Guess What? 57

They’re “Operation” Game Pieces!

Operation is a battery-operated game of physical skill that tests players’ hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills. The game’s prototype was invented in 1964 by John Spinello, a University of Illinois industrial design student at the time, who sold his rights to the game to Milton Bradley for a sum of USD $500 and the promise of a job upon graduation. Initially produced by Milton Bradley in 1965, Operation is currently made by Hasbro, with an estimated franchise worth of USD $40 million.

Do You Remember this “Operation” Commercial?

The game is a variant on the old-fashioned electrified wire loop game popular at funfairs around the United States. It consists of an “operating table”, lithographed with a comic likeness of a patient (nicknamed “Cavity Sam”) with a large red lightbulb for his nose. In the surface are a number of openings, which reveal cavities filled with fictional and humorously named ailments made of plastic. The general gameplay requires players to remove these plastic ailments with a pair of tweezers without touching the edge of the cavity opening.

Credit: wikipedia.com