‘Don’t buy the Dome’ and other lessons from playing a 1996 Houston version of Monopoly

Houston Public Media

Monday night at 8 on Houston Public Media TV 8, American Experience presents Ruthless: Monopoly's Secret History.

The program delves into the fascinating true story behind one of America's favorite board games.

The show reveals that the game's official origin story is...not exactly true. And who really created it — and why — is surprising. Let’s just say it wasn't originally intended to be what it became: a celebration of unbridled greed.

While reflecting on our memories of playing Monopoly over the years, members of the Houston Matters team decided they should play an officially licensed Houston edition of Monopoly from 1996 (that producer Michael Hagerty borrowed from the recesses of a closet at his in-laws’ house).

Michael Hagerty/Houston Public Media

The game is adorned with beloved Houston landmarks and attractions including the Astrodome, Space Center Houston, and Children’s Museum Houston.

Michael Hagerty/Houston Public Media

But some of the spaces on the board are places and things that have changed names or are gone completely, including Foley’s department store, The Wyndham Warwick Hotel, and Houston Lighting & Power.

Michael Hagerty/Houston Public Media

In the audio above, you can listen as Michael (using the shoe as his token) sits down in the studio to play Monopoly Houston Edition with Craig Cohen (playing as the thimble), Joshua Zinn (the car), and Troy Schulze (the dog).

They reflect on their memories from playing the game over the years and the lessons learned from playing this version of the game now as adults — all while riffing on the Houston elements of this particular game.

For instance, for quite some time, no one lands on the Astrodome, nor buys it and so nothing is done with the property. Sound familiar? And Craig contributes to the ongoing issue of overcrowding by continually going to jail.

As the game stretches into its second hour, Michael remembers to build houses and hotels on his light blue restaurant properties, and, over the course of that hour even as the rest of the team secures an odd Monopoly here and there, it becomes clear Michael has taken control of the game. He has a ton of cash, houses, and hotels galore. And everyone else keeps landing on them.

While no one's gone completely bankrupt yet, properties are mortgaged as everyone tries to tiptoe thier way around an increasingly unfriendly board. Eventually, we remember we all work for a living and need to wrap up. So, we proclaim Michael the winner.

Michael Hagerty/Houston Public Media

Satisfied we've experienced as much of Houston Monopoly as we can stand, we consider what we've learned from the experience.

Michael notes this particular version of the game is a reminder of how much Houston has changed over the years, and he’s forgotten how long the game takes to play.

Troy offers this simple advice: “Maybe don’t buy the Dome.”

But Josh probably sums it up best.

“The idea of playing Monopoly is more exciting than actually playing Monopoly,” he said.

He said, once you have to set up the board, divvy up the money, and experience the length of the game, the excitement is long gong.

“So, yeah, it’s almost like eyes are bigger than your stomach when it comes to playing Monopoly.”

Michael Hagerty/Houston Public Media

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