Local game inventors sign worldwide deal with Hasbro

THINGS…Humour in a Box
News Release

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Toronto — After selling over 100,000 copies of their hilarious Canadian party game “THINGS…Humour in a Box”, brothers Tom & Ted Quinn and partner Mark Sherry have signed a worldwide licensing agreement with HASBRO GAMES, the company that brings you Trivial Pursuit, Monopoly, Scrabble, Pictionary, Clue, etc.. “THINGS…” was invented by chance when the three North Bay natives were simply trying to make each other laugh. “We had no intention of putting this on the market.” says Tom Quinn. “We were just doing what we always did when we came home to North Bay: get together with family and friends and have some fun.” After five years of those same family and friends telling them that this was the funniest game they had ever played, the three very busy friends took another year to design and develop it into what is now on store shelves.

Recipient of the Canadian Toy Testing Council’s highest award in 2006—the first Canadian-developed game to receive such an honour—THINGS…™, a “who-said-what” game with attitude is the perfect game for all ages! Anyone who can read can play and there are no limitations to the fun! In fact, THINGS….™ stretches the imagination of its players throwing aside all of the usual game skills (like answering trivia questions and drawing pictures), encouraging participant creativity and guaranteeing humour!

This hilarious game presents players with provocative topics like:

• THINGS...™ a doctor shouldn’t do while performing surgery.

• THINGS...™ you shouldn't tie to the roof of your car.

• THINGS…™ you wouldn’t do for all the money in the world.

And allows players to say whatever comes to mind. Pick a topic, write a response, read them all out loud and guess who said what. It’s almost that simple.

Tom & Ted Quinn and Mark Sherry in North Bay Friday, November 23 in the evening Gullivers Quality Books & Toys (157 Main St. W.)

Saturday, November 24 in the afternoon Creative Learning (181 Main St. W.)

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FAST FACTS SHEET

THINGS…™ was invented in Canada 10 years ago by Tom and Ted Quinn and Mark Sherry who were just trying to make each other laugh. After five years of everyone they knew telling them that THINGS…™ was the funniest game they had ever played, the trio decided they had no choice but to put it on the market. After a couple of years of development THINGS…™ reached store shelves to immediate critical acclaim.


GAME OVERVIEW:

Designed for players ages 8 and up.

The true objective of the game is LAUGHTER. The game contains 300 cards with topics such as “THINGS…™ you shouldn’t try to do in the dark,” “THINGS…™ dogs are actually saying when they bark” and “THINGS…™ you wish had a zipper.”

At the beginning of each round, a topic is read out loud. Each player then secretly writes down his or her response to the topic. The responses are read out loud and players take turns trying to guess who said what. Players whose responses are identified are eliminated and the round continues until there is only one player left.

Retail price: $39.99 (CDN)

AWARDS:

In 2006, the Canadian Toy Testing Council (CTTC) recognized THINGS…™ with a Children’s Choice Award (the industry’s highest honour) which is given to the top ten toys of the year. According to the CTTC, this rating “demonstrates excellence in all areas of function, design, durability and most importantly – play value.”

RETAIL DISTRIBUTION:

THINGS…™ is available throughout Canada at the following national retail outlets:

- Chapters/Indigo - Mastermind
- Scholar’s Choice - Sears
- Zeller’s - The Bay

For independent retail outlets, please visit www.thingsthegame.com

SAMPLE QUESTIONS:

• THINGS...™ a doctor shouldn’t do while performing surgery.

• THINGS...™ you shouldn't tie to the roof of your car.

• THINGS…™ you wouldn’t do for all the money in the world.

• THINGS…™ that could get you arrested.

• THINGS…™ women know more about than men.

You won’t believe the THINGS…™ you’ll hear.

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Tom Quinn's Bio:

Tom Quinn approaches everything in life with a sense of humour. So it seems almost fated that he and his brother Ted Quinn and friend Mark Sherry invented the hilarious game THINGS…™ ten years ago just to make each other laugh.

Family game nights were an important part of Tom’s childhood. “We played everything—charades, Scrabble, Monopoly. But my brother and I had the most fun when were inventing our own games. We always had a lot of people at
our house so the best ones included lots of players and usually ended in uncontrollable laughter.”

Tom is currently developing two other games with his partners that they have been playing themselves for years.

When not inventing games, Tom can be found behind a movie camera working as an assistant director with some of Hollywood’s biggest names. Over the years, Tom has worked closely with such acclaimed directors as: David Cronenberg, Sidney Lumet , Sofia Coppola, Norman Jewison and Gus Van Sant, and with an impressive list of highly-talented actors including: Sophia Loren, Marlon Brando, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Nicole Kidman, Robert de Niro,
Gwyneth Paltrow, Kiefer Sutherland, Michael Douglas, Harvey Keitel, Whoopie Goldberg, Eva Longoria and many more. In fact Tom is not even one degree separated from Kevin Bacon.

Tom also has a degree in English Literature and has traveled the world for both work and pleasure. He continues to work in film and currently resides in Toronto with his wife and two young children.

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