ost people I play with have childhood memories of being placed on a step stool and flipping to their heart’s content. My frame of reference is different. While I’m sure my younger self had more thanM a few attempts at slaying the silver ball, my serious relationship with pinball began in 2008. That was the year I quit my job to travel the U.S. by train for two months, and when I got back my boyfriend and roommates at the time had discovered pinball. In less than sixty days they had become completely obsessed with it and scoured every bowling alley, laundromat, movie theater, and bar in a twenty-five mile radius to compile a list of “pins” in Tacoma, Wash. We quickly discovered Shorty’s and Skill Shot, both located in Seattle. Shorty’s is a Coney Island-themed bar with sixteen pins, while Skill Shot is a DIY pinball zine which keeps a list of pins in Seattle much like the one we put together for Tacoma. Within six months of moving to the Emerald City, I found a full-time job at Full Tilt (a pinball and ice cream bar), became a member of the Seattle Pinball League, and joined the staff of Skill Shot as a writer and editor. My friend Tim Tournay puts it best: “Before I joined the pinball league I was a normal person. I had non-pinball friends, went to non-pinball bars, and participated in non-pinball activities. All of that has changed now.” The same adage holds true for me— many of my decisions on bars or restaurants I go to are driven by whether or not they have pinball. Fast forward to today. I’m still living in Seattle, where pinball is absolutely thriving. We have a pinball museum, casual tournaments six days a week, two Seattle leagues, and a total of 424 machines across 119 locations in the metro area with even more spots in the works. Many modern pinball machines have an attract mode that grab most people’s attention with flashing lights, sounds, and colorful artwork. It’s how they get their hooks in you. By the end of this guide you will understand why quarters aren’t just necessary for laundry, busses, or parking meters anymore.

Originally printed in Razorcake #85, April/May 2015 N.Y. police used the wooden legs to make 2,000 billy clubs for local law enforcement to the machines and dumped them in Pinball’s History: the Hudson river. That is some serious Mob Shit and Outlawed mob shit right there. They also used the wooden legs to make 2,000 billy clubs The basic concept of pinball was for local law enforcement. created in the 1700s in France with a Enter Roger Sharpe in 1976. wooden contraption filled with actual Sharpe proved to a New York judge pins that a ball navigated through, that pinball is primarily a game of skill called bagatelle. This same concept with a small percentage of chance. is also what inspired the pachinko Two machines were brought in so there machines in Japan. was a back-up available if anything It wasn’t until 1947 that designer went wrong with the primary. New Harry Mabs invented flipper bats for York officials got suspicious of the the game. You hear that? Flippers second table and brought it into play. have only been used for a mere sixty- On a pin that Sharpe had no experience seven years and pinball is over three on, he called his shot and executed it centuries old! perfectly. This Hail Mary skill shot At the height of pinball was essential in saving pinball. End of manufacturing in the early 1930s argument. Ban lifted! there were around 150 companies L.A.’s ban was thrown out in making pins, mostly in Chicago which 1974. However, the city of Oakland became the hub of the game because only legalized pinball this year after of David . He was a traveling over eight decades! The law there was businessman based out of the Windy rarely, if ever, enforced until 2014 City, pushing his hugely successful when someone got pissed about a game Baffle Ball. Meanwhile in nearby pinball party disrupting their California, Harry Williams was adding sleep. The city of Alameda, California electricity to his pinball tables. Word still has a ban—this despite it being of his advancement spread faster home to a fantastic, chronologically than the tables and soon they were organized pinball museum. being emulated in Chicago. Williams relocated there to keep up with the competition. With lumber, wire, and Old School vs. steel in abundance, plus ports in Lake New School Michigan and railroads, the games were manufactured easily and spread Pinball continued to evolve from a across the nation quickly. Fourteen basic game with pins, wood, and metal manufacturers remained by the mid- balls over the years. 1930s, with companies like Gottlieb, Between 1933 and 1977, the Bally, Williams, , and type of tables available to play were leading the pack. electro-mechanical (EM), meaning Pinball dominated in most American they operated on scoring wheels and cities as well as in Japan with Sega and relays. These tables have bells, clicks, Data East. However, some spots like chimes, and buzzers as the sensory New York and L.A. decided to ban experience and play at a much slower pinball in the ‘40s because it was seen pace. There are generally only targets, as an illegal gambling opportunity. New spinners, and saucers (a recessed circle York’s mayor, Fiorello LaGuardia, and that usually increases your bonus when police went so far as to raid the city for the ball falls into it. Once your score thousands of pins, took sledgehammers collects, it is kicked out of the saucer). are five dollars, or you can get the whole collection (issues 1-33) at skill-shot.com. Drop Target Zine is run by Alec Longstreth in California and Jon Chad in Massachusetts. The two comics met at college and discovered their affinity for pinball at the same time when meeting