NNSL (DEC 23/96) - Forget Elmo, the hottest item on the Northern market this Christmas must have been TOPONA, a game invented by Fort Resolution's Ruth Mandeville and Marilyn Sanderson.

Unlike Sesame Street's fuzzy guy -- who is still in limited supply -- TOPONA sold completely out!

"It's really a great surprise," said Norman Zigarlic, an Edmonton consultant who helped develop and market the game.

TOPONA is an acronym of the phrase: "The Original People Of North America." The game features about 500 questions and facts about aboriginal North Americans.

In early November, News/North carried a feature article on the game and the women who spent the last two years inventing it.

Zigarlic said the story helped fuel a consumer spending spree.

"We're calling it Tickle Me TOPONA," chuckled Zigarlic, referring to one of this holiday season's best selling toys.

The games -- all 2,000 copies -- were sold in many provinces, both territories and a number of U.S. states.

The two mothers and full-time employees developed the game in their spare time over two years, after they both took part in a small-business course run by Zigarlic and sponsored by the Deninu Ku'e First Nation.

The two are still in business and are currently in the primary stages of developing another product.