…Do not collect $200…
It was 73 years ago this week (November 5, 1935) that the game “Monopoly” was introduced by Parker Brothers Company. The game was actually a descendant of the Landlord Game, patented in 1904 by Lizzie J. Magie, a Quaker from Virginia. Maggie designed her game to promote her political belief in the passing of a single federal tax based on land ownership.
In honor of the occasion, we’ve found some interesting trivia about the game:
- The three most-landed-on properties are Illinois Avenue, “GO”, and the B&O Railroad.
- The character locked behind the bars is called Jake the Jailbird.
- Mr. Monopoly is the name of the MONOPOLY man.
- Parker Brothers rejected the MONOPOLY game when it was first presented to them in 1933, citing 52 fundamental playing flaws (no, we don’t know what they were).
- The board property Marvin Gardens is actually a misspelling of the original location name, Marven Gardens (Marven Gardens is not a street, but a housing area outside Atlantic City).
The longest MONOPOLY game ever played was 1,680 hours long (70 straight days). However, world records are maintained for the longest game:
- in a treehouse (286) hours,
- underground (100 hours),
- in a bathtub (99 hours) and
- upside-down (36 hours).
Cash Counting
In case, you were wondering, the quantities and denominations found in standard editions of the MONOPOLY game are:
- 20 $500 Bills (orange),
- 20 $100 Bills (beige),
- 30 $50 Bills (blue),
- 50 $20. Bills (green),
- 40 $10. Bills (yellow),
- 40 $5. Bills (pink),
- 40 $1. Bills (white).
By the way, the total amount of “cash’ in the game – a mere $15,140.
Interestingly enough, if you’ve lost some of that money – or if it has come to an untimely “demise’, you can also download and print Monopoly money – for free – at http://www.hasbro.com/games/kid-games/monopoly/default.cfm?page=StrategyGuide/gametools..