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

by Mary Pilon

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.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Business, Games, Book Club, Audiobook, Biography

328 pages, Paperback

First published February 17, 2015

About the author

Mary Pilon is a journalist focused primarily on the worlds of sports and business. She is the author of the bestselling books "The Monopolists" and "The Kevin Show," the co-editor of “Losers: Dispatches From the Other Side of the Scoreboard,” and co-host and co-author of the audio series “Twisted: The Story of Larry Nassar and the Women Who Brought Him Down.” Her work regularly appears in the New Yorker, Esquire, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Vice, New York, and The New York Times, among other publications.

She has worked as a producer with NBC at the 2016 Rio Olympics and on HBO’s forthcoming documentary “BS High.” She is currently co-directing a documentary about pickleball for Peter Berg’s Film 45.

Pilon previously was a staff reporter with The Times on the sports desk and at The Wall Street Journal, where she covered various aspects of business and finance.

A native of Eugene, Ore., Mary started reporting for her hometown paper, the Register-Guard, as a teenager and was a wildly mediocre athlete.

Today, she receives editorial input from her rescue puggle, Pedro, and her grandmother claims to be her biggest fan.

Reviews

[Saba Imtiaz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book, and I suspect if you've ever played Monopoly, you will too. This is a really wonderfully told account of the origins of Monopoly, the economic and political beliefs behind its creation, and how it spread - without leaving a trace of the woman who came up with the idea and the board. There is so much fascinating stuff in the book, including about how a Anti-Monopoly game was invented and that led to the eventual unraveling of the myth Monopoly's sellers had built. Cannot recommend it enough!

[Mahlon · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the true story of Monopoly's origins, and the way in which some of the early players helped the games popularity spread was fascinating, The disjointed nonlinear nature of Pilon's narrative really made this book hard to get into.

The fact that the narrator sounded like a cross between Droopy Dog and Mr. Mackey from South Park didn't help.

[Karen Germain · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love board games nearly as much as I love stories, so when I saw Mary Pilon's book on the sordid origins of Monopoly, I immediately wanted in on the scandal. Thank you to Bloomsbury USA for an advanced copy of The Monopolists in exchange for an honest review.

PLOT - In The Monopolists, Mary Pilon investigates the origins of arguably, America's most popular board game. For years, game manufacturer, Parker Brothers, has perpetuated the myth that Monopoly was created by Charles Darrow as a diversion for his children when their family was poor during the depression. Darrow sold the game and the fantasy to Parker Brothers and for years this story was printed on all Monopoly boxes.

During the 1970's, Ralph Ansbach invented a game called Anti-Monopoly and was sued by Parker Brothers for copyright infringement. It was a David and Goliath battle and Ansbach never backed down, eventually winning the case on an appeal. During the trial, it came out that Darrow was not the original creator of Monopoly. Pilon's book explores the origins of the game, the cover-up by Parker Brothers and Ansbach's court battle.

LIKE - The best part of the book was learning about the origins of Monopoly. Pilon is a deft writer and this book is well researched, but really the material is so interesting that it would seem it could practically write itself. The phrase, "You just can't make this stuff up" comes to mind.

The origins of Monopoly are just crazy, especially when the story focuses on the Ansbach lawsuit and the Parker Brothers reaction. I enjoyed learning about Atlantic City and how it relates to the spaces on the Monopoly board. Also interesting, were the notes by the champion players on winning strategies. As mentioned in the book, most people ( myself included), play by their own set of rules. I was surprised to learn that if played by the rules, the game usually lasts 90 minutes. I've never had a game last less than half a night! I need to try playing by the rules next time. It was fascinating to learn that the origins of the game are against monopolies and that it was devised as a economics teaching tool. I left having gained a solid History lesson and a new appreciation for Monopoly.

DISLIKE - Overall, I enjoyed The Monopolists, however there were times when it was a bit of a dry read. This was especially true during the Ansbach trial, where I caught myself skimming, rather than engrossed in the text.

RECOMMEND - I'd recommend this for board game fans and History buffs. If you read The Monopolists, I guarantee that you'll never look at a Monopoly board the same way again.

