The Monopolists

Obsession, Fury, and the Scandal Behind the World's Favorite Board Game

Nonfiction, Entertainment, Games, Board games, History, Americas, United States
Cover of the book The Monopolists by Mary Pilon, Bloomsbury Publishing
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Mary Pilon ISBN: 9781620405710
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Publication: February 17, 2015
Imprint: Bloomsbury USA Language: English
Author: Mary Pilon
ISBN: 9781620405710
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication: February 17, 2015
Imprint: Bloomsbury USA
Language: English

The Monopolists reveals the unknown story of how Monopoly came into existence, the reinvention of its history by Parker Brothers and multiple media outlets, the lost female originator of the game, and one man's lifelong obsession to tell the true story about the game's questionable origins.

Most think it was invented by an unemployed Pennsylvanian who sold his game to Parker Brothers during the Great Depression in 1935 and lived happily--and richly--ever after. That story, however, is not exactly true. Ralph Anspach, a professor fighting to sell his Anti-Monopoly board game decades later, unearthed the real story, which traces back to Abraham Lincoln, the Quakers, and a forgotten feminist named Lizzie Magie who invented her nearly identical Landlord's Game more than thirty years before Parker Brothers sold their version of Monopoly. Her game--underpinned by morals that were the exact opposite of what Monopoly represents today--was embraced by a constellation of left-wingers from the Progressive Era through the Great Depression, including members of Franklin Roosevelt's famed Brain Trust.

A gripping social history of corporate greed that illuminates the cutthroat nature of American business over the last century, The Monopolists reads like the best detective fiction, told through Monopoly's real-life winners and losers.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The Monopolists reveals the unknown story of how Monopoly came into existence, the reinvention of its history by Parker Brothers and multiple media outlets, the lost female originator of the game, and one man's lifelong obsession to tell the true story about the game's questionable origins.

Most think it was invented by an unemployed Pennsylvanian who sold his game to Parker Brothers during the Great Depression in 1935 and lived happily--and richly--ever after. That story, however, is not exactly true. Ralph Anspach, a professor fighting to sell his Anti-Monopoly board game decades later, unearthed the real story, which traces back to Abraham Lincoln, the Quakers, and a forgotten feminist named Lizzie Magie who invented her nearly identical Landlord's Game more than thirty years before Parker Brothers sold their version of Monopoly. Her game--underpinned by morals that were the exact opposite of what Monopoly represents today--was embraced by a constellation of left-wingers from the Progressive Era through the Great Depression, including members of Franklin Roosevelt's famed Brain Trust.

A gripping social history of corporate greed that illuminates the cutthroat nature of American business over the last century, The Monopolists reads like the best detective fiction, told through Monopoly's real-life winners and losers.

More books from Bloomsbury Publishing

Cover of the book The Pocket Mountain Bike Trail Guide by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book Marine D SBS by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book The Complete Guide to Aqua Exercise for Pregnancy and Postnatal Health by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book Reverberations of Nazi Violence in Germany and Beyond by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book Penguin's Big Adventure by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book The Duty of Care in Negligence by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book Religion in Museums by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book Gestures of Testimony by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book Legal Insanity and the Brain by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book Memory of Water/Five Kinds of Silence by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book Mince Spies by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book The Full Burn by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book A Critical Introduction to the Epistemology of Perception by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book Charlie Company's Journey Home by Mary Pilon
Cover of the book What on Earth Happened? ... In Brief by Mary Pilon
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy