spk_0:   0:32
Hi and welcome the half wit history. I'm Jonathan and I'm Kylie. And this show where we talk about the upcoming week, but a long time ago.

spk_1:   0:39
I'm not super long ago. I'm

spk_0:   0:41
a decently long ago.

spk_1:   0:42
All right, Cool.

spk_0:   0:43
So do we have any updates?

spk_1:   0:46
I thought I had one, and I still can't remember it. So maybe next week

spk_0:   0:50
we'll find out, okay? Just right into it.

spk_1:   0:54
I'm in 1928.

spk_0:   0:57
Oh, you beat me by that much.

spk_1:   0:58
Gosh, darn it.

spk_0:   0:59
1935

spk_1:   1:01
o Okay. So clearly, our idea of what's long ago on what's not are very different.

spk_0:   1:08
I was looking at and go almost 100 years.

spk_1:   1:11
I mean, that's fair. Yeah. Almost 100 years, I think, is a fairly decent long time ago.

spk_0:   1:16
We've done much closer.

spk_1:   1:18
That's true. But I mean, like, if you look at it in the grand like scope of, like, human recorded history, No nothing. Yeah, exactly. All

spk_0:   1:27
right. Let's get to it.

spk_1:   1:28
So this week, I want to talk about the Romanov family, or, more specifically, the Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia, most of your probably fairly familiar. She was born on June 8th, 1901 and was the youngest daughter of the czar Nicholas, the second, the last sovereign of imperial Russia, and his wife, the arena Alexandra Feodorovna. Despite her imperial status and vast family wealth, the Zarins Arena raised their five Children as simply as possible. They slept on hard camp cots without pillows, except when they were ill. They took cold bask in the morning, and they were expected to tidy their rooms and do needlework to be sold at various charity events, and that when they were not otherwise occupied, most in the household, including the servants generally generally called the Grand Duchess by her first name and patron, him, which is the Anastasia Nikolaevna and didn't use her title or her like official style. The young Anastasia was a vivacious and energetic child, described as short and inclined to be chubby with blue eyes and strawberry blonde hair. I feel like someone's describing me as a child that's chubby, chubby blonde, strawberry blue eyes, Darby blond, hair short. I feel like someone just was like here. Let's describe Kylie as a child,

spk_0:   2:49
and then you just really wanted to compare yourself to anesthesia.

spk_1:   2:53
Okay, so while she was often described as gifted and bright. Her tutors reported that she was never very interested in the restrictions of the schoolroom. They described her his lively, mischievous and a gifted actress, and added that her sharp, witty remarks sometimes hit sensitive spots. She was also a creative prankster and sometimes tripping the servants and then climbing trees and refusing to come down so up to a lot of mischief, very much like a young Kylie T he

spk_0:   3:23
current Kylie Lights again, Mr Fizz? Well,

spk_1:   3:25
I mean, yes. So, as I'm sure most of us know, the imperial family was eventually overthrown during the Russian Revolution. The February riot lead to the imprisonment of the imperial family in the Alexander Palace and then the abdication of the czar on March 15th. Since I'm focusing on Anastasia, though, I'm going to skip all of the intricate political happenings that that were during the Russian Revolution. I just kind of scooch on ahead. As the Bolsheviks approached the palace, the provisional government had them had the family moved toe toe bowl six Siberia, where the Bolsheviks seized majority control of Russia. Anesthesia and her family are moved to the inn patty of House UM, which is was also known as the House of Special Purpose in the Academy Bug. After the Bolshevik Bolshevik Revolution in October of 1917 Russia quickly disintegrated into civil war negotiations for the release of the Romanovs between their bullshit Bolshevik captors and their extended family, many of whom were prominent members of royal houses all throughout Europe. Those negotiations stalled, and as the anti Bolshevik forces advanced toward Yekaterinburg, the Bolsheviks were in a precarious position. They knew you, Catherine Berg would fall to the better man and equipped White Army. So when the white Army reached the town, the imperial family had seemingly disappeared, vanished into thin air.

spk_0:   4:47
Whoa! Spooky

spk_1:   4:49
in practicality. We now know that during the early morning of July 16th 1918 Nicholas Alexandra, their Children, their physician and several servants were taken into the basement of the house and shot, allegedly at the express command of Vladimir Lenin, which we all know Lenin. So, despite being informed that quote, the entire family suffered the same fate as its head ache. A bizarre ah, the Bolsheviks on, Lee announced Nicholas is death with the official press release that Nicholas Romanov family and son a wife and son had been sent to a secure place. Yeah, take a heaven. The grave is pretty secure. So for over eight years, the Soviet leadership maintained a systematic web of disinformation That's surrounding the fate of the family,

spk_0:   5:39
Soviets and disinformation campaigns.

spk_1:   5:41
Oh, who would have thunk? Yeah, right s o. They sometimes claimed that the family was murdered by left wing revolutionaries. And then sometimes they denied that they were dead at all.

spk_0:   5:53
Disinformation and blaming the left

spk_1:   5:55
wing. Oh, never It could never happen. Yeah,

spk_0:   5:59
those kooky Russians.

spk_1:   6:01
So they eventually acknowledged the murders in 1926 following the publication of an investigation by White Army investigator Nicholas So Sokoloff. But they they maintain that the bodies were destroyed in that Lenin's Cabinet was in no way responsible because having forbid, I mean, I do recall reading that like he was if he did give the express order, he was extremely, extremely careful to not heaven in any sort of writing because, like there has been or if it was, it was destroyed long ago because they're like they've looked and looked and looked and they have not been able to found find anything that, like you're actually linked Lenin giving the order to assassinate the imperial family.

spk_0:   6:44
I have a feeling that's not something that he would like to get out.

spk_1:   6:48
No, I would have imagined that s o this fueled rumors of survivors, which is where I'm really going with a stop ic e um, on February 6 of 1928. So jumping head a little bit a young woman calling herself Anastasia checkoffs uh, cekovsky is what we're going with. Anaesthesia. Cekovsky arrived in New York City claiming to be the missing Grand Duchess Anastasia. This woman is probably better known by the name Anna Anderson, and she's one of the most well known claimants to be anesthesia. It all started on February 27th of 1920 when a young woman attempted t to take her own life in Berlin by jumping off of a bridge and was rescued by a police sergeant and admitted to the Elizabeth Hospital on the lutes lutes So stress as she was without papers and refused to identify herself, she was admitted. As for line, huh? NBA Kant also know which means Miss Unknown. Um and she was in minute admitted to a mental halt

spk_0:   7:51
Hospital, Miss Unknown is way cooler than Jane Doe.

spk_1:   7:55
I mean, I agree. So she was invited to a mental hospital where she would remain for the next two years. The unknown patient had scars on her head and body and spoke German with an accent that was described as Russian by medical staff. In 1922 another psychiatric patient claimed that the unknown woman was the grand duchess Tatiana, who I think was the oldest daughter. I don't remember with cider Tatiana or Olga that we're the oldest. I think it's Tatiana. And upon her release, she told several Russian emigres that she had seen Tatiana at Doll Dorf, which was where the mental hospital waas. So while several of the emigres believed it, the Baroness Sophie books Holden Wow, German, Russian names. They're very hard and Russian and German names. They're very hard to wrap my American tongue around it. So the Baroness Sophie, who was a former lady in waiting lady in waiting to the Serena, was convinced that there was absolutely no way that she was one of the Russian grand duchesses and specifically said that she was far too short to be Tatiana. And as the only one there who actually had close interactions with the imperial family, it seems like she probably would have been a one to know. Probably theoretically, one would think, undeterred on his supporters apparently decided to switch grand duchesses, claiming now that she was, in fact anesthesia. They removed her from the asylum and gave her a room in the Berlin home of a Russian emigre. And she began calling herself and a Tchaikovsky, seemingly shortening anesthesia to Anna and not Anya, like in the movies Movie

spk_0:   9:30
on you. It sounds more Russian.

