When I first got involved with the Dancing Dolls, over a year ago, this lovely lady was my first point of contact. I met her through emails while signing up for the Dallas Majorette Camp, last year. Regina Lewis' other jobs is helping Dianna out in the office, at the Dollhouse Dance Factory.
Central Park, a 1966 pinball machine by Gottlieb | |
Gottlieb | |
Industry | Pinball and Arcade videogames |
---|---|
Fate | Restructuring Active as an Entertainment Company in San Francisco, California, U.S. |
Successor | Gottlieb Development LLC |
Founded | 1927; 93 years ago (as D. Gottlieb & Co.) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
Founder | David Gottlieb |
Defunct | 1996 |
Number of locations | San Francisco, California, U.S. (1980-present) |
Gottlieb (formerly D. Gottlieb & Co.) was an American arcade gamecorporation based in Chicago, Illinois. The main office and plant was located at 1140-50 N. Kostner Avenue until the early 1970s when a new modern plant and office was located at 165 W. Lake Street in Northlake, IL. A subassembly plant was located in Fargo, ND.[1] The company was established by David Gottlieb in 1927, initially producing pinball machines while later expanding into various other games including pitch-and-bats, bowling games, and eventually video arcade games (notably Reactor and Q*bertand, leading to the demise of Mylstar, M*A*C*H*3[citation needed]).
Like other manufacturers, Gottlieb first made mechanical pinball machines, including the first successful coin-operated pinball machine Baffle Ball in 1931.[2]Electromechanical machines were produced starting in 1935. The 1947 development of player-actuated, solenoid-driven 2-inch bats called 'flippers' revolutionized the industry. Players now had the ability to shoot the ball back up the playfield and get more points. The flippers first appeared on a Gottlieb game called Humpty Dumpty, designed by Harry Mabs. By this time, the games also became noted for their artwork by Roy Parker.
In the late 1950s the company made more widespread use of digital score reels, making multiple player games more practical as most scoring was expressed by cluttered series of lights in the back box. The score reels eventually appeared on single-player games, now known as 'wedgeheads' because of their distinctive tapering back box shape. By the 1970s the artwork on Gottlieb games was almost always by Gordon Morison, and the company had begun designing their games with longer 3-inch flippers, now the industry standard.
The company made the move into solid state machines starting in the late 1970s. The first few of these were remakes of electromechanical machines such as Joker Poker and Charlie's Angels. By that time, multiple player machines were more the mode and wedgeheads were no longer being produced. The last wedgehead was T.K.O. (1979) and the last single player machine was Asteroid Annie and The Aliens (1980).[3]


Gottlieb was bought by Columbia Pictures in 1976.[4] In 1983, after the Coca-Cola Company had acquired Columbia, Gottlieb was renamed Mylstar Electronics,[4] but this proved to be short-lived. By 1984 the video game industry in North America was in the middle of a shakeout and Columbia closed down Mylstar at the end of September 1984.[2] A management group, led by Gilbert G. Pollock, purchased Mylstar's pinball assets in October 1984 and continued the manufacture of pinball machines under a new company, Premier Technology. As a result of this a number of prototype Mylstar arcade games, which were not purchased by the investors, were never released. Premier did go on to produce one last arcade game, 1989's Exterminator. Premier Technology, which returned to selling pinball machines under the name Gottlieb after the purchase, continued in operation until the summer of 1996.
It was pinball keeping the company alive until the end. The issue was that Premier Technology bought a company called SMS with the hope of making video lottery and ultimately, slot machines. They were developing an electronic blackjack table game too (This was the early 1990s). In gaming and video lottery, each jurisdiction requires a separate license and it takes a very long time to get approved. By 1996, Premier only had 1 or 2 jurisdictions approved to sell gaming machines.
In the meantime they were paying interest on the debt for buying SMS and the interest rates were high back in the early 1990s. So this debt sapped the company dry before they could get the video lottery/gaming division producing revenue, despite decent pinball sales.
Premier did not file for bankruptcy, but sold off all its assets for the benefit of its creditors.
Gottlieb's most popular pinball machine was Baffle Ball (released mid-1931), and their final machine was Barb Wire (early 1996).
Licensing and rights[edit]
Today, Gottlieb's pinball machines (along with those distributed under the Mylstar and Premier names), as well as the 'Gottlieb' and 'D. Gottlieb & Co.' trademarks (USPTO registration nos. 1403592, 2292766, and 3288024, and other numbers in countries around the world), are owned by Gottlieb Development LLC of Pelham Manor, New York. Most of Gottlieb's video games are currently owned by Columbia Pictures.
