Serial inventor Richard Levy on the Spirit of America, seeing the world and why curiosity never retires

Aha! Lovely to see you, Richard! You’re looking well! Wait… Where are your dark glasses?! I think this is the first time I’ve ever seen your eyes!
Ha!

I didn’t know they were so close together; I don’t think I trust you anymore…
Ha! Well, I have my proper glasses here! I’ll tell you what happens: for some reason, those dark lenses blur the computer screen… But my readers don’t.

Well, joking aside, the readers really suit you. And you’re looking well!
Thank you! You too. I love your office; that wall of books behind you… You already know, don’t you, that I too love words? My father used to buy me dictionaries and books about unusual words when I was a kid; I’ve always been fascinated by language. Actually, I’ve got a copy of Brewer’s Phrase and Fable here…

Oh, look at that! That’s seen a lot of use; beautiful.
I love it. But you know, what I learned creating games is that everybody has to understand you; you can’t get too learned or creative in your writing.

Yes, I agree – explain things simply! Now, we’re going to talk about the family trivia game you have out with The Op: Spirit of America. And speaking of writing, you did all the questions for that yourself?
Yes. I don’t hire anybody to do research and writing; I do it myself. Like you, Deej, I enjoy word carpentry… I’ve written 12 books so it’s really nothing for me to sit and hunt and peck through 2,000 questions. I mean, after I did that, The Op took their pick. But I love the written word – and let me tell you the reason I particularly like doing trivia questions: I just love discovering new facts about people, places and things! And with trivia questions, I also like to make it so you feel the answer is on the tip of your tongue.

Oh, I like that idea! Can you give me an example?
One of the questions in my advertising game Adverteasing was about who used the slogan ‘Whiter teeth. Fresher breath.’ You may not know the answer because it’s an American brand, but most people immediately think it’s a toothpaste. It was actually the slogan for Milk-Bone dog biscuits!

Ha! That’s great!
Nobody gets that right, but everybody laughs just like you did when they hear the answer. Those are the moments I love. So when Spirit of America needed questions in just a few months, I jumped straight into it. I genuinely enjoy that part of the process.

So tell me about Spirit of America… How did it come about? Why’s now the right time for it?
Actually, the story starts a long time ago… 25 years ago, I was living in Bethesda, Maryland; about seven miles from the Pentagon. Like many people, I was deeply affected by 9/11 when it happened… The tragedy of the whole thing – and that this even happened; that there could be people in the world that could be that evil… You know? Just terrible. I went into a creative funk. Then one day I had an idea: ‘What if I created a game that celebrated the spirit of America? Everything good about this amazing country?’ Not long after, Dane Chapin came out from The Op to see me in Washington, DC with some of his executive team. I pitched them Spirit of America. He loved it!

This is extraordinary…
So that’s how it started – we originally published it as a board game. Fast forward 25 years: suddenly, we’re getting ready to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary. I called Maggie Matthews at USAopoly – The Op – and said, “This is the perfect time to bring back Spirit of America!” And Maggie had a terrific idea… She said, “Let’s make it card based!” That meant we could print it in America, keep the price where we wanted it, and make it something families could throw in the car on road trips. It was a brilliant idea; I loved it immediately! I went away and wrote the questions. Kim Mandel, their lead game designer, and I worked together on the final version – and here we are.

And it’s already out; finding an audience?
For sure! I’m delighted. Barnes & Noble took the game for all 500 stores immediately, which was really exciting. The first wave sold out on amazon, and I’m hopeful it’ll continue to do well. As a matter of fact, Peter Schweizer – the New York Times number one best-selling author – sent me a testimonial over the weekend after playing the game!

Oh, wow! Do you have that to hand? Let’s just read it out!
One second… “Spirit of America is fantastic fun. Everyone gets involved. Great questions. Plus… It’s patriotic!”

Amazing! And I imagine you’re the best person to create content for Spirit of America because – well, two things… One, you’re a patriot. Two, you’re a real traveller; you have a tremendous wanderlust!
Right. Sheryl and I have been to all 50 US states multiple times and visited every state capital. We’ve been to Hawaii 45 times; Alaska six or seven… I’ve been to Point Barrow – the northernmost point in the USA… And we’ve been to most of the territories: Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Guam, Tinian, Saipan. I’m a self-proclaimed spread eagleist…

A what there now?! A spread eagleist, did you say?
Ha! When I first said that word, my daughter Bettie said to me, “Spread eagleist, dad?!” I said, “Well, I love the country!” She says, “Okay, but you do know you’re making up a term? You can do that… I like it!” And actually, Bettie is in the 50 state club as well; she is also working to complete visits to all the state capitals.