spk_1:   9:32
I mean, I agree. But whatever, her supporters arranged for several more imperial relations to meet her, including those arenas sister Princess Irene of Hess End by Ryan. And she didn't recognize her like either way. Boobs. Yeah. By 1925 Cekovsky had developed tuberculosis. In fact, Ter burger, a tuberculosis of infection in her arm, and she was placed in a succession of hospitals for treatment. While she was convalescing, she was visited by those arenas, groom of the chamber Alexey Volkov, Anastasia as tutor Pierre Gilyard, his wife, shura, who had also been infestations nurse, maid. And those are sister the Grand Duchess Olga, although they expressed sympathy even if it was just for her being ill. They made no immediate public declarations, and eventually they all denied that she was Anastasia. So eventually, at first I didn't really make any public announcements. And then, like when things I think when publicity's started picking up there like No, it's not heard like we will state that formally. So the Serena's brother, Ernest Louis, the grand Duke of Hess, hired a private detective. Martin gone off K N O P f no Martin oaf. Going enough, um, to investigate the claims that Tchaikovsky was anesthesia. His investigation resulted in the report that Tarkovsky was actually a Polish factory worker named Franziska Shinzo Ska, who I should've picked a top with left with less chairman name. So Shin's Oska had worked in a munitions factory during World War One when, shortly after her fiance had been killed on the front, Ah, grenade fell out of her hand and exploded.

spk_0:   11:15
Oh, boy.

spk_1:   11:15
So she was injured in the head and other parts of her body, which would explain the scars that were found on Cekovsky. Um, and um, she also it also killed a foreman, which, like she witnessed so like that could potentially explain part of her like mental state. She became apathetic and depressed and was declared insane on September 19th of 1916 and spent time in two different asylums. In early 1920 she was reported missing from her Berlin lodgings and since then had not been seen or heard from by her family. So right around the same time that she shows up jumping off a bridge is like not too long after she goes missing from her apartment. In May of 1927 Francisco's brother, Felix, was introduced to Schakowsky and, according to one account, initially, Felix declared that she was his sister. But the affidavit he signed spoke only of a strong resemblance and highlighted physical differences and said that she didn't recognize them, which, like you can fake not recognizing someone like that's not really a great German in, you know, So years later, Felix's family said that he actually knew Cekovsky was in fact his sister. But he had chosen to um can help her perpetuate her lie and leave her to her new life because it was far more comfortable than anything that, like his family could provide. So he was like, basically like, you got it. Good. Keep it going. Um, So another visitor to Tchaikovsky, Prince Felix, you suppose who is husband of Princess Irena? Alexandra Alexandrovna of Russia wrote quote. I claim category categorically that she is not a nest Asia, but Justin Adventurous, a sick hysteric and a frightful play actress. I simply cannot understand how anyone can be in doubt of this. Oh, so he felt pretty strongly on. And he also said something like in addition along the lines of like, um, I don't know how anyone could have ever mistaken this woman for a grand duchess or something like that, just like in a meaner way.

spk_0:   13:22
That's not very nice, you

spk_1:   13:23
know. It's not very nice. By 1928 word of this woman who claimed to be Anastasia had become sensationalized in the U. S. All the publicity caught the attention of a distant color cousin of anesthesia. Um, venial leads. I definitely first I couldn't thought that it was Zegna like your character, but it's z e n. I s, I think is actually Xenia, whatever being collars. And if you want no um

spk_0:   13:50
my Zegna was felt with the next.

spk_1:   13:51
That's true. Oh, sorry. No, it's it isn't access. X e n I A Sorry. I can't tell the difference between an exodus. He apparently

spk_0:   14:00
also. Not any single person listening to this will probably understand two. Zegna is podcast that were also D.

spk_1:   14:07
Oh,

spk_0:   14:09
yeah. So go check that out at 1/2. Wits failed chris dot com Concealing this plug. That's our mid mid show roll right there.

spk_1:   14:20
Okay, So Xenia Leeds was a former Russian princess who had married a wealthy American industrialist, and she paid for cekovsky to come to the U. S. Uh, and a state of the leads mansion in Oyster Bay, New York, for six months until a quarrel ConStor to move out. And the pianist Sergei. Oh, boy, rushman enough. Arranged for her to live.

spk_0:   14:42
Come on. Enough.

spk_1:   14:43
Nope, There's a ch I don't know, but this pianist, whose name I do not wanna re pronounce arranged for her to live at the Garden City Hotel in Hempstead, New York, And to avoid the press, she was booked in as Mrs Anderson, the name by which she was subsequently known. So that's the first time that she used the name and Anderson okay, which is like what she's known for and like what all of the like research and stuff pulled up was like pretty much Anna Anderson, like a k a Blank, a k whatever, Um, all of her other names. So in October of 1928 after the death of the czars mother, the Dowager Empress Marie, the 12 nearest relations of those are met at Marie's funeral and signed a declaration that denounced Anderson as an imposter. The Copenhagen statement, as it would come to be known, explained, quote, Our sense of duty compels us to state that the story is only a fairy tale. The memory of our dear departed would be tarnished if we allowed this fantastic story to spread and gain any credence. So Anderson's biggest supporter, Gleb Botkin, answered with a public letter to the Grand Duchess, Xenia Alexa Alexandra Drona of Russia, which referred to the family as quote, greedy and unscrupulous and claim that they were only denouncing Anderson for money, a k like, as in, to keep the what was left over of like the imperial property abroad. It was like they want to keep it in the family and, like, I didn't want to give anesthesia her do or whatever. And I'm like making a lot of air. Quote gestures eso. From early 1929 Anderson lived with any bird Jennings, who was a wealthy Park Avenue spinster who was happy to host someone that she thought was the daughter of a czar. For 18 months, Anderson was the toast of New York City society, and then a pattern of self destructive behavior began that culminated in her throwing tantrums, killing her pet parakeet and on boy, yeah, on one occasion, running around naked on the roof, that that screams psychotic break to

spk_0:   16:47
me little bit. Did you shave her head?