Like my review? Check out my blog!

[Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is it in a nutshell: "The Monopolists" was as much fun to read as the game is to play. Although politics and the law frequently play into the story, Mary Pilon did an exceptional job of keeping my attention and interest high - my mind did not wander, I did not get bored - even once. The language remains "in English" and the focus is on the people, their thoughts, feelings, ideas, lives. The story involves Elizabeth Magie Phillips, the woman who invented "The Landlord's Game;" the various college students, Quakers from Atlantic City and their friends who played monopoly (before Parker Brothers bought it) and contributed to its art and evolution; Charles Darrow - a somewhat sympathetic thief who steals the monopoly game idea from a friend when he is unemployed during the Depression; leaders (and their children) at Parker Brothers and what tragedies and successes they experienced; a few different competitors who invented their own versions of Monopoly and were firmly and immediately squashed by Parker Brothers; and Ralph Anspach (and his family), a professor and creator of Anti-Monopoly, who refuses to be bullied by Parker Brothers and seeking justice, enters into a decade-long legal battle with the toy company giant.

The story moves along at a brisk pace - I enjoyed the sketches and pictures of different board games (and different people) and found it easy to get immersed in the story. The biggest reason for this, I believe, is the personality the author brings to the characters: Lizzie's political views are explored, but also her personality - her jobs, her boldness, perseverance and creativity, her other games and another intriguing invention were discussed, as well as her feelings and reactions to being duped by Parker Brothers, all of which added up to a pretty good picture of who Lizzie was. The author takes all the people involved in this story about the Monopoly war. how it was fought and won and the great costs to both sides, and makes them all personable - easy to relate to or feel compassion for (even the "villains" - care is given to present both sides of the story) - and interesting, too. I loved the ending, too - finding out "where they are now," what happened to each player in the Monopoly game war.

[Erin Cataldi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had no idea behind the origins, evolution, and scandal of this beloved game. It was fascinating to learn more about such a pop culture item. Who doesn't have at least one edition of this board game in their house. I thought the book could have been shortened because the legal aspects towards the end really dragged on - but other than that I really enjoyed getting a behind the scenes look at such an "ordinary" item. When the game was first created at the turn of the twentieth century - the creator called it the landlords game and it came with two sets of rules. On one set of rules the goal was to spread the wealth because only when everyone has the same opportunities does someone wine. The other set of rules was the monopoly version that we all know and loved. The goal was to make people see how bad monopolies are - winning because one person has accumulated all the wealth shows how vile monopolies are... right? Wrong. The "bad" set of rules became an underground sensation. People were making their own canvas boards and adding their own distinctive names and rules. The set we know and love got all the place names from Atlantic City where is took off. Decades passed and a man named Darrow claimed it was his own and sold it to Parker Brothers where it became an international sensation. Only it clearly wasn't his - having been played in pockets all over the country for three decades. The Monopolists gives the inside scoop on all these incidents and ends with the fight over the Anti-Monopoly game - an attempt to go back to the creator's anti-monopolist roots. Fascinating - but a bit long at parts.

[Sean O · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is the story of Monopoly, and it divides into two sections:

The hidden history of the creation of Monopoly: This part of the book is fascinating and is filled with interesting early 20th-century characters. The writer does a great job documenting the history of the game and describing how it got to become the board game everyone knows.

The trademark/patent battle between Parker Brothers and the creator of "Anti-Monopoly." This story is interesting, but far less so, because it shapes up to be a classic "70s Berkeley professor squares off against General Mills lawyers" bore-fest.

I would have given an extra star for 30% more origin story and 50% less lawsuit.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

A surprisingly disappointing book that doesn't really get cooking until about halfway in, when the lawsuits start flying. The saga of Ralph Anspach, the SoCal professor who serves, along with the late Lizzie Magie, as the book's protagonist, is the most compelling part, and it probably could have been better served as a long magazine feature (which it sort of was).

