Son of Polish Holocaust survivors lands in the toy world

The gig: President since 2001 of Playmates Toys Inc., whose 55 U.S. employees design and market toys manufactured by the Playmates Toys Ltd. branch in Hong Kong. The company went public in February after splitting from its 42-year-old parent, Playmates Holdings Ltd. of Hong Kong. Famous for producing toys based on the Disney princesses and on "The Land Before Time" and "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" franchises, the company is working on products to coincide with the summer 2009 release of the latest "Terminator" and " Star Trek" films. Playmates, known for its action figures and dolls, is also trying to expand into youth electronics. "It's competitive," Novak said. "We have to do what Mattel does with one-tenth the resources."

By Tiffany Hsu

September 7, 2008