- [Narrator] Monopoly is
one of the most popular board games in history. Since it first hit the market in 1935, almost 250 million sets have been sold and the game has been played by more than one billion people worldwide. But how much do you really know
about this global favorite? From its controversial history to rules you've never even heard of and a scandal that rocked the world, get your game faces on for
this special Monopoly edition of "The Ultimate Fact Show." (upbeat pop music)
(cartoon character screaming) Who invented Monopoly? One evening in late 1932, a Philadelphia businessman
named Charles Todd and his wife, Olive, introduced their friends
Charles and Esther Darrow to a real-estate board game
they'd recently learned. The game had no name and it was
passed from friend to friend rather than sold in a box. But the rules were already
familiar: roll the dice, enthusiastically move your
tokens around the board, and buy up property as you go. Charles Darrow, who was
unemployed at the time, enjoyed the game so much
that one day he asked Todd for a copy of the rules. Todd had never written them up before and didn't believe that a
written version of the rules had ever existed either, but he was wrong. In fact, the game had been
invented in Washington, DC, way back in 1903 by a
daring and progressive woman named Elizabeth "Lizzie" Magie. But Lizzie's legacy
would be cruelly erased for decades to come as
Monopoly's glory was handed over to the man who had picked
it up at his friend's house. Before we dive deeper into Monopoly's surprisingly twisted history,
why don't you roll the dice and advance straight to that like button? And once you pass subscribe, you can collect a lifetime supply of mind-blowing content every day. Or do I have to send you to jail? Charles Darrow went on to
sell the rights to Monopoly to the Parker Brothers in
1935, who helped him develop it into the roaring success it is today. Darrow made his millions off the game and has been remembered throughout history as Monopoly's inventor, but that couldn't be
further from the truth. When Elizabeth Magie sat
down to think up the game in the early 1900s, she was an unknown woman
working as a stenographer. Board games were becoming
increasingly commonplace in middle-class homes and
Lizzie wanted to create one that taught people about real
estate, income inequality, and the successes and failures of life. Her original design
included all the elements of the modern board, and she named her creation
The Landlord's Game. She created two versions: an anti-monopolist set in
which all were rewarded when wealth was created,
and a monopolist version where the goal was to create monopolies and crush your opponents. Unbeknownst to her, it was the Monopoly rules
that would later catch on. Lizzie entered the US Patent Office on the 23rd of March, 1903, to secure her legal claim
to The Landlord's Game and publish it at least two years later. Its popularity spread throughout
the next three decades and eventually caught on
with a community of Quakers in Atlantic City, which is probably how it
made its way to Darrow. When Monopoly took off in the mid-1930s, Parker Brothers bought the rights to other related games to
preserve its territory, which included The Landlord's Game. For the patent and two other game ideas, Lizzie reportedly received
$500 and no royalties. Though she protested angrily that the new Monopoly game
made no mention of her story, Lizzie faded into obscurity and died a widow with no children in 1948. Although attempts have
been made to rewrite Lizzie into the game's history,
Hasbro still downplays her role and their official history of
the game even begins in 1934. One of Lizzie's last jobs was
at the US Office of Education, where her colleagues remembered her as an elderly typist who
talked about inventing games. Monopoly helped Allied prisoners of war escape during World War II. Monopoly may be the cause
of some serious tensions, but what if I told you
this quaint little game actually saved lives during World War II? During the war, large
numbers of British airmen were felled over enemy airspace and then held as prisoners
behind enemy lines. But thanks to the Geneva Convention, Germany allowed humanitarian
groups like the Red Cross to distribute care packages
to those prisoners. One of the categories
for theses care packages was games and pastimes. You see where this is going, right? The Allies took military advantage of this surprising act of
empathy by posing as charities who would send care packages
to their prisoners of war. And when I say care packages, what I really mean is
clandestine escape kits containing tools like
compasses, metal files, money and, most importantly, maps. To eliminate their chances of discovery, these kits were disguised
as Monopoly sets. The compasses and files were
disguised as playing pieces, real bank notes were squirreled away below the Monopoly money, and the maps were concealed
within the boards themselves. The kit was developed by MI9, the British Secret Service unit responsible for escape and evasion, who collaborated with John Waddington Ltd, the UK manufacturer of
Monopoly at the time. Captured soldiers were told that the special edition Monopoly sets would have a red dot on
the Free Parking space, something that would
look to an untrained eye like a standard-issue printing error. Once they'd obtained the
playing pieces within them, they were instructed to destroy the games. British historians now estimate that the secret Monopoly boards could've helped thousands
of captured soldiers escape! Did somebody say Get
