Published in 1971 by Whitman, Heckle and Jeckle’s Ski Trail Game was a spin-and-move race in which players competed to be the first to reach the finish line at the bottom of the ski hill.
The game featured the sardonic magpie duo of Heckle and Jeckle, characters created by Paul Terry for his Terrytoons animation studio. Terrytoons produced 52 Heckle and Jeckle cartoons between 1946 and 1966. The characters also appeared as guests in the animated shorts of other Terrytoons properties and headlined their own television series, The Heckle and Jeckle Cartoon Show, which aired on CBS Saturday mornings from 1956 to 1966. The duo later enjoyed a brief revival in The New Adventures of Mighty Mouse and Heckle & Jeckle, which ran from 1979 to 1980.
GAMEPLAY
Players began by placing their pawns at the top of the ski hill. On a turn, a player spun the dial and moved one to four spaces, as indicated.
The trail down the hill was marked with green, yellow, and blue spaces. Green spaces had no effect and served simply as resting points. Landing on a yellow space required the player to follow the illustrated ski path to a connected blue space, which could lead to either a progression down the hill or a penalty move back up the mountain.
The game board was colourfully illustrated with familiar ski-hill elements, including a St. Bernard, a puddle of water, a ski lift, an open fire, an alpine yodeler, trees, rocks, and a ski chalet.
Players took turns spinning and moving their pawns. The first player to reach the bottom of the hill won the game.
IN THE BOX
A complete game included a game board, four player pawns (red, yellow, green, and blue), and a spinner. Instructions were printed on a platform inside the box.
COLLECTOR CONSIDERATIONS
Board games featuring recognizable television characters continue to hold strong appeal for collectors. Bright illustrations, familiar settings, and nostalgic associations all contribute to their desirability. Examples include: I Dream of Jeannie Game from Milton Bradley, Mission: Impossible from Ideal, Land of the Lost from Milton Bradley, Monster Squad from Milton Bradley, The Gong Show Game from American Publishing, and M*A*S*H from Milton Bradley are examples of board games that took advantage of established properties to fuel family game nights.
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