spk_1:   16:50
No, but I mean, she did run around naked on a roof. Who knows what else? Yeah, I know. So Anderson was subsequently committed to a mental hospital, but had to be forcibly taken from her room because she lost herself in and the door was broken down with an axe. And when I read that, all I could imagine was the Here's Johnny because you finally made me watch that in August of 1931 Anderson returned to Germany, accompanied by a private nurse in a locked cabin on the liner Deutschland. I did not investigate that further. I do not know if it was like to protect her, to predict the other people on board. I do not know why. Honestly, I was a little afraid to find out. Her return to Germany generated press interest Andrew More members of the German aristocracy to her cause, allowing her to live with them as their guest. So basically she's just like for last decades she's been going like supporter. Two heirs of supposed relation toe Russian aristocracy just bouncing from mansion dimension to mansion like as people's guests and staying there. That's a pretty cushy life. You

spk_0:   17:57
have some good couch surfing

spk_1:   17:59
that is like couch surfing to the extreme. In 1932 the British tabloid News of the World published a sensational story accusing her of being a Romanian actress who was purple, perpetuating a fraud. Her lawyer followed a suit for her, filed a suit for libel. But the lengthy case continued until the outbreak of World War Two, at which time the case was dismissed because Anderson was living in Germany and German residents couldn't sue in enemy countries Also. Yet, from 1938 lawyers acting for Anderson and Germany contested the distribution of the czars estate to his recognized relations, and they, in turn contested her identity. Obviously, the protracted proceedings became the longest running lawsuit in German history. So, like that's something no, um Anderson continued to be introduced to various former friends, distant relatives and acquaintances of the Grand Duchess Anastasia and her family, and they all had pretty mixed reactions. Unable to firmly establish her claim, Anderson became a recluse surrounded by cats, and her house began to decay in May of 1968. So, like 20 some odd years later, Anderson was taken to a hospital in New Enberg after being discovered semi conscious and her cottage. And in her absence, her cottage was cleaned by order of the local board of health, and her Irish wolfhound in 60 cats were put to death. Oh, yeah? So, like a a lot of cats be She was forced to go to this hospital, came back, found all of her pets have been killed in her absence. So then she moves back to the U. S. Which you know, what? I would have peace the heck out of there too.

spk_0:   19:40
Yeah. Frozen bad memories in that area.

spk_1:   19:42
Yeah, definitely what I would have done. So her supporter, Bodkin Gleb Botkin, offered to move her back to us, and she accepted. He was living in the university town of Charlottesville, Virginia, and a local friend of his history. Professor in genealogist John Econ. E caught. Sorry, E Kat. Um, his name is Jack Manahan. Oh, no. What? I had an English teacher in high school. His last name was Manahan. Now I'm wondering if there's a relation. Probably not. Um, but John Manahan paid for Anderson's journey to the United States. So Bodkin. But Qin didn't even pay for her to come. He got his friend to do it, But it all worked out in the end, because she entered the country on a six month visitor's visa. And shortly before it was due to expire, she married Manahan, who was, in fact, 20 years or junior. Oh, Yep. Um and they got married on December 23rd of 1968. So, Jack Man Han enjoyed this marriage of convenience, which I take to assume that they did not consummate, and she described he could describe himself as the Grand Duke and waiting and son in law to the czar, Um Manahan. Anderson became well known in the Charlottesville area as pretty excessive eccentrics. Though Jackman Han was wealthy, they lived in squalor with a large number of dogs and cats and piles of garbage. So some hoarding tendencies seem to be going on as well, with both Manahan and Anderson and failing health. In November of 1983 Anderson was institutionalized, and an attorney was appointed as her guardian by the local circuit court. A few days later, Manahan kidnapped Anderson from the hospital, and for three days they drove around Virginia, eating out of convenience stories. Oh, yep, after 1/3 of 13 state Police alarm, they were found and Anderson was returned to the care facility, and in January they think she had a stroke, but they didn't quite confirm it, but any in any way she did. She passed on February 12th of 1984 of pneumonia, So to wrap everything up in 1991 the bodies of Czar Nicholas, the second, the czarina Alexandra and three of their daughters were exhumed from a mass grave near Yekaterinburg. They were identified on the basis of both skeletal analysis and DNA testing, and the fact that only three daughters were found kept that, like possibility of survivors going, even though at this point pretty much all of them would be dead anyway. Um, or had other people who had claimed to be her had already admitted to lying and stuff. So pretty much all of the imposters were, like gone. So the bodies of the Czar Vic like, which is like same ideas. Like the French Tufan, it's the heir apparent. Or like the, um, official air. Alexy, who was the the son who was like the little boy and the remaining daughter, were discovered in 2007 repeated an independent DNA tests, confirmed that the remains were the seven members of the Romanov family and proved that none of the czars four daughters survived the shooting you. A sample of Anderson's tissue from an operation she had late in her life had been stored, and mitochondrial DNA was extracted from the sample and compared to that of the Romanovs and their relatives, the sample did not match the samples that were used to identify the Romanovs, confirming that Anderson had no relation to the imperial family and to wrap it all up with a nice little bow. They did match the DNA sample provided by Carl Mosher, a grandson of Francisca Francisca sister. So who they suppose an Anderson was in reality, the Francisco

spk_0:   23:31
with the last time. I don't want to

spk_1:   23:33
pronounce again. Um, her DNA matched her sister's grandson or her sister's grandson, indicating that Carl Mosher and Anderson were maternally related and that Anderson was, in fact, Francisca. Ah. Yep, And that is the story of Franziska Schenk. House Cup, a k a. In Anderson, a k a. Anesthesia cekovsky. The woman who claimed to be anesthesia.

spk_0:   23:58
But what about bar talk?

spk_1:   24:00
I know

spk_0:   24:00
nothing about bar talking this.

spk_1:   24:02
Yeah, that's from a movie, sweetie, there's no such thing as a talking bad. I'm sorry.

spk_0:   24:07
I don't believe

spk_1:   24:08
I didn't tell you about rescuing at all. Which meant that you didn't have a chance to sing that song.

spk_0:   24:12
He's bar talk. The magnificent

spk_1:   24:14
I mean, yes, bar talk is like my second favorite character in that whole thing right behind the dog.

spk_0:   24:21
And I take them, sir.

spk_1:   24:23
Uh, huh? Cool. I ran.

spk_0:   24:26
Okay, so my topic is on February 6 of 1935. The Monopoly Board game goes on sale for the first time.

spk_1:   24:35
Who? Your grandmother's most hated game.

spk_0:   24:38
Yeah. Good thing she doesn't listen to this. She go and shut it off? No,

spk_1:   24:42
she would. You know, I'm not listening to this. I'm glad I went first. Go that way. At least if she ever did listen to it, she'll listen to mine and then be like and shut you off,

spk_0:   24:52
huh? So I'd imagine here everyone already knows Monopoly is a real estate trading board game. The traditional game is played by rolling to dice, moving your token and then deciding whether or not you want to buy the space he landed on. Once you own a space, you charge the other visitors of that space rent and you can increase your rent by owning all of the spaces of the same color, granting you a monopoly and allowing you to build property to further increase your gains. The game is won when one player drives all the other players to bankruptcy.

spk_1:   25:27
I'm always the one who goes bankrupt first. Like we're kindly. Yep. I'm very bad at managing money both in Monopoly and in real life.

spk_0:   25:35
Uh, so the first version was created by Charles Darrow with the help of his wife and son. The board is square containing properties, a start location, jail, go to jail. Random events and taxes was originally drawn on oil cloth rather than a traditional game card. In

spk_1:   25:53
my burning question is, is Charles Darrow the basis for the monopoly? Man? No. Damn. Okay, sorry. Fine checks. I was hoping

spk_0:   26:05
we'll talk about Monopoly, man.

spk_1:   26:06
All right.

