Growing up in a small town on a street full of houses populated by kids my age, I always found ways to occupy my weekends and summers. Often that meant playing next door with my friend Christine, either on her front porch or in her horse-themed bedroom. Time with Christine usually involved a game or two. We liked all kinds: card games (war, go, and gin rummy), board games (Life, Clue, Monopoly, and Charlie’s Angels), and my personal favorite, one-on-one […]
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Saving Our Heritage, One Game at a Time
We CHEGheads and everyone else at ICHEG and The Strong are thrilled that we’ve received a grant from the Institute of Museums and Library Services (IMLS) for $113,277! Here’s what the grant is for and why it is important.
First, some background. IMLS is a Federal agency that supports, as the name implies, museums and libraries. The agency awarded this grant in a highly-competitive category for the conservation and care of artifacts: 136 institutions applied and only 31 received support. As […]
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With a Song in my Heart: A Brief History of American Sheet Music; or, How to Search The Strong’s Database
As I write this, Katy Perry’s “E.T.” featuring Kanye West ranks as the number one pop song. Country’s top pick is “Heart Like Mine” by Miranda Lambert, while R&B’s current number one is “Sure Thing” by Miguel. Although the star performers get all the attention, hit songs could never happen without the session musicians and backup singers who fill out the sound behind the star. With so many categories and types of music today, how do performers teach songs to […]
Adult Swim Video Games
When Rolling Stone mentioned recently that Adult Swim plans to release a wave of new mobile video games, fans of the channel’s crass cartoons responded with uncertainty. Adult Swim dabbles in the video game industry regularly, and its track record makes it difficult for gamers to determine if these new games will sink or swim.
In 2008, Adult Swim released their self-proclaimed “Worse Games Ever: Go Right.” Designers based this online flash game on the network’s Aqua Teen Hunger Force, a […]
The Pogo Bal Paradigm
If you grew up with siblings, you probably recognize that a brother or sister doesn’t always make the first choice for playmate but will usually suffice. As the youngest of three children by five years, I yearned to play along with my older brothers but could never quite keep up. Both seemed more knowledgeable, more agile, and more talented when it came to play. My oldest brother constructed amazing snow igloos and drove a snowmobile. My middle brother excelled at […]
By Any Other Name: The Origin of Atari
The year is 1972, and video game innovator Nolan Bushnell and his partner Ted Dabney are fresh from their design of the first commercial arcade game, Computer Space. Before beginning their next big project, they decide to trademark their gaming company, Syzygy, named after an astronomical term for three celestial bodies in a straight line. Unfortunately, a representative for the California Secretary of State reports that the name is already trademarked. Forced to think of another option, Bushnell changes his […]
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Kids and Cooking: Playing with Fire
Recently, my six-year-old son has taken an interest in learning to cook. For years, he played happily with his toy kitchen, concocting elaborate and dire sounding dishes (broccoli and pineapple soup, anyone?). Now he wants to cook like Daddy. Perched on his stool next to my chopping block, he’s been learning how to use a chef’s knife safely—fingertips curled under, thumb tucked behind the fingers. Watching the little guy carefully chopping potatoes and carrots makes me inordinately proud, and makes […]
The Influence of Dungeons and Dragons on Video Games
My two favorite childhood Christmas gifts were a red three-speed bike and a blue-boxed Basic Dungeons and Dragons set. On the bike, I rode miles from home, shifting gears to climb previously unconquered hills and discover new places around my small Connecticut town. With Dungeons and Dragons, I discovered freedom of imagination just as thrilling as the physical freedom the bike provided.
Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) cast its spell on many people during the late 1970s and early 1980s, and, like […]
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More than Words: Theater’s Unsung Heroes
Rolling my artifact cart through the exhibits at The Strong’s National Museum of Play, I often spot guests who are shoo-ins for the stage. These budding thespians linger under the colorful lights in Kid to Kid and the majestic red curtain in Reading Adventureland’s Fairy Tale Forest. There’s nothing like playing at plays—take it from me, since I spent most of my high school years performing in theatrical productions. One of the lessons I picked up through those acting experiences […]
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