Ringolevio

Ringolevio (also spelled ringalevio or ring-a-levio) is a children's game which may be played anywhere but which originates in the teeming streets of New York City, and is known to have been played there at least as far back as before World War I. It is one of the many variations of tag. It requires close team work and near-military strategy. In some quarters this game is known as Manhunt which is really another game with different rules. In Canada, this game is known as Relievio. In Boston and Ireland in the 1960s, it was also called Relievio and is mentioned in Roddy Doyle's Booker prize-winning novel Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha and Bill O'Reilly's book, A Bold Fresh Piece of Humanity.

Emmett Grogan wrote an autobiography called Ringolevio, which was published in 1972. Echoing the memories of hundreds of thousands who grew up in the neighborhoods of New York, Grogan wrote: "It's a game. A game played on the streets of New York, for as long as anyone can remember. It is called Ringolevio, and the rules are simple. There are two sides, each with the same number of players. There are no time limits, no intermissions, no substitutes and no weapons allowed. There are two jails. There is one objective." The first chapter of this autobiography describes a particularly serious game of ringolevio played by Grogan and his gang. The game, very much as described above but with somewhat more violence (torn shirts!), was played in 1942-45 in the schoolyard of St. Patrick's School. Norwich, CT.