Attention board game lovers – Memphis is getting a special edition of the legendary board game Monopoly.
“Monopoly: Memphis Edition,” announced Tuesday at the Peabody Hotel, will feature suggestions from the community as well as iconic locations such as Graceland, the National Civil Rights Museum and the Memphis Zoo.
Memphis residents can submit their suggestions for locations to appear on the board, as well as tokens, community cards and chance cards, through September 30. Ideas can be emailed to [email protected].
“Everyone has different opinions about their favorite restaurants and different experiences. By sharing all of that with us, you can create a board that makes locals and visitors alike feel good,” says Sarah Bowman, Sales Manager at Top Trumps. Top Trumps and Hasbro are the licensors of the Memphis Monopoly edition.
Bowman said the game will go on sale in Memphis in April and will cost $39.99.
“We look for places that have a lot of hometown pride,” Bowman said. “There’s a huge music scene, food scene, educational opportunities, museums, beautiful parks, and we want to honor and celebrate that in the Memphis edition of Monopoly.”
Ted Townsend, President and CEO of the Greater Memphis Chamber, was excited about the special edition and brought along two toy figures – the top hat and the race car – that he often used as a child to make the announcement.
“It’s exciting to bring this moment into the homes of Memphis and highlight the wonderful assets we have here as a community,” said Townsend. “I can’t wait to play the Memphis version of Monopoly.”
How many Monopoly special editions are there?
The Memphis Monopoly game is just the latest in a series of several hundred special editions created over the nine decades since the capitalist board game was introduced by Parker Brothers (now part of Hasbro) in 1935 as a kind of ironic catharsis for those struggling through the Great Depression, collectors, sports club fans, pop culture buffs, and other niche audiences.
Monopoly special editions have been inspired by dozens of movies, television shows, comic books, cartoons, entertainers, sports franchises and American institutions, from Batman and Robin to Britney Spears, from the St. Louis Cardinals to “Ted Lasso,” from the Boy Scouts of America to the Three Stooges.
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There were celebrations in many cities too. New York and Chicago, of course, but also Corpus Christi in Texas, Boise in Idaho and – yes, Memphis – Nashville.
Although Memphis has never been the focus of a Monopoly edition before, the city’s most famous resident, Elvis Presley, has appeared on the board so many times that he’s probably on first-name terms with the game’s mascot, “Mr. Monopoly.”
Four special “Elvis” editions of Monopoly have been released over the years. The games generally take players from humble Tupelo, Mississippi, to the grandiose Graceland (the inevitable replacement for Boardwalk, the poshest property on a traditional game board), with stops along the way including Blue Hawaii and Viva Las Vegas.
The official Monopoly special editions are not to be confused with the various imitations on the market, which include a “Memphis-opoly” game published by Cincinnati-based Late for the Sky, a company specializing in “-opoly” board games (“Vermont-opoly,” “Oahu-opoly”) and having no connection with the original brand.
Jacob Wilt is a reporter at The Commercial Appeal. You can reach him at [email protected].