spk_0:   26:09
So the random event cards, known as trance and community chest along with the property deeds and titles were drawn by his wife and son. The icons on the different spaces were drawn by Darrow, and the properties were named after streets in or around New Jersey's Atlantic City.

spk_1:   26:26
Oh, interesting. I don't think I realized it was Atlantic City. I

spk_0:   26:30
you didn't know

spk_1:   26:31
that. I think I assumed it was New York, and I just didn't know it well enough to, like know, uh, which, in retrospect was really stupid. Because New York's said like, streets are all numbered. Yep. So that was really dumb on my part.

spk_0:   26:50
Yeah, they're all they're all based on Atlantic City, the kind of hinted that is boardwalk.

spk_1:   26:57
I'm dumb. It's fine.

spk_0:   27:01
So Darrow started making the game in small black boxes containing cards needed to play the game and, weirdly, didn't sell the cloth map game board with the

spk_1:   27:12
cards. That seems illogical.

spk_0:   27:15
Yeah, they were sold separately, and I have no idea how this was a good idea for a fledgling game in 1929 especially because this is the start of the Great Depression.

spk_1:   27:28
Wolf. I wonder if he started selling them before the Depression hit? Nope. Ope. Maybe he figured that you could play with just like the pieces without a poor feel

spk_0:   27:44
like you can.

spk_1:   27:45
No, you really can.

spk_0:   27:47
Kind of all about the board. Yeah. Anyways, Darrow submitted his game for copyright in 1933 and received it. When he did, he began looking for investors. First he went to Milton Bradley, the creator of the Checkered Game of Life. The End, also the largest board game company at the time they rejected him.

spk_1:   28:08
Oh, I wasn't I didn't know life was older than monopoly. Yes. Oh, I learned something new.

spk_0:   28:15
So Milton Bradley rejected him likely because they were facing their own debt crisis. I mean, it was the Depression.

spk_1:   28:22
So was everybody else

spk_0:   28:23
everybody else. So then he went to the Parker Brothers, who, like Milton Bradley, also rejected him. Virtually nowhere left to turn, Darrow began pitching his game to department stores and eventually got in the door of Wanamaker's department store for reference. If you recognized Wanamaker, maybe you won't. But Wanamaker would become Woodard and Lathrop or Woody's does what he's doing about Ah. Then it would become Hatch, which is part of the maid department store brand.

spk_1:   28:55
I'm dumb. I'm clearly not catching what you're putting down,

spk_0:   28:58
which today is known as the Macy's Bill.

spk_1:   29:03
All right? Yup, yup, yup.

spk_0:   29:04
Which is a national historic landmark?

spk_1:   29:06
Yes, it is and is very nice.

spk_0:   29:09
I was trying to remember what movie there's some movie where it's still labeled as the Woody building.

spk_1:   29:16
I don't know.

spk_0:   29:16
I'm sure if it's home alone or if it's

spk_1:   29:19
you

spk_0:   29:20
know, I'm trying to remember we'll be home to when they flick flies. Um, actually, no, they finally, Paris

spk_1:   29:26
or something. They do? Yeah. Um, but it became Macy's long before that movie was made um,

spk_0:   29:33
there's definitely a movie that I've watched where it's got the big Woodies sign on it

spk_1:   29:38
because I think Mayor even miracle on 34th Street it still is Macy's. Maybe, Um, it could be It's a wonderful life. I don't know. Maybe I don't know.

spk_0:   29:47
Anyway, it's nothing to do with Monopoly.

spk_1:   29:49
If anyone knows evil,

spk_0:   29:51
us years even want t o

spk_1:   29:53
lazy dis urgent. Please

spk_0:   29:55
interact with us.

spk_1:   29:56
Yeah, we were friends.

spk_0:   29:59
So once pocket Parker brothers caught wind of the deal with Wanamaker's, they were then onboard and reached out

spk_1:   30:05
to Sarah. Of course,

spk_0:   30:07
once the deal was struck, Darrow filed for a patent for the game and sold the patent to Parker Brothers, who began production on our date of February 6 of 1935 who by the end of that year, Monopoly was being reproduced 2000 times a week.

spk_1:   30:24
Oh my gosh,

spk_0:   30:24
making it the most popular game in America and making Darrow the first person to make a $1,000,000 as a game creator. Wow. Over the years, monopoly grew, and with it came many new editions of the game. I was surprised that they pretty much began making new additions and new boxes with new art in new cards and color changes nearly immediately, they just kept making different additions of monopoly.

spk_1:   30:51
I mean, considering I, like, specifically got you the Pokemon version because it was Pokemon. And, like we got the Firefly clue, I mean, admittedly, it probably wasn't that, but, like I get it. Yeah,

spk_0:   31:05
but like, normally, like I don't know if you think about board games, you probably think that board games were the same for years upon years upon years, but monopoly of initially what? Underwent a lot of changes after its release and after.

spk_1:   31:18
It's weird. Yeah, that is odd.

spk_0:   31:20
I don't know. If you look back, there's probably a chance that Monopoly was one of the first games to ever receive this kind of treatment.

spk_1:   31:28
Maybe. Yeah. If anyone is a board game historian.

spk_0:   31:32
No, I don't know. I didn't see anything about a kind of and think about it till just now. Yeah, So we're gonna take a quick trivia break since I have a bunch of random monopoly fax. Oh, God. The the most notable addition to the game is as Kylie RTGs, the Monopoly Man or Mr Monopoly,

spk_1:   31:51
who

spk_0:   31:52
that's what he's called now, at least. Do you know what his original name was? No. You're gonna dig. You guess?

spk_1:   31:59
Oh, um I can Who? Let me think. Uh, Mr Moneybags, I have no idea One part of

spk_0:   32:09
one of those words right

spk_1:   32:12
anymore, Max.

spk_0:   32:13
No, no, no use called rich Uncle Penny bags.

spk_1:   32:17
Oh, I didn't know that. You and I completely drew a blank when you

spk_0:   32:22
asked me. So when you think of Mr Monopoly or rich Uncle Penny bags, what type of glass is did he wear?

spk_1:   32:29
I want to say a monocle.

spk_0:   32:31
It's funny because a lot of other people also want to say a monocle, But he has never worn glasses in any official depictions. Kylie's just looking all around envy Wilstermann right

spk_1:   32:42
now. No, no, no. So

spk_0:   32:46
rich Uncle Penny bags and his monocle or one of the most prominent,

spk_1:   32:51
like glitch in the manger is kind of thing.

spk_0:   32:53
Yeah. What? What the heck is it? Most prominent examples of the Mandela effect. Yeah.

spk_1:   32:58
Oh, my God. You're right. Yep. Gosh,

spk_0:   33:01
never had a monocle. Everything for those who don't know, the Mandela effect was coined when people thought that Nelson Mandela, Nelson Mandela had died in jail. He did not. And it kind of spread like wildfire. And people remember that. That's what happened. So when he wasn't dead, people were really confused. And then there were a bunch of other different things. Like the Baron stained bears versus the Baron Steen Bears.

spk_1:   33:29
Yeah.

spk_0:   33:29
And people having, like, vivid memories. And even I've seen, like, some pictures that people have.

spk_1:   33:34
Yeah, I The last time I was home, I went looking through all of our kids books for our Bernstein Bare books to try and find it. And it blew my freaking mind.

