#Mr president game free play free

As the game progressed Shell did things to keep players’ interests up. By then over a million prizes had been awarded. The game continued in some regions until December 4, 1969. Players then had to collect all the presidents in a game card section in order to win. These 'FREE' spots were eliminated in July, 1968.

#Mr president game free play free

This meant that a prize could be won without collecting the specified free coins. In July, 1968, the prize was reduced to $1,000 and stayed that way for the remainder of the game.Īlso at the beginning, game cards had the word 'FREE' printed over six of the presidents. Shell Changes the Game Rules … Three TimesĪt the beginning of the promotion the prize for completing section one was $2,500. A lot of ad space was purchased to promote the game and Shell also came up with a musical jingle that was used in the advertising. In April, 1968, Shell Oil began running newspaper ads announcing prize winners. Where released, people played and won prizes right away.

Some regions did not start the game until the middle of 1969 and some regions never saw the game. It wasn't released in California until August, 1968. When released in a region, it ran for three to five months then ended.

Sometime in March, 1968, the game started but only in selected regions. The John Tyler $100 prize-winning coin 3 and Newspaper ad in The Southeast Missourian onĤ/26/69. If your president coin had INSTANT WINNER Click here to see a scarce version of the game card. These game cards were given away at Shell stations and they were also inserted as a supplement in selected newspapers as part of Shell Oil's marketing blitz. If you filled any of the game sections you won the indicated prize. How fun!Ībove is the common version of the game card onto which you placed your game coins. The game coins were often given to kids to play with and they were educational to boot. I remember the excitement of opening up a game piece and seeing SHELL'S INSTANT WINNER on the back. There were also ‘instant winner’ coins that won a prize without having to collect any additional coins. This is the prize most remembered as over a million of these bronze presidential sets were given away 2. Prizes ranged from $1 to $5,000 (that’s about $30,000 in today’s dollars!) and you could also win a beautiful bronze set of presidential medals that came with a mounting board. The game card was divided into sections and if you could get all the president coins in any one of the sections, you won the prize indicated for that section. You then placed your coin in the matching space provided on the official game card. Whenever you filled up with gas at a Shell station 1 you received a paper packet which contained one of 39 different aluminum president coins. The game was simple on the surface – just collect coins and win prizes. Right: Second version of the game coin packaging used after 11/12/68. Left: First version of the game coin packaging used until 11/12/68. There are many unanswered questions but there are a lot of clues. No one can tell me if this game was nationwide or only released in certain regions. No one can tell me when the game started, when it ended, how many game pieces were issued, or how many prizes were awarded. The design and execution of this marketing promotion was nothing short of brilliant and it’s crazy that there is so little information available about it. Such games were also a shot in the arm for numismatics because it got people in the habit of identifying and collecting sets of coins. President Coin Game inspired a multitude of similar collect-and-win games which continue to this day, like McDonald’s ‘Monopoly’ game. Many people have fond memories of playing the game and winning prizes and that, in itself, is a testament to its success. In my quest to complete a set I have learned a lot about this promotional game and it can all be found here. Also in its wake are collectors who try in vain to assemble a complete set of the original game pieces. You can buy them on auction sites every day. Perhaps you did, also? In its wake are millions of aluminum president game coins and millions of bronze prize coins.

A lot of people played and a lot of people won prizes. President Coin Game was a fabulous success for Shell Oil Company in 19. Which was made of aluminum by The Franklin Mint.

This is a common game coin (more accurately 'medallion')