pinballoriginstories

[pinballoriginstories]

Lisa (Fancipantz/LAC) - Ottawa, Ontario, CA

Before pinball, my family were video gamers. All but myself. They would spend hours together or with online friends play video games. I would either sit with them on the couch and watch or be by myself in another part of the house. I felt a bit jealous that they had the same hobby and played together. I have zero coordination to play today's complex games. Give me a side scrolling Super Mario and I can hold my own, but I'd be dead in a second trying to play Halo.

My husband had a very large retro video game collection that was collecting dust. We made the decision to sell the collection and buy our first two games. I have always said that pinball machines multiply in the dark because that is exactly what happened with ours. In a short period of time we grew our collection, discovered a local pinball community and started regularly playing and competing, as a family.

Pinball is more than just a hobby. It's a part of our family. It is our bonding time. It is our travel. It has brought some wonderful people into our lives. Pinball is something that we can all look forward to...even Mom.

[pinballoriginstories]

Naomi (RED)  - Acworth, GA

I played with my big brother Mark in the 70′s. He and I would play standing shoulder to shoulder, playing split flippers, him on the left flipper me on the right Flipper. Our favorite pin to play was Evel Knievel because we both owned and rode motorcycles. In fact, my brother held the record for the fastest quarter mile wheelie at the Hialeah Drag Strip in South Florida. We also loved to play The Spirit Of 76 EM pin made by Gottlieb. Gottlieb was the only company that actually got their bicentennial pin out in time for America’s big bicentennial year. Bally and Williams tried but theirs didn’t hit the market place until 1977. 

Fast forward to when Mark was 26 and I was 20. Mark took his life drug overdose. The year was 1983, one month before I was to marry my high school sweetheart. I married on May 21, 1983 but it was very much a bittersweet occasion. Since the cause of death brought a lot of shame there really wasn’t anything done to honor my brothers life when he died. 

After getting married I focused my time and energy on establishing our new home followed by 3 children whom we adored, raised and launched. With the empty nest comes the realization that those who should be sharing the same age and season of life with you are gone (Note: I had 2 other sibling besides Mark who have died.) and I started thinking about Mark and just how much his life impacted my life as a kid growing up and I wanted to do something to honor him so I decided that the best way to honor his life is by honoring one of the fondest memories we had together and that was playing  split flippers on that Evel Knievel pinball machine. 

So my buddy Troy North acquired the most beautiful Evil Knievel NOS playing field and hooked us up with our memorial pin to my brother Mark. I took the lock down bar into an engraver and had him engrave: In Memory Of Mark Gerald Jackson with his birth and death date on it with the inscription: “You Mattered To Me.

[pinballoriginstories]

Nicole (NRM) - Milwaukee, WI

I remember playing pinball a child in my grandparents bar. I started to understand how to really play when David spent an afternoon teaching me GOT. I think It helps to have someone who loves the game bring you into the community. Thanks Daluga

[pinballoriginstories]

Eric (EMM) - Sturbrige, MA

What has been the most defining moment in your pinball lifetime thus far? “Going to Pinburgh 2018, playing in the event, and meeting Gary Stern. To see such a large community brought together for one super amazing, perfectly put together event - getting to play with some of the best players in the world really changed my perspective.

This isn't a hobby. It's a sport, maybe even a lifestyle. “

[pinballoriginstories]

Eric (EMM) - Sturbridge, MA)

Do you remember the first time you played pinball? Tell me a little bit about it:

"I do remember. I was a youngster. My dad purchased a Comet and a No Fear with a tax refund one year. I remember standing on a stool and flipping away. Very nice memories.

When my parents split, the pins left, and they remain a strong memory of my early childhood.

Comet provides me with positive nostalgia of my family, so much so, that I reacquired it recently in my adult life.”

[pinballoriginstories]

PMR - Marysville, OH

I don’t remember the first time I played pinball, but I remember a Hurricane that used to be at our local bowling alley I spent all day on back when I was in grade school.

I started competing in pinball leagues in February 2017 as a backwards way to help me overcome my issues with social anxiety. I figured at these things I would have at least have 1 thing in common with everyone. 

[pinballoriginstories]

Nick (NWB) - Richmond, VA

A friend if mine, Dennis Dodel, is a long-time collector in St. Louis. He was contacted by a guy that had a few games new in the box. There was a flasher (floor standing slot machine with lamps instead of reels), a Silver Sails, and a Bikini that had recently been unboxed. 

The guy selling wanted a ridiculous amount for it. Dennis was very patient and waited him out for five years. This year (2018), in July, the guy finally agreed to a price Dennis could stand for the Silver Sails. 

