Monopoly facts

1. The Monopoly game is based on Atlantic City, New Jersey.

2. Charles Darrow first developed the Monopoly game in 1933.

3. Charles Darrow is from Philadelphia.

4. The original game was made from materials from Darrow’s own home. A piece of oilcloth covered the board and the cards were handwritten.

5. The original houses and hotels were made from wooden molding scraps.

6. The original Monopoly die-cast tokens were inspired by Darrow’s nieces who recommended metal charms from charm bracelets be used.

7. The original game included 10 metal tokens including iron, purse, lantern, race car, thimble, shoe, top hat, battleship, cannon and a rocking horse.

8. The Monopoly 80th Anniversary Edition game features one iconic token from each of its eight decades including the bathtub, locomotive, money bag, cat, cannon, cavalry, and MONOPOLY World Championships trophy.

9. Darrow attempted to sell the Monopoly game to Parker Brothers, but was initially rejected for “52 fundamental errors” that included the game’s length, theme and complexity.

10. Darrow first manufactured and sold the Monopoly game in local Philadelphia department stores.

11. Following the local success of the Monopoly game, Parker Brothers reconsidered their initial rejection and negotiated the rights to market the game.

12. Monopoly was first manufactured and sold in 1935 by Parkers Brothers in the U.S. and Waddington’s in the UK.

13. The Monopoly brand’s official birthday is March 19, 1935, when Parker Brothers acquired the rights for the game from Charles Darrow.

14. The longest game played upside down lasted 36 hours.

15. The Monopoly game is currently published in 47 languages and sold in 114 countries.

16. More than 1 billion people have played the Monopoly game worldwide.

17. The city of London was the first licensed Monopoly game.

18. To make the game relevant to British consumers, the names of the properties were changed to well known streets in London. This is a practice that continues today whenever the Monopoly game is introduced to a new country.

19. Within a year of the Monopoly game’s release in the U.S., 35,000 copies of the game were being made each week.

20. The original Monopoly game sold for about $2.

21. The Monopoly game is subtitled “The Fast-Dealing Property Trading Game.”

22. The current standard Monopoly game includes eight tokens: Battleship, top hat, Scottie dog, race car, thimble, boot, cat, and wheelbarrow.

23. More than 20 different tokens have made their way into the game, including an elephant, purse, and a bag of money.

24. There are 40 spaces on the Monopoly board and 28 properties (22 colored streets, four railroads, and two utility spaces).

25. There are three chance spaces, three community chest spaces, a luxury tax space, and an income tax space on the Monopoly board.

26. There are four corner spaces on a standard Monopoly board: "Go," jail/just visiting, free parking, and go to jail.

27. There are 32 houses and 12 hotels in the standard Monopoly game.

28. The standard Monopoly game has 28 title deed cards, 16 chance cards, and 16 community chest cards.

29. Some of the chance and community chest cards have been updated throughout time. The “Grand Opera Opening” card no longer exists.

30. Of the 16 community chest cards in the Monopoly game, 10 will give players cash.