Hobbit games!

November 21, 2017 By Mantooth In Uncategorized 1 Comment

I was happily surprised to see that these games all made it to the market in 1979.

Tags: board games, hobbit, lord of the rings, milton bradley

About The Author

Mantooth

AKA Brian Heiler author of "Rack Toys: Cheap, Crazed Playthings" and co-editor of "Toy-Ventures Magazine". Co-Host of the "Pod Stallions" podcast. Host of the Brick Mantooth Youtube channel, painter, designer, writer, mental health advocate, toy collector, Mego, and Mego Knock-Off enthusiast. I have large feet, ADHD and I live in Canada. Talk toys, not others.

1 Comment

Anonymous on November 21, 2017

Bakshi's LOTR was probably the foundation for the subsequent popularity of Dungeons and Dragons. The cartoon got released in November 1978 and then just two years later with no real promotion outside of ads in comic books, store buyers were feeling confident enough to stock generous amounts of fantasy-themed merchandise. Montgomery Ward, 1981:
https://i.imgur.com/TwwFDFa.jpg

Sales were obviously very, very good because the next year chains like Sears were giving fantasy games almost as much page space as Star Wars, which is saying plenty back then. This is just the D&D page.
https://i.imgur.com/1eYaCw4.jpg

Fame had its price and catalogs like these contributed to the popular misconception of fantasy games being connected to the "occult". Two different store chains, two different graphic design companies, two different years, and both catalogs lumped the spiritual divination items on the same pages.

This wasn't always the case. During the mid 1970s when the occult was in fact a much larger part of pop culture, catalogs usually put the tarot decks, ouija boards, scrying pendulums etc. in the pages for general games or in home goods -typically next to the "head shop" items like water-pipes and black-light posters. Once D&D became popular, occult-themed games were always on the same pages and stayed that way until D&D was no longer stocked in the catalogs (roughly around 1984-6).

One positive outcome from all this was D&D's popularity meant it took the bullet for LOTR. All the occult conspiracy "experts" paid little to no attention to LOTR when they could have just as easily been denouncing the cartoon and harmless games like these as recruiting tools used by evil occultnik groups.

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