November 9, 1995. Copyright, 1995, Graphic News. All rights reserved

MONOPOLY CELEBRATES ITS 60TH BIRTHDAY 
By Russell Lewis

LONDON, November 9, Graphic News- The Monopoly game celebrates its 60th birthday with a party at LondonÕs Park Lane Hotel, where guest celebrities will play anyone prepared to donate £250 per game to the Children with Leukaemia charity.
To mark the Diamond Anniversary of the game, UK makerÕs Waddington are producing a limited 60th Anniversary edition, each numbered and dated for posterity. For the first time the classic board, money and cards have been redesigned and enhanced. The set also includes a ÔTop HatÕ dice cup, two card trays, a bankerÕs tray, wooden houses and hotels and is expected to retail at around £40.
The centre-piece at the Park Lane party will be a unique version of the game produced by jeweller Sidney Mobell, of San Francisco, valued at a staggering $2 million. The set boasts 168 gemstones including diamonds, sapphires and rubies. The houses and hotels, each with a ruby or sapphire on top the chimney, are made of solid 18-carat gold, and the play money is printed on metallic gold coloured paper. In addition to the standard six playing pieces, extra tokens Ð which include a cannon and a rocking horse Ð are also crafted in solid 18-carat gold. The dice, too, are gold, with 42 full cut diamonds to display the numbers. The complete game weighs 51.21 carats and has a gemstone on each property.
All of this is a far cry from the hand drawn oil-cloth prototype devised by Charles Darrow in 1933, with its hand-written cards.
This original version was for DarrowÕs own amusement, but word soon got around and soon his friends and neighbours were clamouring for their own copies. As demand grew, Darrow had a friend Ð a jobbing printer Ð produce the first printed boards and production rose to six sets a day, selling for $2.50 each. With demand spiralling Darrow took the decision to seek a backer for full production. His approach to Parker Brothers, the worldÕs largest games manufacturer, was rejected out-of-hand, the companyÕs executives advising that the game had 52 fundamental playing errors.
Darrow decided to market ÔMonopolyÕ on his own and within months, reports of the gameÕs success forced Parker Brothers to reconsider, buying the rights from Darrow.
Over the years the game has changed very little. In 1972 some pieces, including the car and ship tokens, were redesigned and their size increased, and the money was printed on both sides.
The game has driven many people to strive for their own glory and a wide range of often bizarre records, such as the longest time playing in a bath (99 hours), in a tree house (286 hours) and even upside down (36 hours). The longest game ever played lasted 1,680 hours Ð 70 days! A special set made for an underwater marathon, at a cost of £15,000, disintegrated after a marathon lasting almost 1,100 hours.
The game has been banned in Cuba, stolen in Russia and, during World War ll, used as a secret intelligence weapon. It is published in 25 languages and has even been released in braille. 500,000 sets are still sold annually in the UK alone and latest variations from WaddingtonÕs include magnetic, junior and European versions and its recent publication on the Internet.
The ÔGrandfather of all board gamesÕ is not ready for retirement just yet!

Source: Tonka Corporation