Silver Sails was made at an interesting time for Bally. In 1962, there was fear that bingo pinball would be outlawed in the United States. Bally had two models in production at once: Silver Sails and the sister game, Golden Gate. Golden Gate and Silver Sails are extremely desirable titles due to their ruleset and features (I'll tell you a bit about them below).  But the legal climate was changing rapidly. Bally was throwing the games out the door as quickly as possible. I've heard stories of Golden gates with incorrect backglasses or playfields. This particular game was sold to Central distributing in Nebraska. They immediately put it on closeout in hopes of selling it before the law changed. They sold it to an operator in Minnesota, and the law changed as it was in transit. He couldn't operate it any longer. So it sat. And sat. Then Dennis started working on it. 

So, I started working on Dennis ;-). He wanted to unbox in public, which is super cool, but he was thinking of the Houston arcade show. I suggested (a few times - ok, constantly), that he consider York and the Bingo Row. I've convinced multiple owners to bring bingo pinball machines to York for the public to play. It's the biggest presence at a show for bingo pinball, and I selfishly wanted to see it, of course, but I thought it would be a great place for the public, already expecting bingos, to see it. 

It turned out better than I even imagined. There was a huge crowd around as the game was unboxed. We worried that it would be cosmetically damaged from being stored in an unheated warehouse in Minnesota for 56 years, or that the game would he mechanically kaput due to grease hardening in the motors. I brought a variety of tools and liquids to get the game playable, but almost none were needed. It was the most amazing time capsule, and it worked almost flawlessly right out of the box. 

I am so thankful to Dennis for trucking it all the way from St. Louis to share with everyone. Here is a thread with a couple of videos and lots of pics: https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/bingo-row-at-the-2018-york-show

Silver Sails has one of the more complex rulesets in bingo pinball. As with any bingo, your goal is to get three, four, or five numbers in a row on the bingo card on the backglass. The order of these numbers do not correspond to the order of numbers on the playfield. 

Each horizontal, vertical, and diagonal line are different colors - red, yellow, and green. 

When you put in a coin, the game resets and sets your odds to the default: 4 replays for three in a row, 16 for 4, and 96 for 5. 

As you continue to insert coins, you may be given an increase in these odds in one or more colors. 

The game also has a lot of features to help you win. The primary feature being the magic screen. The magic screen is a chain-driven set of panels that rotate out the main bingo card and reveal tetris-block-like sections in red, yellow and green. Within these sections, the balls do not need to touch to win. Meaning, you only need three or more in the entire colored section to score!

The game also has super sections, or specially marked colored sections. If the feature is lost, you only need 2 in the section to score as 3, 3 to score 4, and 4 to score 5. There is a blue section that only contains three numbers and a corresponding blue section feature. If you light the blue section, and land either three or two balls in it (according to the feature), you can earn either 300 or 600 replays. But that's not all. There is also a feature called "OK". The letters in the word "silver" will light red, one at a time, based on how high your green odds climb. If the panel marked ok is lit, it allows the screen to move in the opposite direction of the other sections, revealing an orange section. Landing only two balls in this orange section allow you to start a free game with a guaranteed set of odds and features, as determined by the red letter in the word silver. There's no sound like it. Only two more features: the gate feature will light occasionally. This reveals a purple section. If you pocket three balls in the purple section, you can start the"Golden game" only available on this and Golden gate. In the Golden game, you cannot insert any coins to improve your chances - you get what you get. Landing either two or three balls in one of the special Golden sections will award you from 75-600 replays!!!

Finally, if you don't achieve a win in five balls, you can pay for a chance at up to three extra balls. 

The game will lock you out of moving the screen based on the "time tree". Normally it will lock before you shoot your fourth ball, adding a lot of challenge to the game. This can be extended to after your fifth ball, which allows you to score in all three colors (if you're good). 

The complexity of these games, that are purely EM, are some of the things that drew me to them. The gameplay is also top notch. It has taught me a lot about ball control, since there are no flippers. You have to grab the cabinet and shake, pull, nudge, push etc. 

I was so excited to play the second game ever on that brand new machine. 

It was a once in a lifetime opportunity for sure. There was one other found about a decade ago, but it is a rare event indeed. I've never seen a game that old unboxed and likely will not again. It definitely upped the cool factor that it is such a great game, too!

I love these games and hope everyone can find some enjoyment with them. That's part of the thought behind Bingo Row - show people these cool games in a variety of styles, and teach them how to play. 

Dennis and I won awards for our games at the show, which was very humbling indeed. The only two pinball awards given, and both for bingos. It was quite a show, for a number of reasons.

[pinballoriginstories]

DUG - Newberryport, MA

Yes, it was 1979 at the Barn of Fun Arcade at Sea View Playland on Lower County Rd in Dennisport, Massachusetts on Cape Cod.  The game was a Williams Doodle Bug.  It was 0.10 cents to play.  I normally gravitated to the EM arcade games like their Chicago Coin Steam Shovel, Midway Whirlybird, or video games like Midway's Sea Wolf.  Those games fascinated me.  But what hooked me on pinball was that first free game knocker that came out of Doodle Bug that summer day in 1979.  The fact that you could win free games on a machine was an incredible feeling for an 11 year old kid.  That was what got me hooked.  The fact that I had enough skills at a game to achieve a free credit was mind-blowing.  I still get a little excited about that free game "knock."  

