Alfred Butts came up with the idea of Scrabble during the Depression. He covered an old checkerboard in paper, drew a 225-square grid, and made 100 plywood letters, assigning values to each based upon how frequently the letters appeared on the front page of the New York Times.

Ousted from his job during the Depression, Charles Darrow was forced to get creative. In 1931 he sat in his kitchen and sketched the design for a game he called Monopoly on the oil cloth covering the table. Parker Brothers rejected the game at first; their minds were changed in 1935 after Darrow began marketing the game himself with huge success. Resulting royalties made Darrow a millionaire.

Now one of the most popular games in America, B-I-N-G-O games are held in community centers, church basements, and in a number of other places where groups sponsor a bingo night. While many such groups are volunteer organizations, some, such as the Seminole tribe in Florida, view bingo as a business; the tribe has increased its annual bingo revenue from $900,000 to over $45,000,000 in 15 years.

©Lori S. Anton