Anyway, every August, Sheryl and I drive across the country – and it’s always a different routine. Even if we go back to the same city ten times, there’s always something different to see, whether it’s the biggest ball of yarn or the largest buffalo statue… But what I love is getting out into the heartland because you can’t judge America just by New York City or Los Angeles. You have to drive it; it’s really about seeing the country and meeting the people.

Just for context, how far are these trips of yours?
Oh, one time we did 10,000 miles. Another time we did 8,000. Last summer, we drove from Florida to Southern California to visit USAopoly.

That’s a long way to go just to get a game across the line, Richard!
Ha! We really wanted to meet the Spirit of America team in person. We also visited Lisa Guili and her team at Educational Insights in Los Angeles before turning east. We have a wonderful product at Educational Insights; it’s in development for launch in 2027.

Ah! As you know, I just interviewed Lisa Guili for the first time. People can read that here. Where does your travel bug come from, Richard? What gives you itchy feet?
Let me tell you how that happened! My maternal grandmother and grandfather are really responsible for it – supported by my mum and dad. My grandmother came from Kiev with absolutely nothing but the clothes on her back. My grandfather was first generation American, but they both travelled constantly for business…

My grandmother crossed the Atlantic more than 80 times in her life. She had a dress shop; she’d travel back and forth to Europe buying merchandise. So they’re the people who gave me the desire to go out and see the world. I’ve now lived in Spain, France and Panama, RP, and spent a summer in Italy. I’ve been to more than 135 countries, including Antarctica, but there’s still nothing quite like America.

What is it about America that you still find captivating?
There’s just something about the roads – especially Route 66; the Mother Road! By the way, Tim Moodie and I created a Route 66 game years ago… We licensed it to Endless Games. But this year, the actual Route 66 celebrates its 100th birthday! So yes… The roads, the natural wonders, and most of all the American people. And I always say this: Americans are trained to stare at a blank page and fill it with a better idea which is why America continues to innovate. And the toy and game industry is one of the last great frontiers for entrepreneurs because the appetite for innovation is amazing… Thousands of new ideas are needed every year.

But the inventor scene has changed enormously over the years, hasn’t it?
Oh, absolutely. It’s much harder for inventors today than when I started. It was always difficult, but more and more shelf space is now taken up by licensed products – Star Wars, Marvel, PAW Patrol and all those big brands. Much of that space used to belong to inventor-generated product.

And have you ever been tempted to go further down that route yourself?
No! The games I’ve created with trademarks attached have always been brands I genuinely admired. I created the Wayne’s World VCR board game, and the Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus game… Both of those were for Mattel. I did games for Mental Floss magazine, Magnetic Poetry and a series of games under the Chicken Soup for the Soul brand… I do like finding those little niches! But my biggest successes have always been original ideas. Adverteasing was a monster! Even so, everybody turned it down. Ha!

Eventually I found a small company in Chicago that said they’d do it; that was a Cadaco Games. I remember saying to the president, “It’s not quite ready for prime time – I need to do more work on it.” He said to me, “Well, Chief…” – he always called me Chief – “…you have a choice. We can sell a million Fords now, or you can wait for a Lincoln.” I loved that. Sometimes you’ve just got to know when to let go of a product.

Ha! That’s a wonderful line. It does make me wonder if rejection ever stings with you though, Richard?
Never. To me, a company saying no is just a rehearsal before a big event. I don’t take it personally; never have. And I don’t hammer people if they don’t take something because there could be a million reasons why they don’t want it. Often, the timing is just wrong. So unless somebody shows me a fatal flaw in an idea, I don’t pay much attention to a pass. I even have a name for a pass: I call it a Pasadena. I just make light of it and move to the next opportunity. But – like a product or not – I try never to get caught with my trends down.

Ha! Is that the secret to your inexhaustible energy? I mean… I’ve never seen you grumpy, tired or down.
Everything is state of mind, Deej… Everybody has their own process and they have to follow it. I don’t worry about what other people think. And defining creativity… Well, that’s like shovelling smoke. It’s impossible. Professionally, I’ve been fortunate to have unselfish creative partners, willing to face the frustrations, rejections, and seemingly open-ended timeframes that are part of every development process and licensing exercise.