at a pool hall for a project. With most of the U.S.A. between them, they are limited to one zine a year that culminates when they return to their alma mater to teach workshops. This zine covers interviews, personal narrative comics, and detailed Independent, small press publishing drawings of dream machines they wish has a strong presence in pinball with existed. Issues are five dollars and are three popular titles and hopefully more half-size zines, bound with a screen- to follow. printed cover. It’s available at droptarget. Gordon Orneleas, who ran the punk blogspot.com. fanzine WDC Period, along with friend Slam Tilt Zine out of Australia is Brad Hayden started Skill Shot seven a new addition to the self-published years ago simply because of their love of passion for pinball and was inspired by the game. It has since become the Seattle Drop Target. There is only one issue so area’s main pinball reference guide with far, but it is fantastic. It covers interviews the most current list of tables, organized with local players and artists who use by neighborhood and printed in each pinball parts, maintenance, how to issue, along with features, news, and play, and where to find machines in gossip. They have so much community Sydney. It’s a half-size zine, bound with support that they can cover the breadth a screen-printed cover. It’s five dollars of the metro area and often are one of and available at slamtiltzine.com. the first to announce game changes. Full- size, double-sided, zine subscriptions Despite these older machines’ simpler Williams/Bally out of business as well appearance, they usually are some of as mirrored the subsequent downfall of the hardest to master. Thus, there is a pinball in general. small schism between those who love This left Stern Industries the the classics versus players who stick to monopoly of pinball manufacturing for modern games, though its best to build over a decade up until today. skills on both. Jersey Jack Pinball popped up last Post-1977 machines began using year with its Wizard of Oz table decked solid-state (SS) electronics consisting in LED lights and an LCD plasma of transistors, circuit boards, CPUs, display that caught many player’s and audio boards, many of which are attentions. They plan on releasing completely controlled by software. The Hobbit next. A company in the Scores are recorded on a plasma Netherlands called Dutch Pinball is screen and, depending on the era of releasing The Big Lebowski pinball and machine, you’ll have either an alpha- gaining a ton of buzz about it. Spooky numeric display capable of letters and Pinball is another new pinball outfit numbers only, or a dot-matrix display and has released an original game (DMD) complete with animations and called America’s Most Haunted. I’ve cut scenes. DMDs, on the whole, are been lucky enough to play it twice and orange, though a select few have been it’s really awesome. modified to be in full color! Animations on the display give the Getting Serious player a better idea of what the game’s goals are and is more immersed in the table’s theme. Licensed games like Interest in pinball and match play is Indiana Jones, Batman: The Dark Knight, erupting like crazy in Seattle. and Tron include detailed likenesses of A few months ago we adopted the characters and sometimes clips from a team play model from New York, the respective movies. which engaged eighty people in a In 1999 Williams released Star Wars: weekly league. Every Monday night, Episode I and Revenge from Mars (a two teams meet up for match play at sequel to the wildly popular Attack from one of the six bars hosting games. Mars) via an innovated concept called Pinball Seattle is much like a Pinball 2000. These tables projected a bowling or dart league where teams pick screen directly onto the playfield in an their strongest players, best machines, attempt to merge fans of both pinball and battle each other. and arcade games. Williams hoped their Four rounds of matches (two exclusivity with the Star Wars project singles—solo, head-to-head play, and would be very successful. It completely two doubles—cooperative combined backfired. Obtaining this license was scores between the two teams) are coupled with a sequester, or gag order, played, points are assigned, and from Lucas Ranch which made the one team goes home a winner. This design process less communal. The formula is repeated over eight weeks Williams team was only allowed to until top teams emerge for the playoffs discuss the project with a handful of and finals. people. Also, Jar Jar Binks—possibly Before the start of this bar league, the most hated Star Wars character—is there was and still are very standard a large part of the game. The pin was “three strikes you’re out” tournaments released at the same time as the movie. that occur weekly, monthly, and This endeavor sadly bombed and drove annually. Turnouts at these events can

