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Jim Foster
 
 
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Jim Foster is the founder and first commissioner
Commissioner

Commissioner is in principal the title given to the holder of a commission, in the sense of a mandate, whether individually or shared, notably as member of a collegial commission....
 of the Arena Football League
Arena Football League

The Arena Football League was founded in 1987 in sports as an American football arena football. The AFL's attendance increased dramatically over its last few years, rising to an average of 12,415 people per game in 2007, and 12,957 per game in 2008, but the increases were accompanied by greatly increased expenses and debt, leading to the can...
. He is also a former NFL
National Football League

The National Football League is the Major North American professional sports leagues American football Sports league in the United States. It is an unincorporated 501#501.28c.29.286.29 association controlled by its members....
 and USFL
United States Football League

The United States Football League was a short-lived professional American football league that played three seasons between 1983 and 1985. Although it lasted only three years and lost over $163 Million, it was by far the National Football League's strongest competitor since the 1960s version of the American Football League....
 executive and was later the principal owner of the Iowa Barnstormers
New York Dragons

The New York Dragons are an Arena Football League team who were formed in 1995 as the Iowa Barnstormers. In 2001, the team relocated to New York....
. Foster derived the basic concept of Arena football
Arena football

Arena football is a sport based upon American football. It is played indoors on a smaller field than American football, resulting in a faster and higher-scoring game....
 while watching a game of indoor soccer
Indoor soccer

Indoor soccer or arena soccer, or six-a-side football in the United Kingdom, is a game derived from association football adapted for play in an indoor arena such as a turf-covered hockey arena or skating rink....
 being played at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden

Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, has been the name of four arenas in New York City....
 on February 11, 1981. He drew it out on a manila folder. The AFL began league play in 1987. In 1990, Foster was granted a patent
Patent

A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state to an inventor or his assignee for a term of patent in exchange for a disclosure of an invention....
 on the game of Arena football and the equipment unique to it, particularly the end zone rebound nets, meaning that other indoor football
Indoor football

Indoor football is a variation of American football with rules modified to make it suitable for play within indoor arenas....
 leagues not affiliated with the Arena organization were forced to play by at least somewhat different rules than the ones the AFL uses until the patent expired in September 2007.

Jim is a fan of traditional jazz and plays trumpet whenever he gets the chance.






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Jim Foster is the founder and first commissioner
Commissioner

Commissioner is in principal the title given to the holder of a commission, in the sense of a mandate, whether individually or shared, notably as member of a collegial commission....
 of the Arena Football League
Arena Football League

The Arena Football League was founded in 1987 in sports as an American football arena football. The AFL's attendance increased dramatically over its last few years, rising to an average of 12,415 people per game in 2007, and 12,957 per game in 2008, but the increases were accompanied by greatly increased expenses and debt, leading to the can...
. He is also a former NFL
National Football League

The National Football League is the Major North American professional sports leagues American football Sports league in the United States. It is an unincorporated 501#501.28c.29.286.29 association controlled by its members....
 and USFL
United States Football League

The United States Football League was a short-lived professional American football league that played three seasons between 1983 and 1985. Although it lasted only three years and lost over $163 Million, it was by far the National Football League's strongest competitor since the 1960s version of the American Football League....
 executive and was later the principal owner of the Iowa Barnstormers
New York Dragons

The New York Dragons are an Arena Football League team who were formed in 1995 as the Iowa Barnstormers. In 2001, the team relocated to New York....
. Foster derived the basic concept of Arena football
Arena football

Arena football is a sport based upon American football. It is played indoors on a smaller field than American football, resulting in a faster and higher-scoring game....
 while watching a game of indoor soccer
Indoor soccer

Indoor soccer or arena soccer, or six-a-side football in the United Kingdom, is a game derived from association football adapted for play in an indoor arena such as a turf-covered hockey arena or skating rink....
 being played at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden

Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, has been the name of four arenas in New York City....
 on February 11, 1981. He drew it out on a manila folder. The AFL began league play in 1987. In 1990, Foster was granted a patent
Patent

A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state to an inventor or his assignee for a term of patent in exchange for a disclosure of an invention....
 on the game of Arena football and the equipment unique to it, particularly the end zone rebound nets, meaning that other indoor football
Indoor football

Indoor football is a variation of American football with rules modified to make it suitable for play within indoor arenas....
 leagues not affiliated with the Arena organization were forced to play by at least somewhat different rules than the ones the AFL uses until the patent expired in September 2007.

Jim is a fan of traditional jazz and plays trumpet whenever he gets the chance. He was born and raised in Davenport, Iowa - the same hometown as legendary jazz cornetist Bix Beiderbecke.

When Jim lived in Des Moines during his Iowa Barnstormer ownership days, he served as a member of the board of directors for Jazz Partnerz (Kurt Bowermaster, president), the non-profit group that planned and organized the Greater Des Moines Good Times Jazz Festival.

However, the Jim Foster who was Rewrite Chief for the Toronto Telegram in the early 1960s, although a keen fan of jazz, had a tin ear and played no musical instruments.