Tom Filsinger
Entrepreneur / Author / College Professor
Entrepreneur
I created a tabletop cards and dice game called CHAMPIONS OF THE GALAXY and founded my own game company in 1986. Filsinger Games has been a successful independent game company for over three decades with an enthusiastic and loyal fan base and we’ve expanded to include licensed games, online games, and high-profile partnerships. I also created a line of gift calendars called COUNTDOWN TO THE BIG DAY for special occasions such as weddings and baby’s due date. Love being creative!
Author
My first book (2005) was a memoir on creativity called THE DARK MENACE OF THE UNIVERSE and I was honored that Marvel Comics creator Stan Lee called it, “A mind-expanding experience!” I’m currently writing a book called “A Marvelous Path to Enlightenment: Tips from Stan Lee on How to be a Real-Life Super Hero.” based on my personal relationship with Stan and my background in psychology. My most recent publication is an article in Kindred Spirit magazine (England) called “The Consciousness Revolution.” Writing is my favorite hobby.
College Professor
I am a Psychology Lecturer at Northern Arizona University and the main courses I teach are Introduction to Personality, Social Psychology, and Group Behavior. Previously I taught at Jamestown Community College in New York where I earned the title of Associate Professor and I was the Director of Social Sciences and Coordinator of Psychology. Overall I have taught at five colleges in five states including John Carroll University in Cleveland and Northern Illinois University in Dekalb. Teaching is one of the great joys in my life.
About Me
This bio is adapted from a Wiki page and has been updated and edited for accuracy.
Tom Filsinger is a creator, author, professor, and entrepreneur. He has founded two companies, Filsinger Games and Filsinger Publishing.
Filsinger was born Savvas Athanasios Tsagarakis, a descendant of Greek immigrants. His grandfather Tom Tsoulis and family came to America from Greece in 1917 and settled in Cleveland, Ohio. When his parents were divorced he was adopted by Eugene Filsinger and his name was changed from Savvas Tsagarakis to Tom Filsinger.
After graduating from high school, he attended John Carroll University, a Jesuit college in University Heights, Ohio. He went on to graduate school at Northern Illinois University in Dekalb, Illinois and studied Social/Personality Psychology. After earning a Master’s Degree, he began his career as a psychology professor. He met his wife Leslie in February 1988, and they were married at the end of the year, settling down with his family in Jamestown, New York in 1989. Tom and Leslie moved to Sedona, Arizona in 2015.
Tom released his original game, Champions of the Galaxy, in 1986. The game has sold over 100,000 copies worldwide and an official movie adaptation is currently making the rounds in Hollywood. In 2007 Filsinger Games expanded the reach of its games by releasing a computer simulation version of Champions of the Galaxy called COTGonline. In 2011 Filsinger Games further expanded into licensing by partnering with several real-life promotions releasing official games for Ring of Honor, Chikara, Evolve, Combat Zone Wrestling, and others.
Tom broadened his horizons in 2003 when he created and marketed Countdown to Our Wedding Day, the first calendar in a new line of “Countdown to the Big Day” products. The calendar debuted at Atlanta’s Mart in January 2003. The next calendar in the series, Countdown to Baby’s Due Date, was released in 2008 and co-written by Dr. Thomas Andrews.
In 2005, Tom released his first book, “The Dark Menace of the Universe”. The book is a memoir and also an analysis of creativity as it relates to rebellion and culture. The book also describes how Filsinger Games carved out a successful niche in the independent game industry. In Tom’s words the book is: “A rallying cry for creative Dark Menaces everywhere.”
Filsinger Publishing released a book of political humor by comic book legend Stan Lee in 2008 called Election Daze. The book features photos of famous politicians such as Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, accompanied by funny captions. By mid-April the book had charted at Number Two for Hot New Releases in political humor at Amazon.com. Tom and Stan embarked on a book tour appearing in New York City, Los Angeles, and Santa Monica as well as filming promotional videos for their book.
Tom is a professor of psychology and has taught at five colleges in five states including John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio and Northern Illinois University in Dekalb, Illinois. Tom was an Associate Professor of Psychology at Jamestown Community College where he has served as the Director of Social Sciences and Coordinator of Psychology. In 1998, the New York State Education Commission approved a certificate program created by Tom called Psychology of the Workplace, the first of its kind in New York.
In 2015, Tom began teaching at Northern Arizona University and is currently a Lecturer in the Department of Psychological Sciences. In 2019 he was nominated by students for Teacher of the Year.