“I Love Pinball, but I Suck at It ” Even the simplest machine has super beneficial during multi-balls and is hundreds of switches, optics, coils, targets, referred to as a cradle separation. ramps, coin mechanics, and other parts. Cradle Separation: In this move, Then there’s a tiny metal ball slamming which is definitely advanced, you have into anything on the playfield crossing one ball on one flipper and two on the its path, thrashing around as if it were other. Or any combination of one and one, in a circle pit at its favorite band’s show. one and three, and so on, depending on It’s an amusement park of chaos beneath how many balls are involved in the multi- the glass. But pinball is a tangible game, ball. Apollo 13 is the largest that comes to consisting of equal parts physics, skill, and mind, with a thirteen ball multi-ball and luck that can be manipulated in your favor. Indiana Jones: Pinball Adventure will hit All too many times I meet people who you with eight at the same time. Once you adamantly enjoy the game, though admit have this set up, look for your jackpot shot to being terrible at it. and trace it back to your flippers. Figure What’s really cool about pinball out what moves you need to execute in is it gets cheaper as you build skill. All order to hit that shot and then exploit it machines have a base replay score that for as long as you can! goes up each time it’s achieved, making it Slap Save: I’ve found many people more and more of a challenge. If you are new to the game have a fear of shoving able to continually earn replays, you could or nudging the machine. This is so crucial be playing several games on just fifty cents to coercing the ball to go where you (note that some newer games cost up to a want it and ensuring a longer play time. dollar a play, but some are only a quarter). When I first started playing, I lacked the Here are some basic moves to master. upper body strength needed to move a First things first: there is never any table while playing so I used to wedge good reason to be flipping both flippers at my leg under the front of the machine for the same time. Never. Not only will it not leverage. Slap saves are done by simply save your ball from draining, it ensures hitting the side of the table that you’d like zero ball control and flags you as a newb. the ball to land. These are so important Make every flip matter and try to minimize for when the ball is heading SDTM and is flailing. potentially the only move that will allow Dead Pass: Probably the most you to regain control. Otherwise it’s Drain terrifying move to try and all you have City, population you. to do is absolutely nothing. As long as Ideally, you become friends with the ball is not traveling straight down someone who owns pinball tables and the middle (SDTM) of the playfield, let will let you wail on them for free. Or, if it make contact with the flipper and you’re lucky enough to have a museum in bounce off the rubber ring over to the your area, like the ones in Vegas, Alameda, next flipper. For example, if the ball is or Seattle, you can pay a cover charge and screaming towards your left flipper, don’t play to your heart’s content. Otherwise, flip, do nothing, and it will dead bounce just keep quarters on you and stick to it. over to the right flipper where you can The majority of pinball skill is repetition, trap it. timing, and muscle memory. Everything Trap: As the ball comes to the flipper, else is memorizing rule sets on individual given the right momentum, you can lift games and most modern pins have a cheat the flipper and hold the ball right on sheet of how to play them directly on the the flipper, keeping it in a trap. From table. Practice doesn’t make perfect, but it there you have time to settle down, does make better! think, and focus your shots. This skill is be anywhere from fifteen to hundreds As a punk, some of my core of people, based on the frequency and values are equality, inclusivity, and prizes. In Seattle even our Wednesday acceptance. Booking shows and Flip Off at Add-A-Ball is averaging supporting bands taught me about thirty-five players a week and has how badly people get fucked over a record attendance of forty-seven! when they’re trying to do what makes I lovingly began to equate these to them happy, or treated awful for the punk shows. way they look and who they are. That Weekly pin tourneys are much like kind of shit bothers me a lot. the five dollar show your buddy’s band I’ve noticed the competitive plays on off nights at the local bar. You pinball niche skews male. I’ve tried see the same familiar faces from the to sort it out and make sense of it community out, having a few rounds and one thing I’m sure of is that it’s after work and singing along to the not malevolent. But there does exist same tunes that your friends penned a long-running culture, embedded week in, week out. subconsciously, that doesn’t Monthly tourneys are the active encourage women to be strong touring band of the circuit. Many of or combative within our society the weekly crowd will make it out in general. While pinball playing along with the occasional friends who doesn’t seem to be a sport requiring dropped out of the crew of regulars. strength, oftentimes skillful nudging These folks still love the community and shaking of the table is necessary and the scene, but have cut back on to save your ball from draining and going out, save for the handful of times often women lack the ability to move something dear to them comes to town 350 pounds with their arms. Though and they’re willing to shell out ten beyond that, early on pinball was bucks for it. marketed with images of attractive Annual tournaments are the big females in skimpy outfits. Sadly, ones. The fest-size shows people travel this is still happening as Stern just out of state for. Folks will pay anywhere announced Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy from twenty to a hundred dollars in a Melons, a supposedly tongue-in- weekend for some extremely challenging cheek game about boobs. The main matches. You’ll find most of the die-hard character, a farmer’s daughter, holds enthusiasts here and get the rare sighting melons at chest level with Daisy of some legends of the game. Dukes on while being literally The way these competitions work drooled over by farm hands, one of is simple. Everyone buys into a main which is drunk. How any female pot and is slated to play one random would feel respected playing this is person on a randomly selected game. completely