spk_0:   33:45
Yeah, it's not barren. Steen, right? Stayne

spk_1:   33:49
have absolutely no idea how to, like, compute this

spk_0:   33:52
information. So some people think the Mandela effect is different universes or different timelines colliding? Yep. In that, somehow some people, when timelines Clyde get whiffs or memories. Or maybe we're different timeline versions of themselves that got stuck her cross with another timeline.

spk_1:   34:11
Yeah, I think I realized why. I always thought Mr, um, Monopoly guy haven't, um, Monocle the original Mr. Peanut does. Yes. And he's wearing, like, a little suit thing in like a top hat. I think my really dumb brain just combined them both. So I always thought Monopoly guy had

spk_0:   34:31
a monocle or you're from a different timeline

spk_1:   34:33
where I'm from a different timeline. I know. I like that version. Better.

spk_0:   34:39
Two veggie got stuck in this one. This one is not that great.

spk_1:   34:41
Oh, God, This is awful.

spk_0:   34:44
So there are two others characters that are present on a monopoly board. There is a guy in jail and the police officer. And they also have names for the jailed person. Do you think that their name was Dave the Delinquent? Jake the jailbird? Pete the prisoner or Bob behind bars?

spk_1:   35:02
Can you repeat those one more time?

spk_0:   35:04
We've got Dave the Delinquent, Jake the jailbird, Pete the prisoner or Bob behind bars.

spk_1:   35:12
I want to say Bob behind bars.

spk_0:   35:14
A. It was Jake the jailbird. Earn it or I should say, Still is Jake the jailbird?

spk_1:   35:18
That was gonna be my next guess.

spk_0:   35:20
I think it's funny that they even named these two guys.

spk_1:   35:22
I know, right?

spk_0:   35:24
So for our friendly go to jail, police officer was their name. Officer Mallory, Officer Knox, Officer Powers or Officer Barney.

spk_1:   35:34
Either Knox or Barney and darn it, Officer Mallory cheese, Would you? Thinking like Knox. Like Fort Knox

spk_0:   35:43
Link? I don't know. I made up. All of them

spk_1:   35:45
were the worst.

spk_0:   35:47
So apparently Mallory is French and means the unlucky one, which I would argue that the officer is not the unlucky one here.

spk_1:   35:56
I would agree with you.

spk_0:   35:58
So with new additions also came new pieces to play with The original patent included six pieces and ah, which ones do you think we're the original six?

spk_1:   36:07
Okay, um, the horse. Oh, you're not gonna tell me if I'm getting one of them. Right? Okay. The symbol, the shoe. Gosh. No, I can't run with the other ones. Um, is there a wheelbarrow? There is the wheelbarrow. Um, what do the other one

spk_0:   36:24
we just played over Christmas Eve? Like

spk_1:   36:26
we do every

spk_0:   36:27
Christmas Eve.

spk_1:   36:28
You know what? I don't even remember what token I wasthe.

spk_0:   36:30
You're only two away.

spk_1:   36:32
I know. Um, what is it? Okay, so there's also a battleship. There's a ship? No. Is there? I have no idea. Um oh. Um, okay. Is it okay? So we have the symbol, we have the wheelbarrow, we have the shoe, and we have what was version? I said the horse

spk_0:   36:51
to more. Remember these air original?

spk_1:   36:54
All right. Um, the car. Okay, that's just okay. Um, more

spk_0:   37:00
gosh, I will. I will let you know there is a battleship. Okay. You you were debating whether or not one existed? Yes.

spk_1:   37:06
He couldn't remember for some reason. Do

spk_0:   37:08
you think that's the original?

spk_1:   37:09
No, because I think it looks too modern. Um, last. Yeah, I know. What else is there? Gosh,

spk_0:   37:17
there's a top hat and a dog.

spk_1:   37:19
He's a

spk_0:   37:20
time one bag and

spk_1:   37:22
deny

spk_0:   37:22
And the cannon. And

spk_1:   37:25
I think the top hat

spk_0:   37:26
top at it's my last one. By the original six were the thimble The cannon gets in iron top hat, a boot in a battleship.

spk_1:   37:37
So, like, the shoe with the boot like you Okay. All right. Well,

spk_0:   37:43
I'm just giving you their

spk_1:   37:44
33 out of six. I

spk_0:   37:47
was just giving you their actual names. Like their monopoly sanctioned.

spk_1:   37:50
Yeah, I passed.

spk_0:   37:52
So those six, we're not the only six pieces originally produced by the Parker Brothers.

spk_1:   37:57
They

spk_0:   37:58
were just the six that were on the patent. There was also a race car, a lantern, a purse and a rocking horse. The horse you were thinking.

spk_1:   38:05
00 because my parents have a super old version. Like from, like, the fifties. I think like it's really old. And it only has like this. It has the iron. I forgot

spk_0:   38:19
about the iron. It has an iron. Yep.

spk_1:   38:21
Um, but I do think it does have the rearing horse in it.

spk_0:   38:25
The rearing worse was later. Ah, there was a rocking horse. Originally.

spk_1:   38:29
Interesting. Do you know when the, uh, rearing horse came in?

spk_0:   38:33
Yes. I'm not sure when I write wrote it down on my notes, so we'll get there. All right, So the 1st 3 additional pieces to the set where the horse and rider. There we go. Yeah, the wheelbarrow and the Scottie dog. Those were the

spk_1:   38:46
first to have a puppy.

spk_0:   38:47
Those were the first initial additions, and the set remained unchanged. Player piece wise from 1942 to 1999.

spk_1:   38:57
Oh. Yep. Already. Then our Our version is super duper old.

spk_0:   39:03
Well, it could be anywhere in that rain.

spk_1:   39:05
Yeah, that's a big range.

spk_0:   39:07
And in 1999 the horse and rider were replaced with the short lived money bag which only existed for seven years.

spk_1:   39:14
Yeah. I don't think I've ever played with one that has the money bag.

spk_0:   39:17
We have the money bag.

spk_1:   39:18
Oh, you D'oh! Oh, well,

spk_0:   39:20
I normally play is the top out of the money bag.

spk_1:   39:22
Oh, you I know we played and someone took the dog, and I was very upset.

spk_0:   39:28
I think Megan takes the dog normally don't want where so the money bag was the first community pole to add a new piece. And in 2013 there was another poll to add a new piece in the winner was a cat. So since 2013 there has been a cat piece. All

spk_1:   39:44
right, We need a new version

spk_0:   39:45
of Monopoly Happy's. And then there was one more poll in 2017 that picked up three new pieces and retired the wheel barrel thimble am boot. The top three from our new poll. Where the penguin rubber duck and the terrain. A source Rex.

spk_1:   40:02
Oh, my gosh.

spk_0:   40:03
Oddly, all birds. What? I mean, birds descended from T Rexes. Oh, fine. The chicken,

spk_1:   40:12
the chicken in the a

spk_0:   40:13
good, you know, just a chicken in the T. Rex.

spk_1:   40:15
Yeah. I mean, I ministers laid eggs. So, like I guess. All right.

spk_0:   40:20
And they had feathers.

spk_1:   40:21
True. That's true.

spk_0:   40:22
Mmm. These are the official token changes that happened to the base out of the game. At least, like I mentioned before, there were many additions and any that weren't some kind of anniversary release or general update to the game were based on other elements such as geography, history or pop culture on these editions generally came with complete overhauls, including completely new pieces

spk_1:   40:44
and new rules for some of them.