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

It is an ok book, not especially riveting, but the whole book in a sentence:

Basically, a lot of different people each made games similar to monopoly at around the same period of time, each with their own flair or "special-ness" but in the end, Parker Brothers either bought out or out-sold everyone else, and Monopoly is now sold/owned by them, though the story they include in the box about the "inventor" of monopoly is pretty much fiction.

[Chris Cole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story of how Monopoly was really created. Part economics lesson, part history lesson, and part legal thriller. Took awhile for me to get into it, but once I did I was glad I stuck with it!

[Ridwan Anam · Rating 2 out of 5]

খুব বেশি ডিটেইলড। মনোপলি বোর্ড গেম যারা ভালোবাসেন তাদের জন্য প্রথম কয়েক অধ্যায় ইন্টারেস্টিং। শেষের দিকের অধ্যায়গুলো মনোপলির প্রকৃত আবিষ্কারক কে সে প্রশ্নের ফয়সালা আর মনোপলির পাবলিশার পার্কার ব্রাদার্স বনাম এন্টি মনোপলি বোর্ড গেমের আবিষ্কারকের আইনী লড়াইয়ের কচাকচিতে ভরপুর।

[Biblio Files (takingadayoff) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although it's popular throughout the world, Monopoly really does seem like a very American game. Each player tries to amass as much property as possible and bankrupt his opponents until only one player with any money at all remains. So it's a bit surprising that the origin of the game had more to do with demonstrating the drawbacks of monopolies.

The Monopolists is about the people who invented and developed Monopoly and Monopoly-type games in the first decades of the twentieth century and about the fight over who owned the rights to the game after that. Parker Brothers patented the game in the 1930s although they hadn't invented it. They bought the rights from Charles Darrow, a man who also had not invented the game. The legal ins and outs of trademark and patent law are complicated and journalist Mary Pilon leads us through the tangle.

Parker Brothers had also tried to trademark the names Ping Pong and Tiddly Winks, games which were widely played well before Parker Brothers came along. Courts slapped Parker Brothers down on those two games, ruling that the games were clearly in the public domain. Parker Brothers had better luck with Monopoly though, until they sued an economics professor who had developed a game called Anti-Monopoly.

It took a decade of legal battles before the case was finally ended. It went all the way to the Supreme Court. The Monopolists focuses on the people rather than the game, so don't expect much in the way of board game strategy or facts about international or special editions of Monopoly or about Monopoly tournaments. This is a book about a large company trying to profit from other people's work and further, to prevent other people from profiting similarly. A surprising history of the familiar board game.

[Jeffrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let's say you want to hear a true history full of intrigue and deception as well told as any spy novel, but where the stakes are mere ideas. That you'd never want to read through tomes of patent law, but you don't mind a bit of legalese on occasion.

Let's say that well-written and engaging histories are your thing.

Read this book.

As with all true stories there's a bit of fuzziness around the edges of every fact. Eye witnesses remembering incompletely, one side determined to obscure the facts, a life-long crusader destroying his life, his family, his career over a cardboard game with fake money and cheap plastic pieces.

Is there a monopoly on Monopoly?

[Carissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

tldr: lizzie magie (also the quakers), not charles darrow invented monopoly.

Framed around the story of a lawsuit for the game "Anti-Monopoly", this book is a interesting overview of the gilded age and progressive areas seen through the eyes of this board game's fascinating history.

[Mary Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting history of the game. A bit confusing since there are so many who changed the game, claimed it, and marketed it. The original and most important creator, Ms. Magie, was a Georgist. She believed in the single tax system -- that one should only be taxed on the land one "owned". She created the Landlord Game, patented it, and was completely ripped off over the next sixty years.

[Elizabeth Stolar · Rating 4 out of 5]

5/7. This was an interesting and enjoyable read. I first heard about this book because it was referenced in another book I had read earlier in the year and I was able to get a copy for a good price. Audible also must have had a deal on it because I also bought the audio. My husband and I were going on a roadtrip and I wanted to get another book read, so I requested that we listen to an audiobook on the way. He insisted that it not be depressing or about politics. So that narrowed down the choices significantly. This was acceptable, so I listened to a good chunk of this on audio.