[pinballoriginstories]

Taylor (TSR) - Richmond, VA

What has been the most defining moment in your pinball lifetime thus far?

I started a charity tournament series called Pin(t)s for Kids to raise money for our local food bank. Felt strange having a bunch of games in my basement and usually just playing by myself. This was prior to local leagues or locations kicking off. I didn’t know a ton of local people into pinball so wanted a way to share my hobby. This was right around the time myself and 4 other friends started the first local league, River City Flippers, which would probably be the second defining thing I’ve done.

[pinballoriginstories]

Gillian (GOO) - Columbus, OH

“My most pleasurable moments are not from tournaments, shows, or finishing first. My most cherished moments are playing pinball with my PinFamily in Columbus. Being taught the rules, not judged, and just enjoying each other's company. And dollar games, cause dolla', dolla' bills ya'll.  “

[pinballoriginstories]

Gillian (GOO) - Columbus, OH

What was the first pinball table/machine you felt a connection with? What made it so special for you?

“The first is also my first purchased. Doctor Who. My father an I would stay up late to eat pizza and watch Doctor Who. I know continue this with my daughter. In 2016 I met Kurt at SuperElectric, who reminded me of my father. He also loved Doctor Who and saw how much my daughter and I enjoyed playing it. He made me a great deal and I will never part with it.”

[pinballoriginstories]

Taylor (TSR) - Richmond, VA

Please tell me about when you realize pinball was more than just a hobby:

“I was out of town working doing film production and new I was going to be there for several months. I was restoring a BSD and packed all the mechs in a suitcase so I could work on them in the hotel room. I used the ironing board and desk as a workshop. It was pretty stupid. “

[pinballoriginstories]

Connor (CMM) - Portland, OR

“I have only been active in the pinball community for a few months, but I already feel at home around them. They have all been incredibly accepting and kind. I would encourage anyone who is interested in pinball to just get out there and play. Try to find out if there are any local tournaments and how you can participate. I got involved by simply showing up to a tournament one day!”

[pinballoriginstories]

Connor (CMM) - Portland, OR

Do you remember the first time you played pinball? Tell me a little bit about it:

“The first time I can remember playing pinball was at a family friends house. They had around 5 pinball machines in their garage and I would play them every time I was there.

The first machine I felt a connection with was Fish Tales. My family bought a Fish Tales when I was pretty young. It was the machine I grew up with.”

[pinballoriginstories]

Travis (TMK) - Lafayette, IN

Why I play locally only.

At one point I was ranked 408th in the world in pinball. I drove all around the country within a 6 hour radius spending thousands of dollars and playing in as many tournaments as I could, trying to raise my ranking. In the past doing so was almost a necessity as tournament locations were allowed to hold only one point earning event a year. I would consider myself a ‘B’ level player. (Pinball players can sometimes be ranked A-E).  

I stopped playing in 2016 when the ranking system began ranking players based on population more than skill. Although it is true there are elite pinball players that competing against is similar to facing NBA legends in basketball, the change in the ranking system included a MASSIVE emphasis on the number of people playing in a tournament. This led me and at least an entire city of people within my state to completely stop playing, as to many, the ranking system became false and fraudulent passed about the 300th position.

Just as an example of what the 2016 changes meant...A ‘B’ player in a small town could compete in a tournament against 13 other ‘B’ players, finish 2nd in the tournament, and receive a reward for defeating the 12 other ‘B’ players of .6 points. At the same time however, there could be someone who had never played pinball once in their entire life who happened to be on a first date in another location who decided to try and play some pinball to try to break the ice with their date. In doing so they decided to play a pinball machine for the first time in their life. In doing this they noticed a sheet of paper attached to the machine they played advertising a, “Selfie league.” They played some games, took a, “Selfie,” and then jokingly entered their name and picture as a selfie tournament qualifier.  

Well, it just so happened that this place located in a large city happened to have quite a few people who had never played pinball before and many of them decided to enter their names into the selfie qualifier as well. Most of them did so without realizing there was a thing called a, “Finals night,” let alone having any intention of participating in the finals night. 120 people in this location all qualified for the selfie tournament, with only about 13 of them being real tournament players. But because of the new ranking system, that person on the first date who cared nothing about the tournament who happened to finish 21st received 2.4 points. So according to the new ranking system, that person on the first date that defeated a multitude of low E level players and jokingly entered into a tournament they cared nothing about is 4 times more skilled than the second place finisher that battled against 13 B level players and defeated 12 of them. In other words, ranking points became based on population and not skill.

