Chris Haney

A Trivial Pursuit playing piece, with all six wedges filled in. Chris Haney (August 9, 1950 – May 31, 2010) was a Canadian journalist and co-creator of the Trivial Pursuit board game with Scott Abbott.

Early life

Haney was born on August 9, 1950 in Welland, Ontario. He attended a high school in Hamilton, Ontario but dropped out at age 17, His father worked for The Canadian Press news agency and helped him get a job as a copy boy with the company. He was hired by The Montreal Gazette after working at photo desks in Montreal and Ottawa. Within an hour, Haney and Scott had mapped out the game with its six-spoked circular board and multiple categories on a few sheets of paper. Posing as reporters, they attended a toy fair in Montreal and came back with invaluable information they had obtained from game experts attending the show.

Selchow and Righter licensed the rights to the game in 1988. Haney would eventually have enough money to travel, taking cruise ships across the Atlantic to Europe because he was afraid of flying.

Haney died in Toronto at age 59 on May 31, 2010, due to complications of kidney disease and circulatory problems. Haney was survived by his second wife, Hiam, his first wife, Sarah, and their three children.