I’ve also been fortunate to have met creative understanding and courageous, corporate executives, willing to believe in me and gamble on our ideas. And personally, I was surrounded by creativity and entrepreneurship in my family when I was younger. I mean: I’m absolutely blessed… My sister-in-law once told me I’d had a charmed life, and she’s right. I grew up surrounded by entrepreneurs who put me on the right path. Let me tell you a story about London…

Please!
I was living in Spain at the time when my grandmother said, “Come to London. I want to see you.” She was staying at The Savoy. When I turned up with a rucksack on my back, they wouldn’t let me in. I had to plead my case just to get through the door: “My grandmother’s staying here!” Eventually, they let me in. I got to the desk and the receptionist said, “You must be Master Richard. Your grandmother has a room for you…”

Oh, nice!
Well, I thought there’d been a mistake. I said, “No, no, I’m not staying here. I’m at the youth hostel down past Shell Mex House.” But the receptionist insisted, and eventually they took me upstairs. I didn’t even have enough money to tip the guy, you know? Anyway, my grandmother called me into her suite and said, “Let me tell you why you’re here. I want you to have something to strive for in life… I want you to go and get a ticket to see Camelot. I want you to have high tea here at The Savoy. I want you to spend two days here, experience this hotel… And then I’m throwing you back onto the street.”

Seriously?!
Yes! Now, remember: she came from Kiev with nothing. So I had two days in London. And I did as she said – I went to see the musical Camelot. I had high tea at the Savoy. Then, on my last day, she asked how I’d enjoyed it all. I said, “It was wonderful!” She smiled… Then produced the bills. She said, “I told you go and get the theatre tickets, didn’t I? Did you go and get them?” I said, “No! I thought it’d be easier to have the valet get them.” She said, “Well it was easier… But that cost me extra money. And when you had high tea… You ate all these extra little cakes…” as she said that, she pulled out this very long receipt! “You know that every one of them cost more money?”

Was she cross, Richard? Or just ‘knowing’?
Oh, she wasn’t angry. She was teaching me. She said, “I wanted you to experience this lifestyle… But I also wanted you to understand what it costs.” I learned a lot from that. And my mother was very similar… We lived in a small town in Pennsylvania and she said to me, “This is a wonderful town – but you must leave. You must see the world.”

Makes absolute sense. Let me ask you something impertinent. Do people ever tell you it’s time to relax? Take it easy?
Ha! Actually, I’ve had that said to me many times: ‘Why don’t you retire?’ But if I wasn’t creating products, Deej, I don’t know what I’d do. You’ve got to get up every morning with a passion for something. And of course, I have to make money! But at this stage of my career, it’s really about creating business opportunities and negotiating fair deals. If it isn’t a good deal, I can walk away… But no; I won’t ever retire – I still wake up wanting to invent. And you know, everybody in my family expired in the saddle! My grandmother was still travelling backwards and forwards to Europe… My grandfather worked until the end; my dad did too – and I don’t really know any other way.

Well, I couldn’t imagine you giving any other answer. All of which tees me up for my final question! What’s next, Richard?
As I say, I’ve got a really exciting project with Educational Insights that I can’t talk about just yet. There’s also a new game with MindWare that’ll launch around Toy Fair 2027. University Games is refreshing one of my old games, Dirty Words. Bob Moog came up with a brilliant new angle for it – Dirty Dice! That will be introduced to the trade this August. You must know Bob, do you?

I do know Bob! Outspoken, funny, theatrical – I think he’s great! We’ve done a couple of pieces on Bob, actually: I’ll link to a couple of them here and here.
Let me tell you one quick story about Bob. I was sitting in his office one day pitching games. He’s clearly interested in one of them in particular. Without saying anything, he goes into his wallet and pulls out a whole bunch of paper money. And he throws it across the table. So I say, “Bob, what are you doing?!” He said, “When was the last time someone literally threw money at you for one of your products?”

Ha!
It was just a bunch of $1 bills or whatever… But it was very funny and – as you just said – theatrical. And that’s what I love about this industry… you’re surrounded by very creative people. You never stop discovering, you never stop learning and you never stop inventing.

Wonderful! Thanks so much for making time to discuss not only the Spirit of America but also the Spirit of Richard Levy! Great to see you; thanks again.

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