Did you know Bunco was created in 19th-century England (originally known as "eight dice cloth") and was brought to the United States in 1855 during the San Francisco Gold Rush as a gambling game called "banco" ? (Introduced to San Francisco by a gambler who used a modified version called banco to swindle people, which led to the term "bunco" becoming slang for a swindle or confidence trick. Post-Civil War it shifted away from shady gambling dens to become a popular, wholesome parlor game.)

Did you know the handheld electronic game Merlin ("Merlin The Electronic Wizard") was invented in 1978 by former NASA employee Bob Doyle, his wife Holly, and his brother-in-law Wendl Thomis and it was manufactured and marketed by Parker Brothers and became one of the earliest and most popular multi-game electronic toys ? (Shaped like a red telephone handset with an 11-button LED grid it contained a tiny microprocessor allowing users to play six different built-in electronic games, including Tic-Tac-Toe, Music Machine, and Echo. It sold over 5 million units during its initial run.)

Did you know the Pet Rock was invented in August 1975 by California advertising executive Gary Dahl ? (He came up with the idea as a joke at a bar, launched it at a San Francisco trade show, and sold over one million units for $3.95 each during a massive six-month craze.)

Did you know the inflatable "Punch-Me !" or bounce-back toy—commonly known as a bop bag—originated in the 1950s ? (Early popular versions, such as those featuring Joe Palooka or the iconic Bozo the Clown Bop Bag , mass-marketed across the United States during the mid-to-late 1950s and early 1960s and still available with many varied images . It was/is an air-filled vinyl top with a weighted sand- or water-filled bottom base to ensure it springs back upright.)

Did you know the classic card game Waterworks was invented and released in 1972 by Parker Brothers ? (It was inspired by the "Water Works" utility space from the board game Monopoly. 110 pipe cards, a bathtub-shaped card tray, and small wrenches with the objective to be the first player to build a continuous, leak-free pipeline connecting a valve card to a spout card.)