From the heyday of Monopoly comes … Pride of the Twin Ports Area Game! It doesn’t appear to be something local marketing geniuses came up with, but rather a product of a company called Citipride of America, which probably made different versions of the game for different cities across the country. Perhaps the local Chamber of Commerce sold sponsorships on the game board to various businesses to raise money to have the game made, and then sales of the game raised money for the chamber … or something. That’s all conjecture; there doesn’t seem to be any info online about the game or the company.
So, does anyone else have this game? Can anyone put a year on it? It’s no older than 1978, because the instructions contain historical info about the sponsoring local businesses and mention that Northwest Office Supply expanded in 1978. It’s no more recent than 1982, because the Normandy Hotel was taken over by Holiday Inn & Suites that year.
That’s about all the background we’ve got on this, so please leave a comment if you have memories of playing the game or anything else about it. Oh, and yes, Perfect Duluth Day will sponsor a tournament if you organize it.
Finally, thanks to Callie Thompson for furnishing PDD with this handsome, coffee-stained collector’s item.
9 thoughts on “Pride of the Twin Ports Area Game”
I’m enjoying the WDSM artwork made to look like a pack of Reds. Classy.
Well, whoever did this was apparently not familiar with our fair cities–the Bayfield Inn and the Bayfield Peninsula and the town of Bayfield are not exactly within the Twin Ports area.
I wonder how many of these businesses are still open?
Anyway, great find! This is definitely one of the best PDD finds ever.
It’s probably a transistor radio.
I had a similar game that I found that was for some city in southern Minnesota (don’t remember the name now).
Here’s a link and description:
Wheeler-Dealer
I remember having this game as a kid, but I don’t recall anything specific about where it came from, etc. It has been a very long time since I’ve seen it. I’d have asked ma if she remembers where she got it and what happened to it. I remember it came rolled up in a tube. It seems like the kinda thing a person could get at Glass Block.
Where are they now, part one:
Arco Coffee: Still has a plant in Superior; the company’s centennial is coming up in 2016.
Pioneer National Bank: Still going strong after 150 years. A Miller Hill Mall branch was added in 1990 and a Mount Royal branch followed in 1996.
KZIO Radio: In the 1980s and early 1990s KZIO was known as “Hit Radio.” The format and call letters changed in 1996, when new owner Shockley Communications rolled out KRBR-FM “The Bear,” and switched to alternative modern rock. Shockley sold its Duluth stations to Midwest Communications in 2001. By 2008 KRBR had become KHQG, a classic rock station. Then it circled back to Top 40 in 2010 and became what it is today, 102.5 FM KDWZ. That’s all not to be confused with 94.1 FM, known as “94X,” a station owned by Red Rock Radio that for some reason picked up the KZIO call letters a few years back.
Very cool find! Makes me miss the Pizza Factory. The release date can be narrowed down further since one of the businesses says it’s in the Mariner Mall which was built in 1980.
It’s puzzling why there isn’t a picture of the lift bridge in the middle. That’s what makes it seem like an out-of-town company made it.
Did anyone see the antique Fitgers beer case box that was laying on the Blatnik bridge heading south about two weeks ago? That was weird.
Or the giant fucking Lakeside Rainbow splitting the hairs on your ass two thursdays ago, anyone?
I didn’t think so…