Monopoly fans vote out iconic token
First, it was the iron. Now, the thimble. In another sign that old-school icons are on the way out, the makers of Monopoly announced Thursday that the thimble token — one of the 82-year-old board game’s original six pieces — won’t be available in future sales.
For all your thimble token needs, you’ll have to to turn to eBay. Or a garage sale. Or, better yet, just keep the one out of your current game.
Hasbro put it to the popular vote in its first-ever Monopoly Token Madness campaign in January. More than 4 million votes were cast and a final eight was determined, but Hasbro won’t release the results until World Monopoly Day on March 19, which you’ll have to probably have to write in on your calendar since it’s not a recognized holiday.
Hasbro also won’t mention the status of the other traditional icons, but a spokeswoman did assure that a Texas-themed cowboy hat and boot are in the running. They were among 56 token suggestions inspired by pop culture and social media.
If you want a clue as to a possible newcomer, Hasbro did reveal on its Facebook page on Jan. 24 that the T-Rex token is among the more popular along with Scottie dog and the top hat.The T-Rex was among the new token suggestions.
Through eight-plus decades, Monopoly tokens have rarely changed. A Wiki-style site tracks the few updates, the sanctioned special editions and the scores of knock-off versions.
The original tokens were the iron, purse, lantern, race car, thimble, boot, top hat, battleship, cannon and rocking horse. Scottie dog and the wheelbarrow were added in the early 1950s. In 2013, the iron token was replaced by Hazel the cat.
The eight fan-picked Monopoly tokens will be updated in the Monopoly game hitting shelves in August.
Kathy Merlock Jackson, a professor of communication at Virginia Wesleyan College, said it’s common for makers of popular games to update their pieces to create conversation.
“It suggested that the makers are wanting people to think about it again,” she told the Virginian-Pilot.