Ohio Art Etch A Sketch No. 505, Chinese Checkers Tin & Sealed 1982 Scrabble

A ready-made game-night bundle spanning three eras of American living-room play. Headlining the lot is an early Ohio Art "Magic Etch A Sketch Screen" No. 505 — the red-framed aluminum-dust drawing toy that became a fixture of post-war American childhood. The rear molding reads "MADE UNDER LICENSE FRENCH PATENT / U.S. PATENT PENDING / CANADIAN PATENT PENDING," placing this example squarely in the earliest production window after Ohio Art licensed André Cassagnes' L'Écran Magique in 1959–1960, before the U.S. patent was granted. The front carries embossed gold "MAGIC Etch A Sketch SCREEN" lettering and the lower-edge legend "Another Creation By OHIO ART," flanked by the original ivory horizontal and vertical dials.

The second piece is a double-sided lithographed tin Chinese Checkers / Checkers board by Ohio Art, firmly in the classic mid-century American tin-litho tradition. The Chinese Checkers face is printed with coiling blue-and-yellow dragons, red festival lanterns with stylized Chinese characters, and gold border text against a black ground. Flip it and you get a bold red-and-black checkerboard with heraldic knight-and-shield corner motifs and "KING ROW" banners. The tin is complete with its original 60 glass marbles — cat's-eyes, swirls, and clearies across six color sets — and 12 checker pieces. Rounding out the lot is a factory-sealed 1982 Selchow & Righter Scrabble No. 17, original shrink-wrap intact. For the toy collector, the Etch A Sketch's "patent pending" molding is the detail that matters — it marks this as a first-generation example from the opening years of one of the best-selling toys in American history. The sealed Scrabble is a clean time-capsule piece for the board game shelf, and the lithographed tin is a solid mid-century decorative object in its own right.

CONDITION

Very Good overall with honest signs of use and play. The Etch A Sketch frame shows scratches and scuffing to the red plastic; the aluminum screen displays ghosting from prior drawings consistent with age and use. The Chinese Checkers tin has a dent and surface scratches; marble and checker complement are complete per staff count. The Scrabble box remains factory sealed in original shrink-wrap with minor handling wear to the wrap.

DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS

Etch A Sketch

• Manufacturer: Ohio Art Company
• Model: No. 505 "Etch-A-Sketch" Magic Screen

Chinese Checkers / Checkers Tin

• Manufacturer: Ohio Art Company
• Diameter: 12.75"
• Height: 1"
• Contents: 60 glass marbles, 12 checker pieces

Scrabble

• Publisher: Selchow & Righter Company, Bay Shore, New York
• Model No.: 17
• Copyright: 1982
• Origin: Made in U.S.A.; wood parts imported from West Germany; printed in U.S.A.
• Box: 8" × 9.75" × 1.5"
• Status: Factory sealed, original shrink-wrap intact