Ruthless: Monopoly's Secret History

"Ruthless: Monopoly's Secret History" is a fascinating installment of "The American Experience". It examines the true roots of Monopoly...long before Parker Brothers made a fortune producing the game. It seems a woman originally created it as a game which was AGAINST monopolies and it was a lesson in the virtues of socialism! It also was a game that MANY people made on their own...meaning that many different versions with different towns were available before Parker Brothers created a version based on Atlantic City, New Jersey. In fact, collecting these early versions would be a fascinating hobby and I think the show is well worth your time.

This is fascinating stuff. The documentary starts out by acknowledging that Monopoly is the most successful board game in history and in the world. It then recounts the official origin story of how it got to Parker Brothers and became an overnight sensation.

But it turns out that origin story was complete hogwash, and this may never have come to light publicly had not a San Franciscan in the 1970s decided to make an "Anti-Monopoly" social-critique game, and then fought back against Parker Brothers when ordered to cease and desist.

What followed from then on led to a remarkable story about the game's real origins and who actually created it. It's fascinating stuff.