People have found ways of relaxing and enjoying leisure time since history began. Some of the games we still play today have ancient origins, but the media and technology boom of 20th century brought a rush of new entertainments pastimes, with the spread of popular newspapers, cinema, recorded music, radio, television, and computer games.
You won’t believe it!
In the 1950s, US college students developed a taste for Frisbee pies, which were sold on tinfoil plates. After they had eaten the pies they played a game of throwing and catching the pie plates. Toy company Wham-O brought out a plastic version of the Frisbee pie plate in 1959 – it was an instant success and the Frisbee has been selling ever since.
SQUARE EYES
People in the USA watch 250 billion hours of television a year, and two out of three households own three or more television sets.
INTERNET BOOM
The Internet is huge and still growing. It would take about 300 years to index all the current Web pages.
FAST FACTS
Early computer games ran on university computers. The first was SpaceWar!(1962).
Atari developed home video games in the 1970s. The first, Pong, sold 150,000 copies.
Pokemon Red, Blue, and Green is the highest selling computer game (20 million copies), followed by Super Mano Bros 3 (18 million).
Nintendo’s console Wii is the fastest selling console of all time.
Ancient games
Mancala
The oldest game in the world, played with stones or shells placed in a series of holes.
Go
A 5,000-year-old Chinese strategy game with black and white playing pieces called “stones”.
Senet
A board game enjoyed by the Egyptian pharaohs (kings). Tutankhamun was buried with senet boards.
Knucklebones
Popular in Greece and Rome; players toss bones in the air and catch them on the back of their hands
Chess
A popular board game that originated in India about 2,000 years ago.
Blasts from the past
713 BCE
First newspaper printed in China.
1605
First newspaper printed in Europe.
1880
First photograph in a newspaper.
1895
Lumiere brothers stage the first commercial screening of a film.
1920
The first commercial radio station goes on air in Pittsburgh, USA.
1936
BBC launches television service.
1951
Color television in the USA.
1954
First transistor radio.
1958
Hollywood Walk of Fame opens, studded with stars bearing the names of celebrities.
1990
World Wide Web is launched.
1994
First online newspapers.
1994
First Internet cafe opens.
2001
First podcast
NEWSPAPER INVENTOR
Julius Caesar was first with the news with his Acta Diuma (” Daily Acts”) – large boards on which information about military victories, coming events, or major trials were displayed in Rome.
Radio first
The human voice was first heard on the radio on 24 December 1906. Canadian radio pioneer Reginald Fessenden sang Oh Holy Night during a Christmas broadcast to radio operators at sea in the Atlantic.
What’s in the name?
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences held its first award ceremony, the Oscars, in Librarian Margaret Herrick gave the Academy Awards their famous nickname – she said the statue for the winners reminded her of her Uncle Oscar!
Top 10 countries with the most cinema-goers
India
USA
France
Mexico
UK
Japan
South Korea
China
Germany
Spain
3,591,000,000
1,402,700,000
175,700,000
165,000,000
164,700,000
160,500,000
143,000,000
138,000,000
127,300,000
126,000,000
Television record breakers
Meet the press, a news show, has appeared weekly on US televisions since 1947.
The longest-running soap opera is Guiding Light, shown on US television since 1952. It began originally as a radio serial in 1937, making it more than 70 years old.
The oldest sports show is Hockey Night in Canada, running since 1952.
The UK’s Blue Peters the longest running children’s show, begining in 1958.
Gem of a gadget
Russian-Canadian millionaire Alex Schnaider owns the world’s most expensive MP3 player. Made of 18 carat gold adorned with diamonds, it was a snip at US$20,000!
Best-selling newspapers, by country
Yomuiri Shimbun
Japan: 14 million
Das Bild
Germany: 3.8 million
Canako Xiaoxi
China: 2.6 million
The Sun
UK: 2.4 million
Chosun IIbo
South Korea: 2.3 million
USA Today
USA: 2.3 million
Dainik Jagran
India: 1.9 million
Liberty Times
Taiwan: 1.3 million
Thai Rath
Thailand: 1.2 million
Al-Abram
Egypt: 900,000
Heavyweight read
The Sunday edition of the New York Times for 14 September 1987 contained 1,612 pages and weighed 5.4 kg (12lb)!