 Logo used between 1981 and 2001 | |
| Formerly | George S. Parker Company |
|---|---|
| Company type | Division |
| Industry | Entertainment |
| Founded | 1883; 143 years ago (1883) |
| Founder | George Swinnerton Parker |
| Defunct | 1998; 28 years ago (1998) (company) |
| Fate | Purchased by Hasbro in 1991; merged withMilton Bradley to be reincorporated as "Hasbro Games" in 1998. Remained as a brand until 2009 |
| Successor | Hasbro Games |
| Headquarters | , US |
| Products | Board games Electronic games Jigsaw puzzles |
| Brands | |
| Parent | Hasbro |
Parker Brothers (known asParker outside of North America) was an American toy and game manufacturer which in 1991 became a brand ofHasbro. More than 1,800 games were published under the Parker Brothers name since 1883.[1] It remained family owned until bought in 1968, and branched intoNerf toys and media. Among its products wereMonopoly,Clue (licensed from the British publisher and known asCluedo outside of North America),Sorry!,Risk,Trivial Pursuit,Ouija,Aggravation,Bop It,Scrabble (under a joint partnership withMilton Bradley in the United States and Canada), andProbe. In the 21st century, the trade name ceased use, with former products being marketed under the "Hasbro Gaming" label, with the logo shown onMonopoly games.
Parker Brothers was founded byGeorge Swinnerton Parker.[2] Parker's philosophy deviated from the prevalent theme of board game design; he believed that games should be played for enjoyment and did not need to emphasize morals and values. He created his first game,Banking, in 1883 when he was 16.[3]Banking is a game in which players borrow money from the bank and try to generate wealth by guessing how well they could do. The game includes 160 cards which foretell their failure or success. The game was so popular among family and friends that his brother, Charles Parker, urged him to publish it. George approached two Boston publishers with the idea, but was unsuccessful. Not discouraged, he spent $40 to publish 500 sets ofBanking.[3] He eventually sold all but twelve copies, making a profit of $100.
Parker founded his game company, initially called the George S. Parker Company, in his hometown ofSalem, Massachusetts in 1883.[4] When George's brother Charles joined the business in 1888, the company's name was changed to its more familiar form. In 1898 a third brother, Edward H. Parker, joined the company. For many years, George designed most of the games himself, and wrote all the rules. Many games were based on important events of the day:Klondike was based on theKlondike Gold Rush, andWar in Cuba was based on the impendingSpanish–American War.[5]
The game industry was growing, and the company was becoming very profitable. In 1906, Parker Brothers published the gameRook and it became the best-selling game in the country.[5] During theGreat Depression, a time when many companies went out of business, Parker Brothers released a newboard game calledMonopoly. Although the company had originally rejected the game in 1934, they decided to publish it the next year.[6] It was a success, and the company had difficulty keeping up with demand. The company continued to grow throughout the next several decades, producing games includingCluedo (released asClue in North America),Risk, andSorry![5]
Even after George Parker's death, the company remained family-owned until 1968 whenGeneral Mills purchased the company.[2] After this, Parker Brothers produced the firstNerf ball.[5] In the UK during the 1970s, Parker Brothers sold the rights of some games to the games division ofPalitoy (also a General Mills company),[7] and produced a variety of releases such asEscape from Colditz.[8] In 1977, the company built its headquarters inBeverly, Massachusetts.[9]
In early 1983, Parker Brothers spent US$15 million establishing a book publishing branch;[10] their first titles featured theAmerican Greetings franchises,Care Bears andStrawberry Shortcake.[10][11] The branch published twelve titles by February 1984; sales of these books totaled 3.5 million units.[12] Parker Brothers also operated a record label around the same time; one of its releases,Cabbage Patch Dreams, was based onColeco'sCabbage Patch Kids and involvedTom andStephen Chapin.[12] It wascertified Gold by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in July 1984.[10]
In 1985, General Mills merged the company with their subsidiaryKenner; this new company, Kenner Parker Toys Inc., was acquired byTonka in 1987.[13] In 1988, Parker Brothers struck a deal with Martindale/Gilden Productions to develop television game shows, such asBoggle.[14]
Tonka, including Parker Brothers, was bought in 1991 for about $516 million byHasbro which also owned theMilton Bradley Company.[15] Following the acquisition, Parker Brothers continued to have its corporate offices in Beverly, but production of the games were moved to Milton Bradley's headquarters inEast Longmeadow.[16] In 1998, Parker Brothers and Milton Bradley were consolidated at the new Hasbro Games campus (based in the former address of Parker Brothers' headquarters) to merge together and form Hasbro Games.[17] Milton Bradley and Parker Bros. subsequently turned into two separate brands of Hasbro before being retired in 2009 in favor of the Hasbro brand.
Parker Brothers marketed its first jigsaw puzzle in 1887. The most famous of their puzzle lines was thePastime brand, which made hand-cut wooden puzzles from 1908 to 1958.[18] Parker also produced children's puzzles, as well as the Climax, Jig-A-Jig, Jig Wood, Jig-Saw Picture Puzzle, and Paramount lines. According toJigsaw Puzzles: An Illustrated History and Price Guide, by Anne D. Williams, Parker Bros. closed the Pastime line in 1958 and their die-cut puzzles were phased out in the late 1970s.[19]
Parker Brothers had a reputation for quality family-oriented and licensed games.[20] The company releasedMerlin in 1978, and sold 700,000 units before Christmas and had a sales total of $100 million in 1979.[21]: 87–88
It began to produce electronic versions of popular Parker Brothers board games in the late 1970s. The company ventured into the toy market with the electronicaction figure,Rom the Spaceknight, in 1979. Although the toy proved a failure, the licensed comic book published byMarvel Comics ran for years after the toy was discontinued.
Parker Brothers spent $50,000 to reverse-engineer Atari's hardware to produce its own cartridges. The company was able to obtain the license forStar Wars games, as Kenner was also owned by General Mills. Parker Brothers earned $74 million from cartridge sales between June and December 1982.[21]: 88–89 Other Parker Brothers video games included many popular arcade games such asKonami'sFrogger,Nintendo'sPopeye, andGottlieb games such asQ*bert andReactor.
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Parker's move comes on the heels of its 1983 entry into children's books. Its 12 books about Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake sold an unprecedented 3.5 (million units).
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