Gottlieb video games[edit]
Published[edit]
- No Man's Land (1980) – licensed from Universal
- New York! New York! (1981) – licensed from Sigma Enterprises
- Reactor (1982)
- Q*bert (1982)
- Mad Planets (1983)
- Krull (1983)
- Juno First (1983) – licensed from Konami
- M.A.C.H. 3 (1983) – laserdisc game; published under Mylstar name
- Us vs. Them (1984) – laserdisc game; published under Mylstar name
- The Three Stooges In Brides Is Brides (1984) – published under Mylstar name
- Q*bert Qubes (1983) – published under Mylstar name
- Curve Ball (1984) – published under Mylstar name
- Exterminator (1989) – published under Premier Technology name
Unreleased prototypes[edit]
- Argus (1982) – a.k.a. Videoman, Protector and Guardian
- Insector (1982)
- Arena (1982) – An earlier and simpler version of what became Wiz Warz
- Knightmare (1983)
- Faster, Harder, More Challenging Q*bert (1983) – developed under Mylstar name
- Screw Loose (1983) – developed under Mylstar name
- Tylz (1984) – developed under Mylstar name
- Video Vince and the Game Factory (1984) – developed under Mylstar name
- Wiz Warz (1984) – developed under Mylstar name
Gottlieb pinball machines[5][edit]
Pure mechanical pinball/bagatelle machines[edit]
Incomplete list:
Dancing Dolls Slot Machine Price Guide
- Bingo (1931)
- Baffle Ball (1931)
- Stop and Sock (1931)
- Mibs (1931)
- Baffle ball senior (baffle ball variant) (1932)
- Play-Boy (1932)
- Brokers Tip (1933)
- Big Broadcast (1933)
- Sunshine Baseball (1936)
- Sweet Heart (1954)
Electromechanical pinball/flipperless machines[edit]
Incomplete list:
- Relay (1934)
- Playboy (1937)
- Humpty Dumpty #1 (1947)
- Miss America (1947)
- Lady Robin Hood (1947)
- Jack 'n Jill (1948)
- Olde King Cole (1948)
- K. C. Jones (1949)
- Bank-A-Ball #34 (1950)
- Buffalo Bill (1950)
- Knock Out (1950)
- Triplets #40 (1950)
- Minstrel Man (1951)
- Disc Jockey (1952)
- Skill Pool (1952)
- Queen of Hearts (1952)
- Quartette (1952)
- Quintette (1953)
- Gold Star (1954)
- Dragonette (1954)
- Diamond Lill (1954)
- Hawaiian Beaty (1954)
- Frontiersman (1955)
- Southern Belle (1955)
- Wishing Well #107 (1955)
- Classy Bowler (1956)
- Rainbow (1956)
- Derby Day (1956)
- Harbor Lights (1956)
- Ace High (1957)
- World Champ (1957)
- Contest (1958)
- Criss Cross (1958)
- Picnic (1958)
- Rocket Ship (1958)
- Queen of Diamonds (1959)
- Sweet Sioux (1959)
- World Beauties (1959)
- Around the world (1959)
- Dancing Dolls (1960)
- Flipper (1960)
- Texan(1960)
- Foto Finish (1961)
- Corral (1961)
- Cover Girls (1962)
- Flipper Clown (1962)
- Olympics (1962)
- Liberty Belle (1962)
- Rack-A-Ball (1962)
- Flying Chariots (1963)
- Gigi (1963)
- Slick Chick (1963)
- Sweet Hearts (1963)
- Swing Along (1963)
- Bowling Queen (1964)
- Bonanza (1964)
- Happy Clown (1964)
- Ship Mates (1964)
- World Fair (1964)
- Kings & Queens (1965)
- Sky Line (1965)
- Paradise 2 player game (1965)
- Cow Poke (1965)
- Bank-A-Ball (1965)
- Central Park (1966)
- Cross Town / Subway (1966) - last machines with manual ball lift
- Dancing Lady (1966)
- Hawaiian Isle (1966)
- Rancho (1966)
- Hi-Score (1967)
- Sea Side (1967)
- Hit-A-Card (1967)
- Sing Along (1967)
- Super Duo (1967)
- Super Score (1967)
- Surf Side (1967)
- 'Four Seasons' (1968)
- Domino (1968)
- Fun Park (1968)
- Fun Land (1968)
- Paul Bunyan (1968)
- Royal Guard (1968)
- Hi-Lo (1969)
- Airport (1969)
- Road Race (1969)
- Groovy (1970)
- Aquarius (1970)
- Batter Up (1970)
- Flip-A-Card (1970)
- Snow Derby 2 player game (1970)
- Snow Queen 4 player game (1970)
- Dimension (1971)
- 4 Square (1971)
- 2001 #298 (1971)
- Flying Carpet #310 (1972)
- Jungle (1972)
- King Kool (1972)
- Outer Space 2 player game (1972)
- Jumping Jack (2 player)/Jack In The Box (4 player) (1973)
- Jungle King (1 player) (1973)
- Wild Life (2 player) (1973)
- Jungle (4 player) (1973)
- Pro Pool (1973)
- Pro-Football (1973)
- Big Shot 2 player game (1973)
- Hot Shot 4 player game (1973)
- High Hand (1973)
- Top Card 1 player game (1974)
- Big Indian #356 (1974)
- Far Out 4 player game (1974)
