On December 29th, 2014, the hobby suffered a tragic loss of a pioneer in mass market playset production, Bill McMaster of BMC toys. BMC began in 1991 and has been producing toy soldiers for 24 years plus. Bill’s Alamo, D-Day (with all-new figures and accessories) and Iwo Jima playsets (featuring King & Country figures in innovative plastic) were among the first newly made sets to reach the hallowed halls of retail giants such as Target and Toys R Us, and priced below $20. He also made San Juan Hill, with a well-liked hard plastic reproduction of the actual hacienda. Bill was a pioneer in off-shore production and told PM he avoided the tremendous costs of molds by making gentleman’s agreements with a Chinese factory owner who created his molds in exchange for continued output. But when the factory passed into the hands of the owner’s son, the son claimed the molds for themselves and began releasing Bill’s product under their own name, Americana. That has been a continued source of frustration for collectors who respect Bill's work. Bill took the whole thing in stride and never missed a step, continuing output of his own product in boxed sets and header bagged products seen in stores throughout the country. Ever since, the good-natured Bill continued to use his extensive knowledge of the ins and outs of overseas production to the aid of his fellow manufacturers; he was a valuable rep for other companies such as TSSD, helping them source figure production overseas.
Bill, of Stratford, Connecticut, was well-liked and a popular presence at the Old Toy Soldier and International Hobby trade show venues, the Texas and East Coast shows as well as many others, doing the pro circuit pretty much all year around.
He was a hardworking, reliable and true gentleman professional of the old school, very active in the business right up until his death. Many expressed shock saying “I only just spoke to him,” or “I just saw him at the Hackensack show.” As word spread today, collectors, hobby shop owners, publishers, website programmers and manufacturers are all expressing regrets, concern and sadness at his passing. More will be printed in the next issue of Playset Magazine.
God speed, Bill.
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