Magie wanted to promote his ideas through the power of games and invented “The Landlord Game,” which was designed to show the evils of landlords and monopolistic practices.Īfter gaining popularity on college campuses, the game found its way to a Quaker community in Atlantic City, where local street names were added to the boards.ĭecades later, a Quaker couple invited their friend Charles Darrow and his wife to play the game, and an unemployed Darrow saw a way out of his Depression-era woes. George believed that a single tax on land would reduce inequality and promote a more just society. Watch Ruthless: Monopoly’s Secret Historyon Monday, February 20 at 9pm on WITF TV, or stream it on-demand for free until March 21 using the PBS app.Īnspach found that Monopoly was invented in 1904 by Lizzie Magie, a feminist, actor, poet, engineer, and follower of the radical theories of Henry George. Goliath legal battle consumed Anspach’s life for over a decade. General Mills, which owned Parker Brothers, sued Anspach, ordering him to cease and desist selling his game.Īs part of his defense strategy, he set out to prove that the Monopoly trademark was dubious and investigated the game’s early history. The real story might have never come to light had it not been for the determination of an economics professor and an impassioned anti-monopolist named Ralph Anspach.įed up with the OPEC oil cartels and gas shortages of the 1970s, Anspach created “Anti-Monopoly,” which retained the fun of the original game but made it clear that monopolists were the bad guys. A classic American success story.Įxcept it wasn’t true. The story goes that, after sketching the board on a piece of oilcloth on his kitchen table, his game became a best-seller, Darrow became a rich man, and Parker Brothers was saved from bankruptcy. The official origin story names an amateur inventor named Charles Darrow as the inventor of Monopoly.

It may be only a game, but its popularity speaks volumes about who we are and what we value.Ĭontrary to the folksy legend spread by Parker Brothers, Monopoly’s secret history is a saga that features a radical feminist, an Atlantic City Quaker community, America’s greatest game company, and an unemployed Depression-era engineer. It’s a celebration of greed and accumulation of wealth with only one player left standing by the end.

It’s a no-holds-barred competition with the goal of dominating your opponents. Its iconic board and game pieces – from the diminutive Rich Uncle Pennybags to the Get Out of Jail Free cards to the tiny thimble and top hat – are instantly recognizable. There are few rituals that are as American as a game of Monopoly. Now, it’s time to find better ways to interact with you and ensure we meet your high standards of what a credible media organization should be. The days of journalism’s one-way street of simply producing stories for the public have long been over.

Monopoly board game origins