Difference between revisions of "Scrabble"
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| − | '''Scrabble''' is | + | '''Scrabble''' is an American board game invented by Alfred Mosher Butts in 1948. The purpose of the game is to make words using a set number of letter tiles on a 15 x 15 square board. Scrabble is arguably more popular than [[Monopoly (board game)|Monopoly]] and is played in over 175 official tournaments per year. |
| − | + | ==History== | |
| + | Alfred Mosher Butts invented the Scrabble crossword game in it's current form in 1948 based, at least in part, on his previous games Lexiko and Criss Cross Words. He purportedly determined the frequency of the letter tiles in the game by counting letter usage in the New York Time. He began by selling them individually by mail order until he partnered with James Brunot and his newly formed Production and Marketing company. | ||
| − | The game | + | The game struggled in its early years until sales began dramatically increasing in 1952. The game was purchased by Selchow & Righter in 1971. Following the windfall created by [[Trivial Pursuit]], and its subsequent crash, Selchow sold their properties to Coleco Industries in 1986. Coleco was subsequently acquired by Hasbro in 1988 and Scrabble has remained with them since. |
| − | + | ||
| − | |||
==Gameplay== | ==Gameplay== | ||
| + | Players take turns spelling out words vertically or horizontally on a board divided into squares. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Certain squares double or triple the score for the whole word or just for the letter on that square. | ||
==Sources== | ==Sources== | ||
*[http://www.hasbro.com/scrabble/home.cfm?page=history Scrabble History] - at www.Hasbro.com | *[http://www.hasbro.com/scrabble/home.cfm?page=history Scrabble History] - at www.Hasbro.com | ||
| + | *''Word Freak'' by Stefan Fatsis, 2001, Penguin Books | ||
[[category:board games]] | [[category:board games]] | ||
Revision as of 20:56, April 13, 2007
Scrabble is an American board game invented by Alfred Mosher Butts in 1948. The purpose of the game is to make words using a set number of letter tiles on a 15 x 15 square board. Scrabble is arguably more popular than Monopoly and is played in over 175 official tournaments per year.
History
Alfred Mosher Butts invented the Scrabble crossword game in it's current form in 1948 based, at least in part, on his previous games Lexiko and Criss Cross Words. He purportedly determined the frequency of the letter tiles in the game by counting letter usage in the New York Time. He began by selling them individually by mail order until he partnered with James Brunot and his newly formed Production and Marketing company.
The game struggled in its early years until sales began dramatically increasing in 1952. The game was purchased by Selchow & Righter in 1971. Following the windfall created by Trivial Pursuit, and its subsequent crash, Selchow sold their properties to Coleco Industries in 1986. Coleco was subsequently acquired by Hasbro in 1988 and Scrabble has remained with them since.
Gameplay
Players take turns spelling out words vertically or horizontally on a board divided into squares.
Certain squares double or triple the score for the whole word or just for the letter on that square.
Sources
- Scrabble History - at www.Hasbro.com
- Word Freak by Stefan Fatsis, 2001, Penguin Books
