Bidspirit auction | Blackout Game - A Rare

Blackout Game - A Rare Pocket Game Produced in the United States During World War II - Blackout Game - Can You Black Out All the Lights in Time to Save the Town? - A rare pocket game produced in the United States during World War II. Printed tin/cardboard with a glass cover and metal frame, bearing the official inscription ”MADE IN U.S.A.” at the bottom. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor and the United States' entry into the war in late 1941, genuine anxiety prevailed among the American public over possible air raids and bombardments by enemy aircraft against cities on the East and West Coasts. As part of the civil defense effort, strict ”blackout” regulations were introduced, requiring residents to extinguish or conceal every source of light in homes and buildings so as not to provide targets for enemy aircraft. The game accurately reflects the spirit of the period and was produced as an entertaining civilian game based on these blackout drills. The challenge: gently tilt the box to maneuver the small metal balls and roll them into the recesses (holes) positioned in the windows of the buildings. Each ball entering a recess ”turns out” the light in that window, thereby completing the blackout of the entire town before the aircraft arrive. The game board depicts an urban street in deep perspective, with streetlights and bombing aircraft in the upper portion of the sky above the town. All this while the instructions printed on the game board read: ”THE BOMBING PLANES HAVE BEEN SIGHTED. THEY WILL ARRIVE IN EXACTLY TWO MINUTES. CAN YOU BLACKOUT ALL THE LIGHTS IN TIME TO SAVE THE TOWN.” 9.5x13 cm. Thickness: 1.5 cm. Good condition.