Farmer Markets Mingle Word Game

Farmer markets Mingle word game FARM HOME Toys/Games 10-6-31 An Oregon rancher and custom hay hauler has launched a new word game that he hopes will catch on with other farm families and game-players across the country. Tony Aceti, Silver Lake, Ore., says his mother Rose came up with the idea for the game years ago. When she died of cancer in 1981, Tony took it over and he's spent several years just getting all the pieces manufactured and in a package. Now he's got it on the market in stores all over the Northwest and he's looking for ways to market it throughout the country. The game is a combination of Scrabble and roulette. "You spin four balls in a roulette wheel. The balls drop into lettered slots that also line up with vowels on an outer ring. Contestants write down the 4 consonants and 4 vowels the balls line up with and use them to make words. Each letter is numbered, as in Scrabble, so you try to make the most valuable words possible. The winner is the one who makes the most valuable words. Each round is timed," explains Aceti. Aceti has tried to market the game through large discount chains but says the mark-up is so high he can't afford to produce it for them, so he sells through the mail and in specialty shops. He's also selling it over the radio working with disc jockeys who play the game with their audience. They announce letters to listeners, and then give a prize to the caller with the most valuable word. "I had no idea when I got started how to produce a 'board game' and I made some mistakes. The biggest problem is marketing and finding a way to get it out there," says Aceti, who sells the game by mail for $22.00, including shipping. For more information, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Anthony Aceti, LaRosa's Games, P.O. Box 45, Silver Lake, Ore. 97638 (ph 503 576-2229).

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.