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David, game instructor, owner.
The following was reported about David in the July 5, 1999 Valley edition of the L.A. Times by
Times Staff Reporter Robrero J. Manzano:
He's a businessman, but David J. Esser is the first to admit he never really grew up. And
that may be what children like about him. Esser, 52, operates Gym for the Mind, a combination
store and game room where kids play everything from traditional games such as chess to the
various incarnations of Pakemon, the popular Japanese import in which heroes defend the earth
against fantastic attackers. Tucked between two clothing stores, Gym for the Mind is in a
rustic location on Topanga Canyon Boulevard. On weekends, the place is swamped--remarkable for a
game store that offers no computer games.
"I don't like games that seem to antisocial," Esser said. "I'd have no financial problems if
I had computer games, but I wouldn't have the Gym for the Mind anymore."
Kids apparently like the concept, so much that more than 100 gather for weekend card
tournaments. Plenty of adults have an affection for the place too. About 200 people show up
each week, ranging in age from 6 to 75, he said.
"Without:this place, you wouldn't know there is a neighborhood" Esser said.
"I never knew there was such a thing until I opened this place. Now there's a real-life
community here. It was a thrilling thing to discover."
Nick Icsakis, 9, said he came to buy a deck of Pokémon cards. "I wanted to get a good
deck and Dave has tournaments," Nick said. "Also I get to make new friends."
Keeping things on a level of interest to children is Esser's mission, he said.
"We have i- and 8-year-olds. We can't teach them philosophy, psychology and politics. We can
teach [the older kids] to teach children how to play other games" Eser said. "Nothing
teaches communication better than sitting across the table and looking in your opponent's eyes
for two hours and having a nice conversation."
The store has been there since 1990, though it has gone through some changes. At first,
Esser tried offering a combination of games and exercise equipment, hoping to emulate
the ancient Greek ideal of exercising mind and muscle. His slogan was "dumbbells for the
weakling, and books for the dumbbell." But that idea never took off.
People showed up to pump iron, but few played chess or cared to read
the philosophy and literature books on the shelves.
"He takes all these risks, and he gets lucky a lot," said Mark Andrews, a longtime friend
and former business partner. "He almost lost that place a lot of times, but he always seems
to pull it together, sometimes miraculously."
Esser said loans from friends have often kept the business a float. He said he affords his
lease by renting out a bedroom and selling trading cards, such as those for the Pokémon game.
It's usually a break-even proposition, but Easer said he has made a profit so far this year.
And he is even opening another store in West Los Angeles today.
Nick's mother, Lit Icsakis, has noticed Esser's easy way with kids. "He's genuinely into
the games he has in the store," said Icsakis, 37, who owns a clothing store next door. "He's a
bit eccentric. He's a big kid in the way he relates to kids. He enjoys it on their level."
"That's why the kids like him, because he has all that excitement and all that energy,"
added, Andrews, 39, of North Hollywood. "It gives them a kind of hope, that there can be
something exciting, that not everything is going to be boring when they grow up."
Like his business ventures, Esser has gone through several incarnations;
He said that at 12, he wanted to become a priest, and at 18 a philosopher. He was married once,
but he said that didn't work out because he was a musician living on the road at the time.
For many years Esser was obsessed with chess, becoming an expert. Then he started playing
and teaching other games. "I would've gone higher, but I lost my obsession. It amazes me
people can go through life playing one game," he said. "If you play just one game, that's
unchildlike."
On a recent afternoon, 5-year old A.J. was in the middle of serious Pokemon trade with
another boy while A.J.'s father, Andy Howard, observed.
"I'm just fascinated watching their trade," said Howard, 43, of Calabasas. 'They're
preparing their business skills too."
The l0 year-old wanted $2 for his card, but A.J. had only $1 to spend.
"Can you make this, like, cheaper?" A.J. asked.
Howard advised his son, "Go ask Dave if that's a good trade."
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