Parker Brothers
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Toys and games |
| Founded | January 1, 1883 in Salem, Massachusetts, United States |
| Founder | George Swinnerton Parker |
| Fate | Acquired by Hasbro in 1991 |
| Headquarters | Beverly, Massachusetts , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | George S. Parker (founder) |
| Products | Board games, puzzles, electronic games, toys (including Nerf) |
| Parent | Hasbro (since 1991) |
Parker Brothers—referred to simply as Parker outside of North America—was an American company specializing in toys and games, established in 1883 by businessman George Swinnerton Parker. It became part of Hasbro in 1991, having published over 1,800 distinct games under its brand. The firm remained under family control until its 1968 acquisition by General Mills and later broadened its portfolio to include Nerf products and related media. Among its prominent offerings were Monopoly, Clue (licensed from a British publisher), Sorry!, Risk, Trivial Pursuit, Ouija, Bop It, and Scrabble (produced in collaboration with Milton Bradley in North America). By the early 2000s, Parker Brothers' titles were marketed under the "Hasbro Gaming" brand.
History
The company was founded by George S. Parker in Salem, Massachusetts, with a vision to create games that prioritized fun rather than moral instruction. His inaugural game, Banking (1883), was self-published and achieved commercial success. When his brothers Charles and Edward joined the enterprise, it adopted the name Parker Brothers. Early game releases often mirrored current events of the time, including titles like Klondike and War in Cuba.
A pivotal moment arrived in 1906 with the launch of the highly popular card game Rook. Despite initial hesitation during the Great Depression, Parker Brothers published Monopoly in 1935, which rapidly became a bestseller and significantly boosted the company’s growth. Other legendary games introduced later included Cluedo, Risk, and Sorry!.
After decades as a family-run business, Parker Brothers was acquired by General Mills in 1968, signaling a transition to corporate ownership and diversification efforts. The company debuted the original Nerf ball and expanded its international presence through subsidiaries such as Palitoy in the United Kingdom. In 1977, it relocated its headquarters to Beverly, Massachusetts.
In the early 1980s, Parker Brothers extended its reach into book publishing and music tied to popular franchises like Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake, achieving sales totaling 3.5 million units by 1984. It also operated a record label that produced Gold-certified albums such as Cabbage Patch Dreams.
General Mills merged Parker Brothers with Kenner in 1985 to create Kenner Parker Toys Inc., which Tonka acquired two years later in 1987. In 1988, Parker Brothers branched into television by developing game show versions of titles including Boggle.
Tonka, along with Parker Brothers and other subsidiaries, was purchased by Hasbro in 1991 for around $516 million. Following the acquisition, manufacturing shifted to Milton Bradley’s facilities while corporate operations stayed at Beverly. By 1998, Parker Brothers merged with Milton Bradley under Hasbro Games at a unified campus. Both brand names were phased out by 2009 when Hasbro consolidated its gaming products under its own branding.
Puzzles
Parker Brothers introduced its initial jigsaw puzzle in 1887, with its most renowned series being the Pastime brand, which produced hand-cut wooden puzzles from 1908 until 1958. The company also created puzzles aimed at children along with other product lines such as Climax, Jig-A-Jig, Jig Wood, Jig-Saw Picture Puzzle, and Paramount. The Pastime series concluded in 1958, and die-cut puzzles were discontinued by the late 1970s.
Video games
Renowned for producing high-quality, family-friendly, and licensed titles, Parker Brothers introduced the handheld electronic game Merlin in 1978. The device achieved remarkable success, with 700,000 units sold before the holiday season and generating $100 million in revenue by 1979. The company further diversified by creating electronic adaptations of its classic board games and briefly ventured into the toy industry with the 1979 launch of the electronic action figure Rom the Spaceknight.
To develop its own game cartridges, Parker Brothers allocated $50,000 towards reverse-engineering Atari's hardware. Utilizing General Mills' ownership of Kenner Products, they secured the Star Wars video game license. From June through December 1982, cartridge sales amassed $74 million. Their video game catalog featured well-known arcade hits such as Konami's Frogger, Nintendo's Popeye, along with Gottlieb's Q*bert and Reactor.
Some games published
- Aggravation
- Authors
- Bop It
- Cluedo
- Gambler
- Jack Strauss
- Mansion of Happiness
- Merlin
- Monopoly
- Ouija
- Peter, Peter, Pumpkin Eater
- Pente
- Ping Pong
- Probe
- Risk
- Scrabble
- All The King's Men (in collaboration with Milton Bradley; exclusive to US and Canada)
- Sorry!
- Tiddlywinks
- Touring
Works cited
Further reading
- Don Kader, "Collecting Black Memorabilia", Collectors' Showcase (September/October 1982), 16.
External links
- The Game Makers, a publication by Philip Orbanes detailing Parker Brothers' corporate history
- Parker Brothers featured on the History Channel website
- Overview of early games produced by Parker Brothers
- Collections at the New York Historical Society featuring Parker Brothers products such as:
- Comprehensive listings and information on Parker Brothers games can be found at: