An amazing artefact from the year Nixon declared war on drugs

SCAM: The Game of International Dope Smuggling.

World World maps
  • Publication place: Berkeley
  • Publisher: Brown Bag Enterprises
  • Publication date: 1971.
  • Physical description: Everything needed to play Scam, including: two identical sheets of directions on letter-size paper; 882 by 584mm w game board printed in colours on coated stock; two metal spinners, one loose and the other mounted on a wood block bearing a laser-printed facsimile of the dial; 91 "Connection" cards printed on blue card stock; 71 "Paranoia" cards on red stock; 100s of square "tokens" printed in colours representing varying quantities of pot (green), hashish (brown) and cocaine (blue); 100s of sheets of ersatz money in denominations of 50-100, 1000; and a motley assortment of dice and playing pieces. With original cardboard shipping tube and original printed paper-wrapper bearing the image of a mammoth joint.
  • Dimensions: 882 by 584mm (34.75 by 23 inches).
  • Inventory reference: 12261

Notes

The rules state:

“Generally Scam goes like this: you begin on the drop out of college square and keep moving around the Ave until you have collected enough money and Connections to get off the Ave. You then work The County and New York until you get enough money to put together a smuggling Scam. That involves Flying to Mexico, Afghanistan or South America, buying dope, smuggling back to the States, and selling in New York (where there’s more money) or in the County (where there’s less Paranoia). To win the game you have to make One Million Dollars. If any of the following rules seem vague, unclear or stupid, feel free to change them to suit yourself.”

The map features maps of Afghanistan, India, Mexico and South America, with a cameo appearance by Uranus in the upper-left corner. New York, The Ave and The County appear as squared diagrams.

Given the game’s obscurity, we are unable to find a standardised list of the components. The present example appears to have been augmented with ersatz money, cards, dice and playing pieces borrowed from elsewhere. The aggregation may or may not constitute a complete set, however it certainly provides more than enough to play with.

Rare. We are unable to find any institutional copies.

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