Is All Fair in Fun and Games? Ruthless: Monopoly’s Secret History

February 22, 2023

Ruthless: Monopoly’s Secret History premiered on American Experience on PBS stations on Tuesday, February 20 at 10 p.m. Stream full episode.

Games have rules, but who hasn’t yelled, “that’s not fair!” when we took a turn for the worse? For generations, Monopoly has been America’s favorite board game, a love letter to unbridled capitalism and — for better or worse — the impulses that make our free-market society tick. But behind the myth of the game’s creation is an untold tale of theft, obsession and corporate double-dealing. Not all is fair in fun and games. Part detective story, part sharp social commentary and part pop-culture celebration, the film American Experience: Ruthless: Monopoly’s Secret History presents the fascinating true story of the game and those who created it, including Lizzie Magie. Directed by Stephen Ives (Constitution USA; Amato: A Love Affair With Opera).

Lizzie Magie, The Landlord's Game Inventor
Lizze Magie (1866-1948), inventor of The Landlord's Game. She was granted a U.S. patent for it on January 5, 1904.
Landlord's Game board
The Landlord's Game board, invented by Lizzie Magie.
Boxer Muhammad Ali at home
Boxer Muhammad Ali at home with local children playing Monopoly. Photo by Steve Schapiro/Corbis via Getty Images)
Professor Ralph Anspach
Professor Ralph Anspach, who has produced his own version of the board game Monopoly called Anti-monopoly. Photo by Monty Fresco/ANL/Shutterstock (5832096a).
Professor Ralph Anspach, inventer of Anti-Monopoly game
Professor Ralph Anspach, inventor of a game called "Anti-Monopoly," is locked in a legal battle with General Mills over his claim that the company stole the game "Monopoly" from the public. Anspach says the game was played on home-made boards like these -- one from 1914 at left and another from 1926 at right -- before General Mills' Parker Brothers patented it in 1935. Anspach poses July 7, 1976. (AP Photo)
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