Email
Print
The quest for a Statesville Monopoly game
ADVERTISEMENT
Published: November 23, 2008
Recently I was on eBay and typed in "Statesville" just to see what might be for sale relating to "The City of Progress."
I scrolled down the list of items — there were about 50 — and saw a Monopoly game based on Statesville.
The ad included a photograph of part of the board and there was the name "Statesville" in big letters across the middle and the names of several local businesses could be seen along the token path.
What an interesting concept! Instead of Park Place, Deauville Road; instead of Boardwalk, Lakeside Drive; instead of Baltic Avenue ... you get the idea.
The Monopoly game with which most of us are familiar was based on Atlantic City, N.J., and environs.
I've seen Carolina Tar Heels and N.C. State Wolfpack versions for sale somewhere but never thought about a game based on Statesville.
Well, to make a long story short, I was too slow to get the bid on the game (it was at $26 at the time), but thought I'd just contact the Monopoly people and see if they had any leftover Statesville games.
Monopoly was originally owned by Parker Brothers, which is now a subsidiary of Hasbro Toys. I contacted them and they said customized versions of Monopoly are manufactured under license by an outfit called USAOPOLY in Carlsbad, Calif.
So I contacted USAOPOLY and asked if they had produced the Statesville version of the classic board game. They e-mailed me back and said that they hadn't, but that they did do that sort of thing. They have been in business for more than a dozen years.
I asked them if they had any idea as to who had made the game I saw on eBay. They kindly gave me the name of a competitor with the unlikely name of Late for the Sky, whom I proceeded to contact.
A gentleman from Late for the Sky got back to me and replied that they, too, did manufacture specialized Monopoly games, but had not been the manufacturers in this instance.
I asked for the name of any other producer of customized Monopoly games they might know. They kindly suggested I contact Pride Distributors, Inc. in Farmington Hill, Mich.
You can probably sense where this is going.
Pride Distributors said they had been in business since 1982 but had not produced the Statesville-based game I saw. They had no suggestions as to whom I might contact next.
A little research on my own turned up Winning Moves Games, based in Danvers, Mass., which was founded in 1995.
Winning Moves said they had not produced the Statesville version of Monopoly, but suggested that I contact Hasbro Toys, thus completing the circle, bringing me back to where I started, sort of like what happens to players in a Monopoly game. I did not pass "Go," nor did I collect $200.
I still do not know who made the Statesville version, but would very much like to see one if one of you readers out there would be so kind as to notify me that you have one.
While doing all this contacting, I did some research on the game and thought you, the readers, might find it interesting.
The game was invented by Elizabeth "Lizzie" Magie, who was granted a patent for "The Landlord's Game," on Jan. 5, 1904. The point of Ms. Magie's game was to demonstrate to renters how landlords made a killing and how renters were victims.
The game was not actually produced in large numbers until 1906, by which time several homemade variants were floating around. Ms. Magie tried to sell the rights to the game to Parker Brothers in 1910, but was turned down. A version was, however, manufactured in England in 1913.
Several American professors stumbled across the game and brought it back and used it as a teaching tool at the Wharton School of Finance and at Columbia University.
Eventually Parker Brothers became the manufacturers and the rest, as they say, is history.
There are now more versions of Monopoly games than you can shake a stick at. An outfit called BoardGames.com markets around a hundred variations of the iconic real estate game. Some of their versions are: National Parks, The Beatles (Penny Lane instead of Marvin Gardens?), Bass Fishing, "The Christmas Story" (based on the movie of the same name: "You'll shoot your eye out, kid"), Clone Wars, Dog Lovers, James Bond, Peanuts (the comic strip), Transformers and the "I Love Lucy" Edition. Most of these run about $30, with a 1935 Deluxe Wood Edition costing $89.95 plus shipping. The basic game goes for about $13.
There is even a book about the development of the Monopoly game. The author is Philip E. Orbanes and the title is "Monopoly: The World's Most Famous Game — And How It Got That Way."
Orbanes should know his subject, as he was a former Parker Brothers vice president and is a judge at Monopoly world tournaments. He also penned "The Monopoly Companion."
Some Monopoly trivia from the folks at Hasbro Toys:
- More than 200 million games have been sold worldwide.
- The longest game recorded was played over 70 days.
- An estimated 500 million people have played the game.
- In 1935, during the Great Depression, it was the best-selling game in America.
- It is sold in 103 countries and produced in 37 languages.
- Alfred Dunhill once made a game with gold houses and hotels of silver. The game sold for $25,000.
And in case you've ever wondered, according to one source, the little man in top hat and tails ("Rich Uncle Pennybags" or "Mr. Monopoly"), is a caricature of banker and financier J.P. Morgan.
Playing a game of Monopoly is a perfect way to spend some quality time with family and friends on a wet, cold afternoon while enjoying a bowl of hot, homemade vegetable soup.
Your move, and please pass the crackers.
Email
Print