So OK, they fixed the rankings a little bit and now players have to have played in so many tournaments to count towards the point total. 

So why am I writing this?

The reason I am writing this now is because in January of this year I decided to play pinball again in events held within my hometown only. Many people from all over the country have asked me about going to play in tournaments outside of my hometown. But when I decided to return again at the beginning of the year I made the decision not to leave town, not to play for points, not to try and raise my ranking, and not to, like so many people do, ultimately wonder about why I was paying thousands of dollars a year driving around the country trying to keep up with a fraudulent ranking system that rewards population over skill.

Do I have a “better” idea for a ranking system? No I don’t. And no I don’t have to. I don’t know how to engineer a car either, but I guarantee you if a car doesn’t work properly, and it doesn’t accurately do the basic function it is designed to do correctly, I’m having no part of it. Due to the current ranking system not accurately doing its basic function correctly, I now do not want to be a part of pinball past going out three times a month and competing in events within my hometown.  

And honestly, even that is slightly tainted, as I know the State Championship Series, which allows the best players throughout the year in each state to compete for decent cash prizes and a trip to compete in Nationals is based on the same flawed ranking system. And because of that, the majority of the players in five of the six cities within my state have no chance of realistically competing in the SCS under the current ranking system. The SCS should be for the best players, but, as I will explain in a bit, there are average players in one city with a MUCH greater chance of getting into the SCS than even above average players in the other five cities.

There are about a dozen players from the five lowest point producing cities that are good enough to consistently place at the top of the tournaments held in their hometowns that could result in them receiving some decent points. Whether they are decent enough points to qualify for the SCS though, in many instances, no they are not.  And for the other 60+ players, they have no chance what-so-ever to qualify for the SCS because the ability to obtain points is not there for them. Unless of course they decide to make 5 to 14 hour drives and pay literally hundreds to thousands of dollars throughout the year for food, gas, mileage, and lodging. And of course, when those kinds of choices pop up, the question becomes, “Is it worth all that?” And to 98% of the 60+ it isn’t.  

Based on the first two months of 2019, the projected yearly rankings point totals available for the four main cities within my state are...240, 270, 630, and 1,500. And please keep in mind there are also two other cities that have players that have had such significant drops in points that I am not even listing them here as one receives about 60 points a year and one decided to stop playing in sanctioned events all together.

Now maybe it’s just me, but when the E level 40th place finisher of a tourney in the city producing 1500 points a year receives more points (reflecting they are more skilled) than the B level 4th place finisher in the city producing 270 points a year, even though the B level 4th place finisher would, without a single doubt in the entire known universe, completely destroy the E level 40th place finisher on any game in existence 9 times out of 10, there is an obvious problem with the current ranking system.

It is my belief that the rankings are a total fraud past about the 300th mark. And because of this, it is my choice to play in hometown events only, care nothing about the fraudulent system, and let others waste hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars taking part in what I and several others perceive as an irrelevant ranking system.  

I believe what may ultimately happen in my state is a couple of the Michael Jordan and Larry Bird types that happen to live very close to the 1500 point city will drive over and dominate that city’s reoccurring player field. From what I see, having played against several of the world’s top players in several tourneys, that city’s reoccurring player field features maybe one low A player, four or five B players, and several C-E players. This will make it very easy for the high A players that live close to come in and take the largest cash prizes in the SCS that the 1500 point city worked so hard to build up.

Hopefully after being robbed blind, the 1500 point city will calm it down a bit on the tourneys.  Although the, “Prestige,” of being, “Ranked,” so high might be enough for them to keep it going.  Unfortunately, all to the dismay of the 60+ players from the other five cities that will never have a shot at SCS competition.

The current ranking system promotes, “Playing more pinball,” kinda, it also causes many reoccurring players to hold less tournaments or stop playing all together. It also does not accurately do what it is designed to do, and that is rank players based on skill. Passed about the 300th spot which doesn’t consist of the players that travel around the entire world playing year round in major tournaments for big dollar prizes, it ranks common players based on population density and where they live and how much money they spend as opposed to how skilled they are.  And that is why I play locally only.

[pinballoriginstories]

JRP - Columbus, OH

Please tell me about when you realize pinball was more than just a hobby:

“After a few months of playing casually I decided to join my first league. I was too intimidated to join an open league, so I went to Belles and Chimes in Cleveland. I was so stunned how accepting they were of a new player and wanted me to feel welcome! I knew from there that this is a community of friends I wanted to be a part of vs. just as a hobby! “

[pinballoriginstories]

JRP - Columbus, OH

“Don’t be afraid to ask. That’s the biggest thing I have learned. There are so many great players that WANT you to succeed and get better. They are willing to share the knowledge they have with you. You just need to ask! “