David Spain is, by profession, a cultural anthropologist. In 1969, he obtained his Ph.D. in anthropology fromNorthwestern University. In this connection, he has done extended research in Africa on several occasions. He also is a graduate of the Seattle Institute of Psychoanalysis. He is not, however, an analyst but, rather, is Professor of Anthropology at the University of Washington, where he has been a member of the faculty since 1968. He began looking for Noritake to collect early in 1980. In 1989, he and his former colleague, Mike Owen, started Noritake News, a quarterly publication intended for collectors and dealers interested in non-dinnerware Noritake collectibles of the sort shown in this book. David continues in his role as editor of this publication, which in addition to many in the United States, has subscribers in Japan, England, Canada, and Australia. He also was instrumental in founding the Noritake Collectors' Society-a non-profit organization established officially in 1996. He resides with his family in Seattle.