Does Your Person Wear Glasses?: Did You Ever “Guess Who?”

No, but is your person bald?

It’s not only the first day of October, but also the beginning of our new theme for Tuesday!  If you read the teaser on the Allison’s Written Words Facebook page last night, then you saw the introduction of the new theme.  I could have done a Halloween-themed month’s worth of articles, but this idea won out in my head.

That said, I hope you enjoy this month’s theme – four memorable children’s games for your October!  This month’s articles also have an added bonus to the “did I or didn’t I engage in this nostalgia” portion of the article.  I hope you like it!

Today’s game is the ultimate guessing game, ask the other player questions about an individual’s features, and eliminate the ones who don’t match.  Eliminate all the possibilities, and the player with the last individual standing wins!

That game, you ask?

No, really.  That’s the name of the game!

Does Your Person Have A Beard?

“Guess Who?” was created by Theo and Ora Coster, manufactured by Milton Bradley, and making its debut in 1979.  Two players sit in front of a board with cards standing up.  Each person eliminated because they don’t meet a certain description (glasses, hair color, hair in general, facial hair, gender, to name a few) are flipped down…until the last person is standing.

Twenty-four different cards, each printed with a first name to accompany the cartoon face on the card, are given to each player.  Players alternate by asking yes/no questions to their opponent – the craftier the question, the possibility that more “Guess Who” characters will be eliminated.

That’s it, that’s all there is to it!

The Disclaimer

Advertising for “Guess Who?” involved the faces on the cards talking as they are eliminated.  I remember how funny it was as a kid, but was obviously not of the impressionable type that believed those cards could actually talk.  (Sidenote: I was the impressionable four-year-old who believed the Cricket doll could walk, because she did in a commercial.  I had to have it regardless of false advertising.)

The disclaimer on commercials for later editions reminded potential buyers that “cards do not actually talk.”  This was done in order to meet the Federal Trade Commission’s advertising guidelines on full disclosure of toy features unable to be replicated with the actual product.

In other words, “The cards the kids in the commercial have can talk, but yours won’t.  So don’t sue Milton Bradley.  Thank you.”

You would think this was something that only happened a few years ago, given today’s climate of offensiveness…but that disclaimer started in the 1990s!  The least offensive era (though there are always exceptions, obviously) was the one who introduced that disclaimer.

Perhaps someone saw into the future, and knew there would be a world with kids having meltdowns over their “Guess Who?” cards not talking?

The Simple Concept Remains A Fun Guessing Game!

Guess Who? is still available today, now manufactured by Hasbro (which merged with Parker Brothers in 1998 to form Hasbro Games, but since 2009 has been dropped as a brand name).  Winning Moves currently produces the classic version of this game, among other classic games.

So yes, you can still “Guess Who” your opponent’s person is…and if they have a hat.

The Important Question Remains…

Did I ever “Guess Who?”

Can You Guess Who?

Since you’re here, I might as well send you off with commercials.  These are the true classics of playing “Guess Who?”, complete with “cards that don’t really talk.”

Upload via Ronnit Coster

Upload via 90s Commercials

And this is the 2010 version, which looks more like an office or apartment building than the original game, but is pretty cool in concept.  By concept, I mean less mess, of course!

Upload via Mr. Toys Toyworld YouTube

And Now, You!

Did you ever “Guess Who?”

Sound off in the comments below, or be social on social media! I want to know your “Guess Who?” stories, even if they are mundane!

Next week, on Allison’s Written Words, Board Game Month continues.  We go from guessing the identity of a random person on a game board (while slapping down the cards of those who don’t match the description) to a game where we are slapping down a whole other kind of card, on a whole other kind of game board.

Have a great day!