Hans Beck was the German inventor of the toy Playmobil. He is thus often called "The Father of Playmobil."Born in Greiz, Thuringia, Beck grew up in the town of Zirndorf, beginning his toy making career as a creator of little vehicles and figures for his younger siblings. Beck received training as a cabinetmaker but worked simultaneously on model airplanes, a product he pitched to the company Geobra Brandstätter. The owner of the company, Horst Brandstätter, asked him to develop toy figures for children, instead.