spk_0:   40:46
Yeah, that's true. So there are over 1100 license sets that air officially released. Oh, my gosh. These sets include Alaska. I did A rod addition mentioned that we just did the robbery. Also quite a weird thing. Not just Alaska. Alaska. I did a rod,

spk_1:   41:05
right? Like I'm not sure unless you're just buying straight a bland and ice. I don't know what you're monopolizing

spk_0:   41:12
out their new sled dog

spk_1:   41:15
trees. Maybe

spk_0:   41:16
it just gets weirder. Ah, but the Belkin addition. Yes, the router company. Why? I don't know. I

spk_1:   41:25
don't Gosh. All right,

spk_0:   41:27
the Zulu edition.

spk_1:   41:28
Okay, That would make sense.

spk_0:   41:30
That's funny. The dual master's edition, which, for those who don't know is magic. The gathering aimed for a younger Japanese audience. It lasted in the U. S. For probably only two or three years before American audiences didn't like it. And

spk_1:   41:43
I'm assuming that version of Monopoly is probably more popular in like Japan and China. And

spk_0:   41:47
I just can't believe they had a version of Dual Master's monopoly. I have dual master's cards because he's like all sorts of nerdy stuff like that,

spk_1:   41:56
huh?

spk_0:   41:57
There were four different Elvis additions. Hellboy, a fizzy no addition who is a pop culture landscape painter.

spk_1:   42:05
Oh,

spk_0:   42:05
Garfield Edition Heinz Ketchup Edition. Why Gamestop. Exclusive. Stephen King's It Addition. Why?

spk_1:   42:14
Why games The games

spk_0:   42:16
stop. Have exclusivity over that.

spk_1:   42:18
Why not like Barnes and Noble, or like you know something that actually just even to read

spk_0:   42:23
anything? I have no idea. I don't know. Game stops, old board games.

spk_1:   42:29
I don't think they do anymore, huh? They barely sell real games anymore.

spk_0:   42:35
A juicy couture addition Al got an addition entirely in Cling on.

spk_1:   42:39
Yes, foreign.

spk_0:   42:41
Ask our traditions and Olympic Edition. Five Pokemon addition Uh, a Q VC, the late night shopping network edition.

spk_1:   42:51
What is that? What even is

spk_0:   42:53
that I think you ve snow. That's like if you stayed up like too late, it was like, came on at, like, midnight. And it was just constant. It was like the king of infomercials. So is Q VC and

spk_1:   43:06
I've seen infomercials, but I don't I don't think I

spk_0:   43:08
saw that in particular. I know you don't know this person very well, but micro from Dirty Jobs. He started off as a Q VC spokesperson, and he actually made He was one of the people who made Q VC popular because he was gonna do that. It was just kind of crap. So he wasn't super. Ah, tactful about his descriptions of the different items. Spending first I'm like, actually really entertaining late night TV was to watch him try out or try to explain these late night Gap gimmick things. I don't know if anyone can hear that, but our dog is growling in sleep. Poor Bilbo.

spk_1:   43:48
He's like, completely passed out and you're just

spk_0:   43:51
talking at all. It's a nice here, and I'm like, Oh, there were two Ren and Stimpy additions, which blows my mind that there was any of them never to different running stem peas, a Socialism edition. Oh, Team Fortress to addition. What is that? It's a video game that was part of a, um it was part of something called the Orange box, which was an experimental, uh, like a like a graphics tests that valve. Did the people who own steam?

spk_1:   44:21
Oh, interesting, eh?

spk_0:   44:22
Orange box came with team Fortress to half left. Um, half life two and portal. Okay, then that was the only way to get any of those games was to buy the bundle that had all three of them.

spk_1:   44:36
It was

spk_0:   44:37
kind of an interesting thing,

spk_1:   44:38
because you like portal

spk_0:   44:40
I I like all of those games. They're all good. Uh, there's a unicorn's first llama edition. I don't know why I want that one. A Volkswagen edition. Something called woot. Exclamation point op. Aly, I I don't know X x x op Aly Uh What? Well, that sounds bad. It was dirty. Oh, no. A Yokai Watch edition, Elka And finally zapped edition. I did one for every letter of the alphabet because there's thousands of

spk_1:   45:11
I think, you know, there, Harry Potter editions. And like other

spk_0:   45:15
I just tried to pick some were

spk_1:   45:16
here and everything. Yeah, I know you. You found some good weird

spk_0:   45:19
ones. Yeah, and the zapped edition somehow required you to have both aboard and a tablet to play a boy. I don't I don't know why now. There are also some non Parker brothers produced monopoly spinoffs, most notably a game called Antimonopoly, developed by Ralph and Spot in 1973. Anti Monopoly is a game where, in the original version, the game starts where supposedly a previous game of Monopoly has ended. You play as federal case workers, indicting establishment ah, please and returning the titles and deeds to the free market. A later version of the game, which I believe we own somewhere.

spk_1:   45:59
Really?

spk_0:   46:00
Yeah, I think

spk_1:   46:00
you

spk_0:   46:01
played it with us at one point. Kiley. We're trying to figure out how to play because it was a little more complicated.

spk_1:   46:06
I don't recall that, but it's possible.

spk_0:   46:08
Yeah, I think it's probably at my grandma's house, but in this version it was more similar to a normal game of monopoly. But instead you got to choose choose if you played as competitors or monopolise, and each of them came with their own pros and cons. Whereas like competitors could immediately start building houses on anything they purchased. But every all of their rents were lower, and monopolies had to get all of their color patterns before they could start building again. But their rents were much higher. So it's kind of like adding, like an interesting dynamic.

spk_1:   46:40
Yeah, I know that. That's very interesting. E

spk_0:   46:43
think there were some other pros and cons as well. Now the reason I'm mentioning antimonopoly is because it's extremely important to the history of Monopoly because they were because antimonopoly got trademark suit by the then owners of Monopoly General Mills Fund Group.

spk_1:   46:58
Oh, no,

spk_0:   46:59
I can't think of a more un fun sounding group.

spk_1:   47:02
I know

spk_0:   47:02
Cheryl Mills fun group that sued Antimonopoly. So during this lawsuit, Ralph and spotted his own digging into the history of Monopoly to try and find anything that they could prove anything so that he could prove that they can't shut him down for the use of the very common word Monopoly. Uh, in his research, Ralph stumbled upon something much more damning than his original defense. Who? Charles Darrow, as it turns out, stole monopoly. Mom, Uh, so Charles had been visiting his friend Charles Todd for game nights. And Todd was excited to show off a game that he made from memory of a game that he and his wife played while visiting Atlantic City, New Jersey. Oh, this game was a custom version of another game known as the Landlord's Game. Apparently, people had come accustomed to adding names to the nameless property tiles of the landlord's game. Hence, where the New Jersey Street names come on, Monopoly.

spk_1:   48:06
Oh,

spk_0:   48:08
because the version that these people played was popular in New Jersey, where they added New Jersey street names.

spk_1:   48:16
Mmm mmm mmm mmm Mmm mmm. I'm going to make a joke. That a reason to hate, But, uh, something good came out in New Jersey.