beyond me. No extra balls are played in the interest I became an advocate for females of fairness and time, interference with playing more pinball in an attempt to your opponent’s game results in a loss push a much-needed cultural shift and for that match, and order of play is have written several articles for Skill decided by a coin flip. The highest score Shot on the topic. after three or five balls, depending on I also started a women-only the era of the machine, wins. Once you monthly tournament called Babes in lose three matches, you are out of the Pinland after being inspired by Belles running. If you make it to the top four, and Chimes in San Francisco. Nearly a you win cash and glory! year later, I’m still meeting girls who come to Babes for their first tournament. time you hit one of those shots the song While, yes, this excludes men, I think changes ever so slightly, keeping the that opening a space for women to feel same basic theme. 2000, welcome and comfortable absolutely also by Williams (can you tell I like trumps that. them the best?) plays a radical ballad in which the black knight laughs an Sure Plays a Mean evil laugh and shouts things like “Give me your money!” Go to YouTube and Pin... —More like The look it up, it’s something everyone Who Cares?!? needs to hear. On the flip side, there are bands As a pinball enthusiast/addict, I that are inspired enough by pinball want to go on record saying I never to reference it in songs! Remember, want to hear reference of “Pinball we’re not talking about Tommy or Pete Wizard” ever again. There’s so much Townsend or Elton John anymore. more to the game than that damned Here’s a short list of bands that are song. Basically what a person is telling probably on your radar and their song me when they ask if I have a supple that mentions the silver ball: The Clash’s wrist is, “Wow, that’s a neat hobby “Koka Kola,” Generation X’s “Kiss that I don’t know anything about but I Me Deadly,” The Queers’ “Girl About heard this Who song once!” Town,” Big D And The Kids Table’s One of my favorite moments was “Pinball,” In Flames’ “Pinball Map,” playing the game Funhouse, while Sage Francis’s “Runaways,” Black listening to Funhouse by The Stooges, Label Society’s “Superterrorizer,” and between bands at the Funhouse venue The Blood Brothers’ “Six Nightmares for a show. While I wasn’t taken down in the Pinball Masquerade.” Surprised? there by three Puerto Rican girls to I was too. play a lonely pinball machine like in Other honorable mentions of punk Rancid’s “Olympia, WA,” I did find rock/pinball tie-ins include: Stiff that music has a huge relevance in the Little Fingers’ score the soundtrack game… much more than a popular song to the computer-simulated game Pro- from a rock opera. Pinball: Timeshock!, Hot Pinball Rock Sometimes it’s the music that’s Volume 1 and 2, which features songs programmed with the table that I end up written specifically about pinball and loving. The song during multi-ball on was included in a mid ‘90s zine called William’s sticks in my head Multiball, and a studio in Canada every time. ZZ Top’s catchy “La Grange” that’s doing a series of John Peel-style plays on a loop in William’s The Getaway. band recordings plus pinball playing Bally’s table has an atmospheric called Pinball Sessions. tune composed entirely by Suzanne Ciani. Not many women are involved in game Punk Pinball development, so Ciani’s work on Xenon Parallels – stood out to me a lot. She was one of the first to program a voice—her own—onto Subculture Crossover a pinball machine. Then there’s William’s My attraction to punk and pinball in which the player advances from raft often run on parallel tracks. Both are to raft via a series of shots in order to capable of building a subculture of get to the final mode of the game. Each misfits. Both have roots in political action. Both are huge proponents of music (several bands have machines themed after them, and AC/DC pinball even has a headphone jack built into it). Both were considered seedy and underground. During its ban, you could only find pinball in speakeasies and hidden spots. Proving to the Man that a pinball ban was bogus is really awesome. Fortunately, the negative connotations of the game have faded away and pinball is ramping up for a resurgence. I’ve been told by a veteran of the game, Dave Stewart, that he loves playing with punks, as they’re often the most open and inclusive people. Now that pinball is getting its much- deserved resurgence, more friends who I know through music are jumping into the hobby. I’m seeing them pop into local barcades, play pins while bands are on, and every so often, play in local tournaments. Me? I’m sitting close to the top thousand players worldwide (out of 19,000 ranked players) and am ranked fortieth in my state. I’ve dived head first into this hobby: running tournaments, writing for pinball zines, captaining the top team in my league, and generally elevating people’s interest in pinball. Last year I even got a pinball tattoo! Now if only I could hold back enough quarters to afford my own table.

Organizations/Resources • PAPA—Professional Amateur Pinball Association (papa.org) Tutorials, techniques/skills, match play videos, host annual world championship tournament, located in Pennsylvania • IFPA—International Flipper Pinball Association (ifpapinball.org) Calendar of all sanctioned tournaments, authority on pinball rankings, tracks World Ranking Pinball Points (WRPPs) for all player profiles • IPDB—International Pinball Database (ipdb.org) Information about every known pinball machine ever made, includes photos, features of each table and a synopsis of the table Printing courtesy of Razorcake Press, razorcake.org