James Prentice's creative spirit, which had led to the invention of several new games, continued into the mid- and late 1950s. The business was reaching its peak in production and sales. The 17-year-old young man with dreams of conceiving, designing, and developing games that would bring joy and happy moments to children and adults was now in his mid-40s.
In a 1954 interview, it was revealed that the rights to sell the electric baseball game had been leased to the prominent Parker Brothers toy manufacturers. The actual product was made at the L. D. Van Valkenberg factory in Willimansett.
The company continued to research and develop improved mechanisms for its electric games. On December 15, 1953, the U.S. Patent Office awarded a patent to William G. Fisher of Willimansett for a "Switch Mechanism." The switch needed to be easy and inexpensive to produce and adequately supported by the cardboard game structure. Mr. Fisher assigned the patent to the Electric Game Company.
In 1954, the company purchased the four-story factory building of the former D. Mackintosh & Sons cotton yarn firm, which had closed two years prior. This was not an expansion move, as the company already had 105,000 square feet of space at 76 Front Street, of which 35,000 square feet was sublet. The Mackintosh building had a total of 60,000 square feet, including 10,000 square feet in an adjoining building.
The building was considered by engineers to be one of the most substantial mill buildings, with three-foot-thick walls and a foundation of the same thickness.
At the time, Electric Game had 80 full-time employees and sales offices in New York, as well as in Los Angeles, Dallas, and Atlanta. The Burkhardt-Landgraf Company of West Springfield represented several of the company's game lines.
The company was established and operational at the 109 Lyman Street plant in August 1954.
Ideas and products continued to be brought forth to the company by outside inventors. In 1955, Ralph Frenette of Chicopee invented a light assembly for nighttime fishing. When a fish would pull on the line, which was pegged to the ground, a light would go off, alerting the person fishing. The patent rights were given to the Electric Game Company for exploring distribution outlets. Mr. Frenette was a disabled military veteran who devised the idea while he was confined in the veteran's hospital. He was encouraged to pursue this by Chicopee undertaker William Starzyk, who also operated a funeral home across from the Mater Dolorosa School on Maple Street.
Also in 1955, the company continued expanding its sales in the industrial marketing network. Dwight Schoeffler, the grandchild of Mr. & Mrs. William G. Dwight, formed and was president of Marketing Devices Inc. of New York City. For example, Electric Games Co. products would be used as props for marketing battery replacements.
The company's top seller in 1956 was the "Fuzz Buzz," a toy that simulated an electric shaver. "Hole in the Head" was another newly released game gaining traction. The "Master Electric Build-It-Set" provided users with the opportunity to build over 40 different items, including race cars, motorboats, and bike horns.
Television was becoming a marketing and advertising tool for the company. The company's products were used by contestants competing on game shows or given away as prizes. When an Electric Game product was awarded, the emcee would announce, "Made in Holyoke, Massachusetts."
In 1956, James Prentice was elected chair of the membership committee of the Toy Manufacturers of the U.S.A.
This story will be continued in Part 6, which follows next.
Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; Springfield (Massachusetts) Republican; publication dates and pages are shown.
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