spk_0:   48:21
Uh oh, boy

spk_1:   48:24
and reason and kill me. Sorry, Emory, I love you. You're the other great thing that came out of New Jersey. It's

spk_0:   48:30
a little late now. Lead with at least two good things exist in New Jersey.

spk_1:   48:34
That's you. I should have done that. But I'm dumb. You love me. Still right? Bait. Right, Amory, please. Anyways,

spk_0:   48:42
so Darrow asked Todd if he could copy the rules so that he could play back home and hot agreed obviously friend make. And when Todd found out the Darrow created Monopoly, he was furious and never spoke to him again.

spk_1:   48:55
I would Well, I guess you couldn't really have sued him, but, like I would've been pissed, too. Yeah, executed.

spk_0:   49:02
So the landlord's game was originally created and patented by Elizabeth Maggie in 1904 That's 12 5 years before Darrow stole the game swamp. Looking at the original patent for the landlord's game, it's almost immediately recognizable as monopoly. It had four railroads evenly positioned in the center of their respective streets. The corners were larger spaces that contained a jail, a go to jail, a public park, slash poor house, free parking, huh, and a globe all in the exact orientation of the modern monopoly. The globe being hello. There were also light, and water franchises in the same space is as electric company and waterworks

spk_1:   49:47
in the

spk_0:   49:47
luxury tax was also the same.

spk_1:   49:49
Oh my gosh,

spk_0:   49:50
the prices, as you advance around this from the starting location where cheap and got more expensive. The further around the board you went and rent increased as well. It's exactly

spk_1:   50:00
a shame, it really is. That's All right, dude, Like, it's one thing to steal someone else's game, but to leave it exactly the same. How dumb are you?

spk_0:   50:11
Yeah, well, well, well, Maybe not. Get the how dumb he is, But we'll get thio how this stayed buried So quick aside, Elizabeth Maggie was no stranger to patents, games or even the Parker brothers.

spk_1:   50:25
No,

spk_0:   50:26
Maggie at the age of 26 became a patent holder for the paper for a paper feed that improved typewriters. Att. This time, less than 1% of patents were held by women. Never mind a woman so young. Yeah, this guard ird her quite a bit of respect. And also, as a side note, this recognition allowed her for a brief time to become a rather radical feminist on her most famous stunt was demonstrating by attempting to sell herself as a young slave American woman on the street.

spk_1:   50:56
Interesting choice.

spk_0:   50:58
Well, I mean, the basically what she was saying is, you know, minorities in black people are slaves, like, uh, it's also Americans are slaves. American women are slaves, which was extremely radical for this was pretty when she did this is just like 18 80 something

spk_1:   51:17
Yeah, so, like the very like early heir of the while. Not that Emily, but like pretty early on and like the women's movement, like women's rights.

spk_0:   51:26
Oh, yes, yeah. And she was only like, 26.

spk_1:   51:28
Yeah, that's that's pretty young, considering most of the, like, main leaders. I mean, like, by the way almost a lot of them were dead

spk_0:   51:36
by the time women got the vote rights hurt webs. So the second pattern that she filed was for the landlord's game. Which makes me question how anyone ever left Monopoly to get patented. Great. Because this existed

spk_1:   51:51
clear. Like clearly no one checked to make sure wasn't the same

spk_0:   51:55
get on his gaming. And

spk_1:   51:56
I already like you let the whole point of a patent that, like it stops other people from trying to market your idea.

spk_0:   52:03
Yeah, you can literally put the two patents, like overlay them on each other and they're almost the same. The only real difference is like there were a few like there a few things that were shift around on the board, but really not many. And then the, uh, Charles Darrow slash Parker Brothers. Patton had like, the pieces as well as part of the pattern where Elizabeth Matty's was just the the board and instructions on how to play so kind of ironically. Ah, she never intended the landlord's game to be fun.

spk_1:   52:37
Wait, What?

spk_0:   52:38
Yeah, it was actually just another demonstration, of course. And she was trying to show just how little investment those with money needed to put in tow owning property and how much money it takes for a renter to exist in the same property. I

spk_1:   52:53
mean, she's not wrong.

spk_0:   52:55
Yeah, and obviously, the intent was to show how that influence harms the economy as those with property can eventually own many properties, pricing out everyone and creating a poverty class where at the beginning of the game, there was no poverty or wealthy class.

spk_1:   53:11
Yep, everyone was equal.

spk_0:   53:12
But the whole game is intending to bankrupt people. And obviously it works because, yeah, games.

spk_1:   53:17
Yeah, people became a lot.

spk_0:   53:20
So it's a sometimes

spk_1:   53:21
in tears.

spk_0:   53:22
Yeah, and it was apparently intended to be that way.

spk_1:   53:25
I mean, that explains a lot.

spk_0:   53:27
So now, not long after the landlord's game, a certain game company, Parker Brothers, purchased another one of her games. She had shown them a few of her other games as well as the one that they ended up purchasing because she kind of had a proclivity for prototyping new games. Fair enough. Interestingly, the game Parker Brothers bought was called Mock Trial. It was a comedic card game where one person was a judge who questioned a prisoner about a crime. And the prisoner had to construct an answer with all the words on the cards that were in their hand. Sound familiar, huh? Yeah. So I'm personally surprised that cards against humanity took almost 100 years to develop when there was already a mock trial which is essentially cards against humanity.

spk_1:   54:18
Yeah. Huh.

spk_0:   54:20
And apparently it was very funny.

spk_1:   54:23
I mean, it was anything like hers against humanity.

spk_0:   54:25
Yeah, I'm sure it is. So this kind of leads into a second point about the Parker brothers, and, um, those mismatches games. When Magic discovered that the Parker brothers were selling Monopoly, which was a clear rip off of a game, she already showed them. The Parker brothers responded essentially with keep quiet and we'll buy more of your other games. Oh, so hey, she did sell them two more games and then Parker brothers hardly published them.

spk_1:   54:53
Oh,

spk_0:   54:54
and once it was clear that this would be an issue. The they discovered Madge is patent had expired and purchased the rights to the patent.

spk_1:   55:03
Oh, never

spk_0:   55:04
burying her name.

spk_1:   55:05
Oh, no, that's awful.

spk_0:   55:08
But now that we've come full circle back to the lawsuit with Anti Monopoly, the creator of Anti Monopoly discovered all of this and brought it back to light. Yeah, and for ham. And as the patent for Landlords game expired in 1921 12 years before the Parker Brothers purchased Monopoly and the patent for landlord Ralph argued that it had been in the public domain for too long for General Mills to claim that anti monopoly was theft of their newly discovered theft. That was monopoly

spk_1:   55:40
on, and he won. Good job, dude.

spk_0:   55:44
So that is the true story about the game that ruins all family game nights. Yeah.

spk_1:   55:52
Interesting. If

spk_0:   55:54
I wasn't expecting to find that

spk_1:   55:56
No. Yeah, that's that's a lot of fun. Yeah, I knew, like, next to nothing about

spk_0:   56:02
Monopoly, considering I thought it was

spk_1:   56:04
in New York.

spk_0:   56:04
So there were two more things that I read that I must have forgotten to put down, but the whole bit in the beginning with Charles Creek and his wife and son making all the drawings that are on the monopoly board. Ah, false. Ralph also discovered that that was B. S because he found, um, he found papers or something that proved that that Darrow hired a graphic designer to do it.

