Who stacked the closet
Every closet fills up one box at a time. Ours took about a century. Roll the dice and move along the board to see how the games you grew up with ended up on the same shelf.
- GO
- 1923
Start in Providence
Hasbro begins in Providence, Rhode Island. The games come later, but the address has stayed in the same small state ever since — today we are based in Pawtucket.
- 1935
Monopoly passes GO
Monopoly goes on sale across America, and families have been arguing about Boardwalk ever since. It is still the most recognized box in the closet.
- 1948
Scrabble gets its name
A word game played with wooden tiles takes the name Scrabble. Seven letters on a rack turns out to be all a quiet evening needs.
- 1949
Candy Land and Clue
A busy year. Candy Land gives the youngest players a game with no reading, and Clue arrives in the United States with six suspects and one envelope.
- 1960
The Game of Life
The Game of Life puts a spinner in the middle of the board and sends little cars through jobs, families and payday.
- 1965
Operation
Operation hands players a pair of tweezers and a patient with a light-up nose. The buzzer has been making people jump ever since.
- 1966
Twister
Twister moves the game off the table and onto the floor. Right hand red, left foot green, and the players become the pieces.
- 1974
Connect 4
Connect 4 stands the board upright and asks for four in a row. It takes a minute to learn and a surprising while to master.
- 1983
Jenga
Jenga reaches the market: 54 wooden blocks, one tower, and a crash everyone can hear from the next room.
- 1996
Bop It!
Bop It! starts giving orders. Bop it, twist it, pull it — a game you hold in your hands that gets faster every round.
Today the closet holds 312 games on 11 shelves, from first games for 3-year-olds to Avalon Hill quests that take all night. New boxes go up every season, and the old ones stay within reach. Pick one and deal everybody in. Ready, set, play!