Nature always strives for balance. While at times it may be fragile, there are ecosystems all around us that are evidence of this fact. Even in our own lives, we naturally strive for a state of equilibrium. We’re tired, so we sleep. We’re hungry, so we eat. We’re stressed . . . so we play.
The past few years have certainly had their share of stresses, from civil unrest to economic woes and, oh yeah, a global pandemic. It’s more important […]
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Remembering Play Scholar and Educational Psychologist Doris Bergen
Doris Bergen, the esteemed educational psychologist whose work enhanced our understandings of play in child development, pretend play, technology play, and humor development died on July 5, 2023. She was a charter member of the editorial advisory board of the American Journal of Play, and a collection of her professional papers lies in the care of The Strong’s Brian Sutton-Smith Library and Archives of Play.
Born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1932, Bergen grew up in Bucyrus, Ohio. She attended Heidelberg […]
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Exploring Neighborhood Play: Revisiting Chop Suey
My current research project dives into the play histories of Rochester’s former Manhattan St.-Savannah St. neighborhood where The Strong National Museum of Play is now located. Part of what was called the Southeast Loop area, the neighborhood housed residents and businesses since around the Civil War period. It was one of the oldest residential areas in downtown Rochester well into the 1960s and 1970s, until an urban renewal project largely displaced the lower income community in favor of skyrises and […]
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The End of the Original, Daytime Game Show Format
By Adam Nedeff, researcher for the National Archives of Game Show History
Thirty years ago this month, a sad bit of game show history was made, but nobody recognized it at the time. On January 14, 1994, NBC aired Caesar’s Challenge for the last time. The following Monday, the network’s schedule was a wall of talk shows and soap operas. With no fanfare at all, viewers witnessed the end of the last original game show format to air on network […]
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Tiamat, the Chromatic Dragon, Has Landed in Hasbro Game Park
If you have come to the museum recently, you may have noticed a new friend—or foe—outside. She is breathing fire and mist, with five different colored heads roaring as you press the 20-sided dice (d20) before her, and her name is Tiamat! An infamous monster from the tabletop role-play game Dungeons & Dragons, the Dragon Queen is now at The Strong National Museum of Play in the Hasbro Game Park. I thought it would be nice to formally introduce her […]
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The Contentious Ouija Board: Is It a Toy?
If you want to be guaranteed a lively conversation, bring up the Ouija board. This polarizing talking board has been around since the late 19th century and still manages to divide people on a number of fronts. Do they truly work? Are they dangerous? Are they a scam? However, the question provoked by its context at The Strong is: Is it a toy?
The earliest Ouija boards were produced from a wooden board marked with the letters of the alphabet, numbers, […]
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Muhammad Ali, Champion of Play
Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee….
There was something particularly playful about Muhammad Ali, the boxer who rivaled Pele as the most famous worldwide sports celebrity of the 20th century. But whereas Pele was known for his quiet dignity and his sheer enthusiasm for the beautiful game of soccer, Ali was not only the greatest boxer of his era, he was also a genius of repartee, someone who played with the media like he played with his (usually) helpless […]
Theodore Roosevelt and the Redemptive Powers of Play
As a man, President Theodore Roosevelt preached and lived a muscular gospel of action. T.R. commanded the bully pulpit, busted corporate trusts, hunted big game, and willingly took on—both metaphorically and literally—anyone in a match of fisticuffs, even as President. But as a boy, Teedy (as he was known to his family) was weak and sickly, prone to bouts of serious, even life-threatening illness. How he remade himself is a story that has been often told but is worth looking […]
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Why I Hate the Term “Kidult”
The toy industry loves a good buzzword and lately the one I’ve been seeing is “kidult.” Kidult is usually used in reference to a specific target audience of adults who purchase toys. Generally, kidults get referenced about specific types of toys that have been increasingly popular with adults that buy toys for themselves, enough to significantly impact market trends. These often include higher end collectible toys, like Hasbro’s Black Series action figures or Barbie collector lines. They also include nostalgic […]