The audio reminded me A LOT of a podcast my husband listens to called Business Wars. The story was similar to many of the episodes they've done on that podcast, so this did end up being a good choice. (I'm not sure I would have loved the audio otherwise.). This had some interesting history behind the game Monopoly and it was interesting that it first started as a method to get out information about a land tax, and early on it was supposed to be pointing out the problems of capitalism, even though it's evolved to make people think positively about it in many ways.

The history is not how Parker Brothers (now Hasbro) claims, so it was interesting to read how it evolved and just how many people played various iterations of it. I think a lot of people tend to forget just how big a deal board games were before we had all the electronics. I recommend this as a relatively light and fun read.

[Linda Munro · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would never have read this book if it wasn't for a reading contest, but I enjoyed this one!

Monopoly is one of the few games it seems that everyone I know has played. During my youth, I heard all types of stories about Monopoly, but as I said they were stories. Monopoly has a checkered past at best, a long, involved checkered past.

It didn't start out being based on Atlantic City. It actually started out much differently. The basis was anti-Capitalism, which means it would have been burned these days.

Though many people had a hand in what we now refer to as Monopoly, lawsuits galore kept Parker Brothers in court for years over their most popular game.

A game with a history of Corporate Greed, with real life winner's and losers; almost better than fiction!

[Alan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating and compellingly written account of the history of the game, which begins with Georgist and Single Taxer Lizzie Magie's The Landlord's Game. Board game inventor, patent holder, and a true independent spirit, everyone should know about Magie's life and how Ralph Anspach's Anti-Monopoly lawsuit that leads us to the true history of the game.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crisp, informative, and fascinating, Mary Pilon explores the roots of America's most popular board game, and how it morphed over time from a socialist teaching tool to one of pop culture's most ardent champions of capitalism. Loses a little steam in the middle, but the story itself is interesting enough to overlook it.

[Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not only is this an excellent history of the game (and it's many similar board game rivals and precursors), but it is also a gripping legal drama detailing Parker Brothers over-aggressive trademark defense of Monopoly and the tenacious (or obsessive) resistance of Anti-Monopoly creator.

Truely, it's a David vs Goliath tale, and one I found highly enjoyable.

[Jim Loter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I find the game of Monopoly excruciatingly dull, but the real story of its origin, and of how the story was uncovered largely because of a lawsuit filed by Parker Brothers themselves, is fascinating. The supreme irony is that the game was originally invented to teach the evils of monopolies and capitalism yet ended up as the focus of a battle that epitomizes exactly those evils.

[Mehrsa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fascinating history of the board game that is also a history of an idea forged to teach one thing being coopted against the very thing it was warning about. It's an allegory of sorts. Also, it's another necessary debunking of a "lone genius" man creating something totally "innovative" that a woman had already created decades before he was around.

[Fab · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun book to read, it’s the real story of who invented the board game Monopoly. Spoiler alert: it wasn’t actually an unemployed guy from the depression called Charles Darrow but a woman from the early 1900s who was almost written out of history.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the bumpy and quirky history of the popular game Monopoly. I found most of it very interesting, with many colorful characters. It only bogs down, during the long, court proceedings, in the last third. 3.5 stars

[Stan Yan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really fascinating. I don't think I knew about any of this although I distinctly remember someone mentioning to me in business school that Monopoly was a trademark that was contested. I think this is a valuable read for anyone curious about how theft of a game turned into a true monopoly situation.

[Renay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating and infuriating in equal measure.

Women invented everything you loved.

[Matthew Tanner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really interesting book. I had no idea about the history of Monopoly.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super fascinating and included several amazing pictures of old board games. A personal favorite was an early version of the Game of Life which had spaces for "intemperance" and "disgrace." I learned a lot about trademark law as a fun bonus.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

not too shabby

A little boring in the beginning but it kicked things up a notch in the middle. Id give it 3.5 stars if half stars were an option.

[Toni Tresca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! What a wild ride. The Parks Brothers literally monopolized Monopoly (until they didn't....kind of)

[Anya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this for work lol