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In the early 1970's, I was around the age my daughter is now. At my house, Friday night became Monopoly night. My parents had played this classic board game as children, and now it was time to intiate my sister and I into the ways of real estate wheeling and dealing. As another writer to this topic stated, my father too played by the rules inscribed on the box. We would begin around 7:00 PM just after the last renmants of supper were cleared off the kitchen table. We would each pick a beverage to drink before we took our seats. We each picked the token that would represent us, and oddly enough, this never varied from Friday to Friday. I was always the hat.

Oftentimes, a spirited game could last for three hours or more. We always laughed at my father. Whenever he would buy houses or hotels, he would simply toss them down on the coinciding property without setting them upright. As a result, we could always tell what he owned, because his properties looked like a cross between a war-ravaged zone and a dilapidated slum! Sometimes, I would be financially wiped out relatively early while at other times there would be two of us remaining to battle it out until the bitter end. Depending on one's fortune, decision-making, and negotiating skills, a game of Monopoly could run until nearly 11:00. I suppose this is why we never played on a school night. All four of us shared approximately the same number of victories and defeats; including my then eight-year-old sister. As soon as the game reached its conclusion, I would rush to my bedroom to watch Wolfman Jack host the Midnight Special.

This family ritual continued for around two years. Never once was there a time when we strayed from the official rules of the game. Occasionally, I would play with other friends and become confused. Again, as others here have said, many adopted the Free Parking space as the bank kitty, and whoever landed on it got the money. I would try to tell these friends that nowhere in the rules did it say that this option existed. However, I soon learned that most people indeed played with this unwritten clause. I would be curious to learn how this started, for my parents had told me that nobody did that back in the 1930's and 1940's.

Interestingly, I learned of another "shortcut version" of the game while on a campout. At the beginning, players were dealt an equal number of title deeds to accelerate the onset of collecting rent. You could trade properties later, but this sped things up considerably. While on a campout, kids can find many things to do. We didn't want to miss out on an opportunity to hike, swim, or tell spooky stories around the fire, so we would always play the "quick version" of Monopoly to ensure that we would have time to do everything else.

I haven't played Monopoly now for probably thirty years, but I'll never forget those Friday nights. Come to think of it, I'll never forget those years. It was long before computer games and Wii players became standard household fare.

Nevertheless, it was a great time to be alive.

Learn more about this author, Patrick Sills.
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