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11/8
9 FRIDAY * NOVEMBER 1973
313TH DAY * 52 DAYS TO COME

Rcd. [received] Nov. [November] PLAYTHINGS. Had ad for HIJACKED - by Valley Games. Whole line will be at Toy Fair.
Showcase/Toys lists PUTTER UP.
News item about ZIRIYA, a fortune telling and ESP game.

Rcd. [received] a letter, thru Random House, from Owen Nelson, who has adapted LAST WORD (which he found in AGOG) for school use. He suggested that we could market it.

Wrote covering letter to Graeme Levin and sent it with my SLEUTH feature article. Mentioned CARTEL, REALM, INFINITY, VENTURE, K.G.B., FACTS IN FIVE, AGOG, THE SIGMA FILE, GAMES WITH PAPER & PENCIL, POUNCE, SPECTRA, AMBUSH, CABBIE, STOCKBROKER, and JACKPOT.

Call from Bob Champer. Told him to start reading up on MACARTHUR. He'll call me at the end of the month and we'll get together to decide on the battles to use.
During day signed up for new library card and took out a book by MacArthur himself - called "Reminiscenses".

Betty and Issy Rothman here bringing Earl, Claude, and Anne. I gave Earl the material he had sent me on "F", THE GAME FOR LOVERS and V.D. A CATCHY GAME.
Claude played his DIABOLIQUE with Issy quite a bit and then I sat in for a few games. He uses a 4 x 4 field and twenty picess [pieces], with a number from -7 to +12 including a 0.
Claude's rules were: Each player takes 10 pcs. [pieces] and stands them up so that the opponent can't see them. Players in turn place a tile on the board. Object is to get a line of 4, including the long diagonal [Illegible strikeout], or a small square of 4 that adds up to a multiple of 5. For completing such a configuration the player scores the absolute value and goes again. A line of 4 cannot be completed unless it scores, but a small square can be. Also if a scored square is completed a non-scoring line of 4 can be completed with the same tile. The problem was that once a player was able to start scoring he usually was able to continue until all his pcs. [pieces] were used, running up a big score.
Issy suggested the following variation. Each player starts with four tiles. On a turn he can either place a tile, under the same rules as above, or can take a tile. The game is over as soon as a player plays out all his tiles. He doubles all the scores he has made. This variation was over very quickly.
I told Claude that I found that adding all the possible positions to get a sum that was a multiple of 5 was more like work than fun.
<-->Played TRANSFORMATION with Issy. I won but we both enjoyed it.
<-->Betty mentioned and Issy showed me a game called ZILCH. He has played it for years and doesn't remember where
(cont. on 11/8)

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transcription
English 11/8
9 FRIDAY * NOVEMBER 1973
313TH DAY * 52 DAYS TO COME


Rcd. [received] Nov. [November] PLAYTHINGS. Had ad for HIJACKED - by Valley
Games. Whole line will be at Toy Fair.
Showcase/Toys lists PUTTER UP.
News item about ZIRIYA, a fortune telling and ESP game.
Rcd. [received] a letter, thru Random House, from Owen Nelson,
who has adapted LAST WORD (which he found in AGOG)
for school use. He suggested that we could market it.
Wrote covering letter to Graeme Levin and sent it with my
SLEUTH feature article. Mentioned CARTEL, REALM, INFINITY,
VENTURE, K.G.B., FACTS IN FIVE, AGOG, THE SIGMA FILE,
GAMES WITH PAPER &amp; PENCIL, POUNCE, SPECTRA, AMBUSH, CABBIE,
STOCKBROKER, and JACKPOT.
Call from Bob Champer. Told him to start reading up on
MACARTHUR. He'll call me at the end of the month and we'll
get together to decide on the battles to use.
During day signed up for new library card and took out a book by
MacArthur himself - called "Reminiscenses".
Betty and Issy Rothman here bringing Earl, Claude, and Anne.
I gave Earl the material he had sent me on "F", THE GAME FOR LOVERS
and V.D. A CATCHY GAME.
Claude played his DIABOLIQUE with Issy quite a bit and then I
sat in for a few games. He uses a 4 x 4 field and twenty
picess [pieces], with a number from -7 to +12 including a 0.
Claude's rules were: Each player takes 10 pcs. [pieces] and stands
them up so that the opponent can't see them. Players in turn
place a tile on the board. Object is to get a line of 4,
including the long diagonal [Illegible strikeout], or a small square of
4 that adds up to a multiple of 5. For completing such
a configuration the player scores the absolute value and goes
again. A line of 4 cannot be completed unless it scores, but
a small square can be. Also if a scored square is completed
a non-scoring line of 4 can be completed with the same tile.
The problem was that once a player was able to start scoring he usually
was able to continue until all his pcs. [pieces] were used, running up a big score.
Issy suggested the following variation. Each player starts with four
tiles. On a turn he can either place a tile, under the same
rules as above, or can take a tile. The game is over as soon
as a player plays out all his tiles. He doubles all the scores
he has made. This variation was over very quickly.
I told Claude that I found that adding all the possible
positions to get a sum that was a multiple of 5 was more
like work than fun.
&lt;--&gt;Played TRANSFORMATION with Issy. I won but we both
enjoyed it.
&lt;--&gt;Betty mentioned and Issy showed me a game called ZILCH.
He has played it for years and doesn't remember where
(cont. on 11/8)
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