Cherise Lambert, inventor of the movie trivia board game Mad About Movies, currently is in New York City at the International Toy Fair trying to win attention for her game. Cherise has agreed to writie a series of daily reports to give those of us who couldn't make the event an inside look at what we're missing.

Following is her second report.

Day 2 at Toy Fair 2000 (Monday, February 14)

It was a wet, misty, windy morning. It's difficult to find a cab in NY on rainy days, so we had to walk 24 blocks to the Javitz Center in the light rain. We arrived at 8:55 a.m., just five minutes before the buyers were to arrive (whew!). Traffic was a little lighter in our aisle from the day before, but we made a few great contacts for potentially BIG orders. Mad About Movies continued to be well received and it was another successful day.

This year was the first year a separate Game Zone isle was featured at the Toy Fair. In prior years, games were scattered around the Javitz Center. Game inventors found themselves sandwiched between dolls and airplane models and hoped that game buyers would stumble across them.

The new Game Zone allows inventors access to a targeted audience and gives buyers specifically interested in games the opportunity for "one-stop shopping." Everyone has seemed really happy with the Game Zone and has high hopes that it will return next year.

The exhibitors in the Game Zone are a fun and interesting community. We all feel more like comrades than competitors. After all, it's all of us against the big guys. We share information about our experiences with printers, retailers, game agents, and more. Most of us wouldn't be where we are today without talking with other inventors. Learning from other inventors can save a lot of time and money.

The Game Zone is comprised of inventors with games in many different stages. Perfect Timing, a unique split-second stopwatch board game is a brand new game from Cotmer Productions, Inc. and is being presented in its prototype stage.

For the Record, an award-winning music trivia game has returned to Toy Fair for its second year.

Spy Alley, a fun game of suspense and intrigue, and Cross Cribb, a popular board game of cribbage strategy, chance and double cross, returned to Toy Fair for their third year.

Across the aisle from us is Zobmondo!!, which was licensed recently by Hasbro. [Note: For more about Zobmondo!!, read this interview with game inventor Randy Horn.]

A couple booths down from us is Games for All Reasons, makers of Finish Lines, who returned to Toy Fair to promote their second product, the brand new card game Paired Up.

These are just a few of the many games in the Game Zone community.

Talk to you tomorrow!

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