out of Jail Free card? What's the story behind
the Monopoly pieces? Some of the most recognizable
aspects of Monopoly are its eclectic mix of playing pieces. Plenty have come and gone over the years, with old favorites getting the boot in favor of some questionable new ones. When Monopoly was first
introduced to the world in 1935, there were just six playing pieces: the top hat, the thimble, the iron, the boot, the battleship and the cannon. But what's the story
behind these odd tokens? Originally, Charles Darrow, you know, the guy who stole the idea from poor Elizabeth Magie, envisioned players using small items from around their homes as playing pieces. But it wasn't until his niece suggested that the pieces could be charms
from a girl's charm bracelet that the iconic pieces were born. As new versions of the game were released, so too were new pieces. In 1935-1936, the race car, the purse, the rocking horse, and
the lantern were added, with the race car being the
only surviving piece today. In the 1950s and beyond, the Scottie dog and the wheelbarrow
were added to the roster alongside a few more scrapped pieces. And in 2017, Hasbro shook things up again when it allowed players to vote out three of the original pieces
in favor of 50 new designs. Eventually, it was the trusty thimble, the boot, and the wheelbarrow
that got the chop, while the rubber ducky,
penguin, and T-Rex were added. At least it wasn't that awful hashtag. There's no word on whether Darrow cut his niece a juicy check for thinking up one of the
most iconic parts of the game, but considering the actual game itself wasn't his idea either,
I doubt she got a penny. Who is Mr. Monopoly? Besides the dude on the Pringles can, Mr. Monopoly is one of the most iconic mustachioed characters in
popular culture, but who is he? Well, first and foremost, his
name isn't even Mr. Monopoly. When the character was first created during the Depression-era 1930's, he was named Rich Uncle Pennybags. When Parker Brothers were
first approached by Darrow, they originally rejected Monopoly on the basis of 52 fundamental errors. But Darrow was not deterred. He printed 5,000 copies of the board game and continued to sell it
independently on the street with Rich Uncle Pennybags as its mascot. By the time Parker Brothers
did get on board with the game, the character was
already well-known enough to front other of the
company's board games. In 1940, he became the
star of a game called Dig. And in 1946, he fronted the
eponymous Rich Uncle game. It's also been said that Mr. Monopoly was possibly inspired by JP Morgan, a powerful banker who helped finance the construction of railroads and organized several major corporations, including General Electric. The identity of the
design of the character, artist Dan Fox, was unknown until 2013, when a former Parker Brothers
executive named Philip Orbanes was contacted by one
of Fox's grandchildren. And Mr. Monopoly isn't the only character in the game, either. Officer Mallory is the
officer in charge of the jail and Jake the Jailbird
is the dude behind bars. Who knew? McDonald's Monopoly once
caused an epic scandal. Back in 1987, McDonald's launched a new, unique sales promotion that would soon be hotly anticipated for decades to come: McDonald's Monopoly. Anyone who frequents the fast-food chain when the promotion is on will know that it's essentially a big prize draw. There are two ways to win: first, by peeling-off little tokens that sometimes offer free menu items, or by collecting property sets,
just like in the real game, which boast big prizes like cash, new tech, and even
all-expenses-paid holidays. Besides the fact that it
encourages the consumption of some of the world's
most unhealthy foods, it all sounds like a bit
of wholesome fun, right? Well, fun isn't exactly the
word many people would use to describe the scandal
that went down in 2001, when one man scammed McDonald's Monopoly out of an eye-watering
$24 million dollars. For 12 years, almost nobody
legitimately won prizes from the Monopoly game. Instead, nearly all winners
were in some way connected to one man who was secretly stealing the most valuable prize
tokens: Jerome P. Jacobson. You see, McDonald's
circulates a few rare tokens that read "Instant Winner"
which don't require participants to have a full set of game pieces. These are the tokens that
were guarded most carefully by the company's security team, a security team that included
one Jerome P. Jacobson. At first, Jacobson was a
model security officer. He even inspected workers' shoes to make sure they weren't
stealing from the company. But things soon changed. At one point, McDonald's reorganized the distribution of the prize tokens so that they prioritized the
United States over Canada. When Jacobson saw what they were doing, he realized how easy it would be to get his hands on the winning tokens. By this point, he'd been
promoted to head of security, meaning it was his job to
transport the winning tokens and personally place them on
the packaging factory line. Jacobson had received a package that was accidentally sent to him from a supplier in Hong Kong containing a set of anti-tamper seals that would allow him to
switch out the winning tokens. Because he was always accompanied by another member of
security on his travels, he would sneak to the bathroom, make the switch, and pocket his prizes. He knew he couldn't claim them himself. That would be far too suspicious. So, he sold them to distant friends and took a cut of their winnings. Between 1995 and 2000, he earned associates $24
