It wouldn’t be the American way if someone didn’t try to further capitalize on the popularity of séances and personal pain, right? And, like most American origin stories, there is a lot of messiness behind the Ouija board’s beginnings and very early history. Charles Kennard of Baltimore, Maryland didn’t care about the Spiritualism movement but he did see a profitable business opportunity. The (allegedly) shady businessman teamed up with coffin maker/undertaker E.C. Reiche, a Prussian immigrant, to start producing their own wooden boards. But, when Kennard starting looking for investors, he took credit for the invention. Parker Brothers founder George Parker made his first game, Banking, in 1883 at age 16. It involved borrowing money from a central bank to see if you could make more.

The brothers did so until 1901, when Ouija, for reasons unknown, signed an exclusive agreement with William Fuld. Big business By 1966, Parker Brothers was a flourishing company headquartered, like Kozik’s museum, in Salem — with games including Risk, Sorry, and Clue.White, Stewart Edward (March 1943). The Betty Book. US: E. P. Dutton & CO., Inc. pp.14–15. ISBN 0-89804-151-1. In the 1960 supernatural horror film 13 Ghosts the family Zorba plays the game "Ouija, the mystifying oracle." Kroll, Justin (August 14, 2015). " 'Ouija 2' Lands Director Mike Flanagan, Actress Annalise Basso". Variety. Fuld’s children took over until the 1960s when they retired and sold the business to Parker Brothers, which later became Hasbro and owns the game today.

So, anything that could be even remotely associated with Satanism or the occult like the Ouija board, Dungeons & Dragons, and certain types of music became evil. Naturally, this made the Ouija board more interesting to rebellious youth who would use them in secret for some possible thrills and scares. Parker Brothers later became acquired by Hasbro, which still sells Ouija boards and owns the trademark for the name. The effect is very convincing. As Dr. Chris French, professor of psychology and anomalistic psychology at Goldsmiths, University of London, explains, “It can generate a very strong impression that the movement is being caused by some outside agency, but it’s not.” Other devices, such as dowsing rods, or more recently, the fake bomb detection kits that deceived scores of international governments and armed services, work on the same principle of non-conscious movement. “The thing about all these mechanisms we’re talking about, dowsing rods, Oujia boards, pendulums, these small tables, they’re all devices whereby a quite a small muscular movement can cause quite a large effect,” he says. Planchettes, in particular, are well-suited for their task—many used to be constructed of a lightweight wooden board and fitted with small casters to help them move more smoothly and freely; now, they’re usually plastic and have felt feet, which also help it slide over the board easily. Kosloski, Philip (28 October 2020). "The spiritual dangers of playing with a Ouija board". Aleteia . Retrieved 9 February 2021. Interestingly, the sharp collective change in attitudes towards the Ouija board stems from none other than The Exorcistin 1973.

The Spirit Writings of Pearl Curran and Patience Worth

Fischer, Russ (October 29, 2010). "Universal Sets Release Dates For Ouija, The Bourne Legacy, The Dark Tower And More". /Film . Retrieved July 11, 2022. Ouija was released in the US on DVD and Blu-ray on February 3, 2015. [32] Reception [ edit ] Box office [ edit ] It was one of things that we thought it probably won’t work, but if it did work, it’d be really freaking cool,” said Rensink.