spk_1:   56:30
Oh, my gosh.

spk_0:   56:32
So that wasn't even really

spk_1:   56:33
God. This dude's just like lying up the wazoo.

spk_0:   56:36
And he was the first person to make a $1,000,000 off a game,

spk_1:   56:39
and it was all it was false. It was based on lies. You sit on a throne of life. He sits on a throne of life.

spk_0:   56:48
And that was another thing that I ran into was with all the different versions of Monopoly. How expensive do you think is the most expensive version of monopoly? You can buy 120 try two million. Why? Because a jeweler made a solid gold version of Monopoly that instead of having colors where, like the bars are where you put your properties, he put gemstones. You

spk_1:   57:14
know, I don't like

spk_0:   57:17
that. And the solid gold dice had, um, diamond in lays I free what those little buttons were called on dice. They're like pimps or pits or something like that. No idea. Pips. They're called pit tips. Dots on a dice.

spk_1:   57:33
All right.

spk_0:   57:34
Yep. So they just solid gold. All the deeds were solid gold. There were diamonds everywhere. There was, You know, Rubies and sapphires. $2 million for the most expensive monopoly game. That's absolutely insane. That is bonkers. Yep. Anyway, you

spk_1:   57:53
never buy in.

spk_0:   57:54
No, I think it's in a museum. Uh,

spk_1:   57:56
well, I feel a

spk_0:   57:56
little better, but someone may have bought it in the new donated to museum. Yeah, Or maybe the ruler did. Maybe the jeweler has made it. Gave it away.

spk_1:   58:05
Maybe. Who knows?

spk_0:   58:08
There's some pictures of it you can find online. It's It's pretty.

spk_1:   58:11
I don't have to look that up. Yeah,

spk_0:   58:13
OK. Time for our call to action so you can find us on Facebook and Twitter at I almost said, failed Critz

spk_1:   58:20
half latest

spk_0:   58:21
half with history. You can find our website at www dot half wit. Dash history dot com. You can find our Ko Phi at Keough Dash F i dot com forward slash halfway history.

spk_1:   58:36
Who

spk_0:   58:37
and am I missing anything? You can reach out to us at half wit pot at gmail dot com.

spk_1:   58:43
Yeah, we'd love to hear from you. If anyone has the answer to the question I asked earlier that I have already forgotten. Please send it our way. E

spk_0:   58:50
mail tweet, Facebook, whatever. All

spk_1:   58:52
of the above. That would be fun.

spk_0:   58:56
Okay. And thank you to the fishermen for the use of our steam song. Another day you can find a link to his soundcloud down in our show notes and also thank you to our friend Ashley, who has been compiling all these things for us.

spk_1:   59:09
Yes, it is supremely helpful.

spk_0:   59:12
And I love it not having toe wade through all of the junk of on this day in

spk_1:   59:17
his room. Or like, I mean, I have, like, four or five other like fact sites like that are like that that I usually check.

spk_0:   59:26
Oh, yeah.

spk_1:   59:26
It's like this literally saves us ours. You like so much time. It's amazing. Engine. It's so organized. Thank you.

spk_0:   59:34
Yeah. She gets, like about 10 or so sometimes more, probably 15 between their different events per day. So it's nice that we can sort through. You know, we haven't elected to get what we need.

spk_1:   59:48
Yep. I also enjoy seeing what she recommends. Sometimes I'm like, Oh, yeah, that's a good idea. And then sometimes, unlike that's a sport related thing and I know nothing about it.

spk_0:   59:57
Sports ball E. Maybe someday we'll do sports.

spk_1:   1:0:02
Ah,

spk_0:   1:0:04
but anyways, if you want to hear something or do something like Ashley's doing, please feel free to send a suggestions. We'll take them.

spk_1:   1:0:13
Yes, we will happily take them and we will do all the legwork for you. So I have to do is tell us. Just tell us an event or something of that sort. Or like I'd like to learn more. I'd like to hear more about pirates or something, and we'll do all the hard work Well. And by that I mean Ashley will do all the hard work.

spk_0:   1:0:30
Hopefully find us a hopefully find us. If you have, like an event that you really want to hear, just send us the date of the event.

spk_1:   1:0:38
Yeah, that might mean

spk_0:   1:0:39
that the general suggestions from that will take them all

spk_1:   1:0:43
I'll take. I will take all suggestions. Jonathan can be picky if he wants to.

spk_0:   1:0:47
I'm gonna be picky. That's any real suggestions. Ah, boy, I don't care how far in advance as long as there. As long as they have a date. Associate ID?

spk_1:   1:0:55
Yeah. Fair enough. Is it fun? Fact type,

spk_0:   1:0:58
is it? Did we do everything? Oh, I guess we'll just plug our other show officially instead of Ah, through little snippets here we started a Dungeons and Dragons podcast or well, or just the tabletop role playing podcast is we're already about to record our second season.

spk_1:   1:1:14
Yes, which is not Dungeons and Dragons.

spk_0:   1:1:16
No, it is stars without number. So if you like that kind of thing and you like listening to us and you want to hear more of us being goofballs, head over to half wits failed Critz on Twitter or Facebook. Or you can send, um or

spk_1:   1:1:31
or search for in whatever pod catcher you use.

spk_0:   1:1:34
Yeah, and yeah. Our website is half what's failed, kurtz dot com. Yep. Okay. Fun fax.

spk_1:   1:1:39
Yes. Do you have more than one?

spk_0:   1:1:42
I have to. You can pick one.

spk_1:   1:1:43
Oh, my. All right. I'm going Thio pick one because I thought it was interesting. Okay. February 7th of 18 45. The Portland vase, a Roman cameo vase thought to date to the first century BC, is shattered into more than 80 pieces by a drunken visitor to the British Museum.

spk_0:   1:2:04
Oh, no.

spk_1:   1:2:05
Yep. The vandal was a man named William Lloyd who, after drinking all of the previous week through a new nearby sculpture on top of the case, smashing both it and the vase.

spk_0:   1:2:15
Oh, boy.

spk_1:   1:2:16
He was then arrested and charged with the crime of willful damage. But because of an error in the wording of the law, he ended up being convicted not for the like destruction of the vase, but for the destruction of the case it was inside of because there is a limit to how much like willful damage, like worth could be so like to charge him with willful damage. It had to be under us under a certain, like price value or whatever. And so because the vase was more, they charged him for the glass case.

spk_0:   1:2:46
Well, some money.

spk_1:   1:2:48
Yep. And the name William Lloyd is thought to be a pseudonym. And investigators hired by the British Museum conducted, uh, concluded that he was actually a man named William Mukai, a student who had gone missing from Trinity College. Thankfully, the vase Scott pieced back together and was later restored and is still on display in the British Museum. Cool. So all's well that ends well, I guess that

spk_0:   1:3:11
s o Mine is February 4th of 1960 to a Russian newspaper. Izvestiya reports that baseball is, in fact, an old Russian game.

spk_1:   1:3:22
No.

spk_0:   1:3:24
So I guess I get to tie both of our topics together with Russians and lies.

spk_1:   1:3:28
So yes, you d'oh.

spk_0:   1:3:33
Anyways, thank you for listening and a cz always I've been your half wit and I'm your historian way.