I Have a Clue!

 Actually, I have a lot of them. Clue Games, that is! The one I'm featuring this week is the first one. The very first U.S. edition of the classic board game, Clue...or, Cluedo, if you're British. And Great Britain is where our story begins.... (cue wavy lines floating down the screen...)

In 1943 British musician and factory worker Anthony E. Pratt sat in his  home in Birmingham enduring the Nazi blitz. He remembered games he had played growing up and one in particular, called "Murder," struck a chord with him. (I expect to get extra points for that double pun!) 

Now, although "Murder" involved sneaking around in large old houses and touching people to make them fall down "dead" (with a shriek, if possible), he began to come up with a more organized version played on a board. That result, also called Murder, was copyrighted in 1944. The game company Waddington waited to release it until 1949 due to wartime shortages. They also called it "Cluedo," which was a mix of "clue" and "Ludo," which was a popular British game at the time. 

By the way, I always pronounced it "ClueDoe" when I read it, but it's actually "ClueDoo." See, I learn stuff writing these posts too! 

Anyway, Parker Brothers released it at the same time in the United States as "Clue," so there's no need to figure out how to pronounce it here. Let's take a look at this first U.S. edition that I picked up years ago at a thrift store, shall we?

The box cover is a little damaged, but it still displays well, I think. "The Great Detective Game!" was the slogan for the first run. Later editions mention Sherlock Holmes. Now the standard edition says, "The Classic Detective Game."

Upon opening the box, you see the folded board with the standard Parker Brothers box cover sticker. For some reason, I really like that touch.

Lifting the board out, we find the parts...

The board is the same as it has been for decades. The graphics are wonderfully retro, though!

Speaking of retro graphics, check out the cards! By the way, shouldn't Miss Scarlett have red hair? Isn't that a law or something?

And here are the weapons! The candlestick is fairly huge. The gun is a trusty .45. All very lethal...

And here are the instructions! I like how they introduce the game as a new concept, much like a play. A leftover from sneaking around in manor houses playing "Murder?" Maybe...

So there you have it! The first one! Now, I have more editions. There were eight just on the same shelf as this one! I won't share all of them, but I might do a couple more.

Until next time, keep searching for treasure!

I'm Such a Square...

 ...that I accidently bought a game I already had! Well, sort of anyway. You may remember a few weeks ago when I posted about the 1974 version of Hollywood Squares that I picked up at an estate sale. As I looked at it, I slowly remembered that years and years ago I got an earlier version at a thrift store. Then, upon cleaning up in the ol' game room I found:

Ta da! The 1968 version of the same game! This is apparently the second edition, with all new questions! Yay! By the way, I really like the graphics on this one a lot better (sorry, Gene Rayburn!)

Upon opening the box, we find a large plastic game board, plastic "X" and "O" pieces, twenty 100.00 bills, and four small boxes of question cards!

Here is the stuff more spread out so you can see it better...

Interestingly, some questions in each deck has stars on them. Why? Because they are the "Secret Square!" 

You take any of the decks of questions (or you can mix them up) and put five in each square. Then if a contestant answers correctly, they get to stick their plastic thingy on there!

Here are the actual rules, in case you're curious...

Note that in the rules it says to write your favorite stars on the squares. Whoever owned this game before me did just that! In case you can't read them, they are Karen Valentine, Charlie Weaver, Lucille Ball, Art Carney, Dez Arnez, Elizabeth Montgomery, Rock Hudson, Bob Hope, and Frank Sinatra. I'm pretty sure those stars were never all on the show, especially together, but it's fun anyway!

I like this version a bit better than the 1974 version. By the way, it's made by a different company. The Heatter-Quigley Company did this one.

So, I'll hang on to both versions. Maybe someday I'll get the first version!

Until next time, keep searching for treasure!

An Inventive Game

 I remember getting the subject of this week's post for Christmas in 1974. It is the fun and wacky game, The Inventors! Let's jump right in, shall we?

Here is the box! You can see all the inventors in the patent office trying to get their inventions (which are actually in the game) patented. It seems the chap holding a certain board game has the best shot.

Upon opening the box, you see the fairly interesting game pieces. 

The board is divided into an inside and outside track. The players start on the outside track to collect inventions, and then move to the inside track to get paid for them with royalties. 

And here we have The Incredible Patent Picker Move Maker Machine. This gizmo rolls dice with a push of the plunger (while ringing a bell!) and puts metal patent clips of random values on the invention cards.

These are the metal patent clips. The higher the number (they go up to "2") the better!

This is how they are loaded into the machine!

Here are all the parts of the game.

And here are the Eureka Cards that add a bit of luck and skill to the game!

And what about those inventions? Well, here you go! As strange as these items seem, they are real historic patents.

A step by step illustration of how to add a patent clip...

On the back of the card, you can see the values.. 

Here are the details on how to play!

The person with the most money at the end of the game wins. The game is over when the last clip is played.

So, is it fun? Actually, yes! The wacky inventions and the Move Maker Machine keep things fun. All in all, it's a real winner!

The Inventors was designed by toy legend Marvin Glass, who was responsible for such hits as Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots and Mousetrap. Or at least his employees were. You see, it has been said that Glass is the greatest toy inventor that never invented a toy! In a way, that's kind of fitting for this game.

Glass passed away in 1974, and this may have been one of the last products his studios released. It's good to go out with yet another winner!

Until next time, keep searching for treasure!