million in stolen prize money. Having stolen some records which proved the Canada
switch up had happened, Jacobson figured that his
position at the company was safe. But then he went full Robin
Hood with his new-found power. One morning, the staff at the St. Jude's Children Research Hospital
in Tennessee were dumbstruck when they received an
anonymous envelope containing a million-dollar instant
win Monopoly token. Despite a full investigation, nobody could figure out where
the envelope had come from. Jacobson thought he was in the clear until several years of stolen prizes finally led McDonald's bosses
to get the FBI on board. Eventually, one of
Jacobson's co-conspirators snitched anonymously, and his trail of masterful
fraud was discovered. It turned out Jacobson had also roped in members of the Colombo Mafia
to participate in his scheme. And in a massive sting, the FBI indicted over 20
people who had been involved. Jacobson was sent to
jail without passing Go on the 10th of September, 2001. Not all of his accomplices
faced jail time. Some were simply ordered
to repay their winnings, $50 a month, for the rest of their lives. But even with this agreement, McDonald's did not expect to get all their stolen
money returned to them. Would the real Hamburglar please stand up? Who is the best Monopoly
player in the world? Believe it or not, Monopoly can be considered
an actual sport. And just like sports,
there are championships. In total, 14 Monopoly world
championships have been held, with the most recent taking place in Macau on September 8th, 2015. Throughout the year, additional rules for tournament gameplay have been added to account
for the ambiguities in the official rule book. There have been 14 different champions from all over the world since
the first-ever tournament was held in Catskills, New York, in 1973, but the current reigning
champion hails from Italy. After 10 hours of
property space purchases, paying rent, and passing Go,
Nicolo Falcone from Venice beat out 27 fellow
competitive Monopoly players to come out triumphant. The grand prize was $20,580, which may seem like a random figure, but it's actually the total
equivalent of the bank in a standard Monopoly game! Nicolo is a 34-year-old stand-up comedian who managed to knock
out defending champion Bjorn Halvard Knappskog, USA
Representative Brian Valentine, and Japan's grand champion
Tsutomu Doita to win the title. But what's his secret? Nicolo's strategy for
winning the tournament was to purchase all the railroads, but he also recognizes the importance of using jail as a safe space in the latter half of the game. Until the next world
championship takes place, this Italian funny man can proudly say he's the best Monopoly
player in the world! What do you make of
Nicolo Falcone's title? Do you think it's even possible to be a world-best Monopoly player, or does it all come down to
the help of good old lady luck? Let me know in the comments below. And why not share some of
your winning strategies, if you're willing to
give them up, that is. What's actually supposed to happen when you land on Free Parking? The rules of Monopoly have
always been up for debate. No matter how much you try
to play it by-the-book, there will always be someone who claims you're playing it wrong. But one of the most hotly
debated topics is this: What exactly is supposed to happen when you land on Free Parking? Well, according to the copy of the rules slipped into every copy
of Monopoly ever sold, Free Parking does nothing. Despite it being a mere space for your kitschy playing piece to rest while you count your money, Hasbro has also stated that
they receive hundreds of calls from bemused customers asking
for clarity every year. As a result, the company
decided to conduct a study of Monopoly players,
which helped them discover that a shocking 68% of respondents admitted they'd never
actually read the rules! Can you imagine something so ludicrous? I personally love nothing
more than a good flick through a riveting rule
book for an evening. What's more, they found that 30% of people just make up their own rules. This discovery inspired
Hasbro to include a new set of so-called house-rules with the game. One of the most popular of these rules is that every tax dollar and fine goes into the center of the board and is then given to whatever
player lands on Free Parking. Talk about a bonus! You've probably been
playing Monopoly all wrong. The Free Parking rule isn't the only one that's sure to get your
knickers in a twist. After decades of people
simply ignoring the rule book, the likelihood is that
there's plenty you don't know when it comes to how the
game should be played. In fact, according to viral
2005 blog post by Johnny Nexus, basically everyone is
playing the game wrong, which makes it much longer
than it needs to be. According to Nexus, the major mistake is that whenever someone
lands on a property and doesn't choose to buy it, most people just move on
to the next player's turn. What you're actually supposed to do according to the official rule book is to auction off the unowned property to the highest bidder. This not only encourages more
interaction between players, rather than just hanging
around until your turn, but also speeds the game up slightly. The reason why the rule may
have fallen out of the favor over the years is that it might encourage more family confrontation. After all, Monopoly is competitive enough without risking a heated auction every time someone rolls the dice. And that's not the only rule that may have slipped under your radar. Did you know that when you land in jail, you can still buy and sell property? Yep, landing in jail doesn't
