Henry Orenstein, a Holocaust survivor who went on to invent the Transformers toys, which became one of the most successful franchises in history, died last week, Israel Hayom learned Sunday. He was 98.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
According to JTA, Orenstein became a best-selling toymaker with his Transformers line, created in the early 1980s. He went on to register numerous other inventions and over 100 patents before eventually becoming a star poker player and being inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2008.
Rest in peace Henry Orenstein, without you we would never have had such fun. pic.twitter.com/Sr1lDeEDea
— Optimus Prime (@primeribrobot) December 16, 2021
Orenstein was a longtime donor to Jewish causes, including the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty in New York and the Orenstein Project, an Israeli nonprofit he founded in 2017 that focused on food insecurity with special attention to Holocaust survivors.
He is survived by his wife, Susie Orenstein.
