GAME NAMED FOR CITY PUTS LOCAL BUSINESSES ON A ROLL

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- Three dozen Cape Girardeau businesses may be bought or sold depending on the role of the dice in a game of "high finance and big money" named for the city.

Wes Holly of Mount Juliet, Tenn., has created a series of games named for different communities and is working on one for Cape Girardeau. The game is based on the Monopoly board game.

Holly is in town this week selling the 36 spaces on the game board to local firms. A corner square costs $220. The inner spaces cost $110 each.

The games retail for $11 and are scheduled for delivery in mid-April, Holly said.

Stores which advertise on the game board will also receive games.

Holly said: "They can either sell the games and get their money back, or they can use the game as a promotional item or a gift.

"Stores in other cities are re-ordering games by the hundreds."

Players buy and sell local businesses represented on the board. At the end of the game, the player with the most money wins.

The center of the board features artwork about community attractions. A game from Murray, Ky., for example, had information about Murray State University, the Chamber of Commerce, and the tourism bureau in the center space.

"I didn't invent the concept, but I did invent this game," said Holly, a former entertainer and Chamber of Commerce manager.

"I wanted the game to be funny," said Holly. "In fact, there is a money-back guarantee if this is not as funny as any game you've ever played."

"People who love games love this game," Holly said. "They enjoy playing for their own towns.

"From the business point of view, businesses are investing in something people will keep in their homes for years.

"And, in the play of the game, the name of the business is spoken aloud," Holly said. "That's rare in advertising."

For more information about the game, contact Holly at the Townhouse Inn this week.