stop you from making any money and is no real set back
for a rich enough player, a bit like in real life. How to win Monopoly in 21 seconds. Monopoly has a notorious
reputation for lasting an eternity, but what if I said you could win the entire thing in just 21 seconds? According to Daniel J. Myers, a professor of sociology
at Notre Dame University, the shortest possible game of
Monopoly between two players requires just four turns,
nine rolls of the dice, and 21 seconds. In short, one player moves
around the board very quickly to buy Boardwalk and Park Place
and places houses on them. Meanwhile, the other player
ends up drawing a chance card that sends them to Boardwalk, and they don't have
enough money to pay rent with the three houses. Hence, the game is over. Now don't get me wrong, this particular game is
incredibly hard to come by. In fact, Josh Whitford, an assistant professor of
sociology at Columbia University, estimates that it would only happen once every 253,899,891,671,040 games. Hoo! And I don't know who has enough time to play Monopoly that many times! But Myers and his son dedicated
a significant amount of time to figuring out how to play the fastest game of Monopoly ever, and they're confident this is the answer. I guess I'll take their word for it. Why going to jail is actually a good idea. Here's another shocking Monopoly truth that'll have you questioning
your current strategy: Going to jail might
just be a winning move. Jail is one of the most-landed on spaces on a standard board, and
when you end up there, you'll likely find yourself
itching to get back out again. But according to Natalie Fitzsimons, a UK monopoly champion, spending more time in jail
could be the key to success. Hailing from Northern Ireland, the 26-year-old was
ranked sixth in the world when she beat her husband and three others to the UK and Ireland
championship title back in 2015. When the game is just getting started, Fitzsimons agrees that its best to try and get out of jail
as quickly as possible. After all, you don't wanna
miss out on the opportunity to buy up property while
it's still available. But in the latter half of the game, when all of the property
squares have gone, there's no shame in hiding behind bars. While you wait patiently for good old Officer
Mallory to release you, you can still collect
without having to cough up after landing on expensive property. It may not be the most
exciting way to win, but according to Fitzsimons,
it might be the most effective. How long was the longest
game of Monopoly ever? Let's face it, Monopoly often feels like it might drag on forever. By the time you've reached
the end, the sun has gone down and you can hardly remember why you decided to play
in the first place. You may feel like you've already played the most time-consuming
game of Monopoly ever, but the longest recorded game
in history according to Hasbro actually lasted a grand
total of 70 straight days, dragging on for an immense 1,680 hours! There's no word on where
or when the game was played or who even took part, but
I think it's safe to assume they were nothing more than
a pile of flaming ashes in their chairs by the end of it. I can't imagine anyone wanting
to try and beat that record, but of course plenty of people have! In Scranton, Philadelphia,
on March 13th, 1975, friends David Monteith, Lazlo Farkas, Mike Dux, and Al Henderson
sat down to a game of Monopoly that lasted 54 straight hours. That's right, they played
all day and all night until they finally called
time on March 15th. The only additional rule they added was unlimited borrowing from the bank to ensure that no one
went completely bankrupt throughout the game. An officiator, Bernadine Yencho, was present to witness the event and a designated form
was signed by witnesses each hour of the game. Jokes about Monopoly's
time-consuming nature have gone on for so long that in 2019, Hasbro decided to troll
us all by releasing a Longest Game Ever version. Would you dare to play? What is the world's most
expensive Monopoly set? Monopoly isn't known for
costing a total bomb, but with over 1,000 variations
of the game worldwide, prices do vary. You may think you're shelling out for the newest themed edition, but how does a set worth a
staggering $2 million sound? With a price tag like that,
you're probably thinking, "Jeez, it must be made of
solid gold or something," and you'd be right. This incredible one-of-a-kind Monopoly set was created back in 1978 by world-famous San Francisco-based
jeweler Sidney Mobell. The board itself is
made from 23-carat gold, while rubies and
sapphires top the chimneys of the solid-gold houses and hotels and the dice have 42
full-cut diamonds for spots. All things considered,
I wouldn't be surprised if you play with real bank notes too, but they're just gold paper. When Mobell created the board, an ounce of gold cost
between $360 to $460, but nowadays the price of gold
per ounce has topped $1,800! The only time this game was played was in a showdown between Mobell himself and Britain's former Prime
Minister Edward Heath. When the board was bought to London, Mobell was surrounded by armed guards. The set is owned by the Smithsonian and has never been put up
for sale, which is a shame. Imagine the satisfaction of
flipping this thing in anger! Do you have any interesting
tidbits to share about Monopoly? Go ahead and comment down below. And once you're done,
why don't you check out one of the previous "Fact Show" episodes for your trivia fix? Thanks for watching guys! (upbeat pop music)
