse|url-access=registration|year=1995|publisher=Comics Access|location=Cambria, CA|isbn=0-97000-77-0-1}}
In 1979, O'Brien closed his publicity business to focus exclusively on writing. He began studying the origins of toy soldiers. O'Brien's research led to the publication of Collecting Toys, released in 1985 by Books Americana. He published eight editions of the book, some of which were under the Krause imprint. He later sold the copyright to Krause and the series was continued under his name with Karen O'Brien (no relation) as editor.{{cite book|last=O'Brien|first=Karen|title=Collecting Toys, 12th Edition|year=2008|publisher=Krause Publications|isbn=978-0896893719}}
O'Brien wrote many other books on toy topics, including foreign-made toy soldiers,{{cite web|last=Saine|first=Joseph|title=Researching Foreign Made Toy Soldiers|url=http://www.josephsaine.com/books/book035.htm|publisher=Joseph F. Saine Toy Soldiers}} and collectible trucks, cars and trains.{{cite book|author=Michael L. Berger|title=The Automobile in American History and Culture: A Reference Guide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oRwMv8iNP-MC&pg=PA258|year=2001|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-313-24558-9|pages=258–}} He also wrote the coffee-table book "The Story of American Toys."[http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-89659-921-5 Nonfiction Book Review: The Story of American Toys: From the Puritans to the Present by Richard O'Brien, Author Abbeville Press $24.98 (252p)] {{ISBN|978-0-89659-921-5}}{{cite news|last=Lechner|first=Joseph|title=O'Brien's Collecting Toy Trains|url=http://www.tcaetrain.org/articles/reviews/BOOK_REVIEW_obrien/index.html|newspaper=Train Collectors Association}}{{cite book|author=Andrew McClary|title=Good Toys, Bad Toys: How Safety, Society, Politics and Fashion Have Reshaped Children's Playthings|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2bvABgAAQBAJ&pg=PA1|date=3 May 2004|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-0-7864-1837-4|pages=1–}} which colorfully illustrates the development of toy production through the decades.{{cite book|author=Robert Sickels|title=The 1940s|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=G4IkgU7jpLwC&pg=PA111|date=1 January 2004|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-313-31299-1|pages=111–}}
O'Brien also published a number of articles with information about toy-soldier firms, including Barclay, which were later compiled in a series of books available through Ramble House.{{cite web|last=Fender|first=Tucker|title=Ramble House|url=http://www.ramblehouse.com/alphabeticalauthor.htm|publisher=Ramble House}}{{cite book|author=Richard E. Goddard|title=The Whistling Ancestors|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T6_9AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA194|date=March 2010|publisher=Lulu.com|isbn=978-1-60543-330-1|pages=194–}} Several of these articles were later republished in the toy trade magazine, TDmonthly.com.
Death
O'Brien died at a hospice in North Carolina, on May 18, 2012, at the age of 78.{{cite news |title=Obituary: Richard O'Brien, Toy Expert and Author |url=https://www.toydirectory.com/monthly/article.asp?id=4965 |access-date=24 September 2024 |publisher=TD Monthly |date=18 May 2012}}
References
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