- Duotron 2 player game (1974)
- Magnotron 4 player game (1974)
- Sky Jump (1974)
- Spin Out (1975)
- Super Soccer #367 (1975)
- Quick Draw (1975)
- Fast Draw #379 (1975)
- Abracadabra #380 (1975)
- Spirit of 76 #381 (1975)
- Spin Out (1975)
- Pioneer #382 (1975)
- '300' #388 (1975)
- Atlantis (1975)
- El Dorado (1975)
- Buccaneer (1976)
- Surf Champ (1976)
- Card Whiz 2 player version of Royal Flush (1976)
- Royal Flush 4 player version of Card Whiz (1976)
- Sure Shot (1976)
- Target Alpha (1976)
- Volley (1976)
- Solar City (1976)
- Bronco 4 player game (1977)
- Golden Arrow (1977)
- Fire Queen 2 player game (1977)
- Jet Spin 4 player game (1977)
- Mustang 2 player game (1977)
- Genie (1977)
- Team One (1977)
- Vulcan 4 player version of Fire Queen (1977)
- Cleopatra (1977)
- Fire Queen (1977)
- Gridiron (1977)
- Jacks Open (1977)
- Lucky Hand (1977)
- Jungle Queen 4 player version of Jungle Princess (1977)
- Jungle Princess (1977)
- Pyramid (1978)
- Strange World (1978)
- Neptune (1978)
- Sinbad (1978)
- Eye Of The Tiger (1978)
- Poseidon (1978)
- Hit the Deck (1978)
- Joker Poker (1978)
- Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1978)
- Dragon (1978)
- Gemini (1978)
- Rock Star (1978)
- Blue Note (1979)
- T.K.O. (1979)
- Space Walk (1979)
Dancing Dolls Slot Machine Jackpots
System 1 Pinball Machines[edit]
- Cleopatra #409 (1977) (was also released as two EM versions (Cleopatra, 4 player and Pyramid, 2 player))
- Sinbad #412 (1978) (was also released as an EM version)
- Joker Poker #417 (1978) (was also released as an EM version)
- Dragon #419 (1978) (was also released as an EM version)
- Solar Ride #421 (1979) (was also released as an EM version)
- Charlie's Angels #425 (1978) (was also released as an EM version)
- Close Encounters of the Third Kind #424 (1978) - 9,950 Solid State games and 470 Electro-Mechanical games made
- Count-Down #422 (1979) - 9,899 Games made (Also released as a 2 player EM version as Space Walk)
- Pinball Pool #427 (1979) - 7,200 Games made
- Totem #429 (1979) - 6,643 Games made
- The Incredible Hulk #433 (1979) - 6,150 Games made, a few of these games had System 80 electronics to test the new System 80 platform as model #500.
- Genie #435 (1979) - Wide body game. 6,800 Games made
- Buck Rogers #437 (1980) - 7,410 Games made
- Torch #438 (1980) - 3,880 Games made
- Roller Disco #440 (1980) - Wide body game with bright neon colors. 2,400 games made
- Asteroid Annie and the Aliens #442 (1980) - (The only single player System 1 Pinball Game and also the last System 1 game!) Only 211 games made
System 80 pinball machines[edit]
- Panthera #652 (1980)
- The Amazing Spider-Man #653 (1980)
- Circus #654 (1980)
- Counterforce #656 (1980)
- Star Race #657 (1980)
- James Bond 007 #658 (1980)
- Time Line #659 (1980)
- Force II #661 (1981)
- Pink Panther #664 (1981)
- Mars God of War #666 (1981)
- Volcano #667 (1981)
- Black Hole #668 (1981)
- Haunted House #669 (1982)
- Eclipse #671 (1982)
System 80A pinball machines[edit]
- Devil's Dare #670 (1982)
- Rocky #672 (1982)
- Spirit #673 (1982)
- Punk! #674 (1982)
- Caveman #PV810 (1982) (features an additional video game screen and a joystick)
- Striker #675 (1982)
- Krull #676 (1983)
- Q*bert's Quest #677 (1983) – based on the Q*bert video game
- Super Orbit #680 (1983)
- Royal Flush Deluxe #681 (1983)
- Goin' Nuts #682 (1983)
- Amazon Hunt #684 (1983)
- Rack 'Em Up! #685 (1983)
- Ready...Aim...Fire! #686 (1983)
- Jacks to Open #687 (1984)
- Touchdown #688 (1984)
- Alien Star #689A (1984)
- The Games #691 (1984)
- El Dorado City of Gold #692 (1984)
- Ice Fever #695 (1985)
System 80B pinball machines[edit]
- Bounty Hunter #694 (1985)
- Chicago Cubs Triple Play #696 (1985)
- Rock #697 (1985)
- Tag-Team Pinball #698 (1985)
- Ace High #700 (1985) – never produced
- Raven #702 (1986)
- Hollywood Heat #703 (1986)
- Rock Encore #704 (1986) – conversion kit for Rock
- Genesis #705 (1986)
- Spring Break #706 (1987)
- Gold Wings #707 (1986)
- Monte Carlo #708 (1987)
- Arena #709 (1987)
- Victory #710 (1987)
- Diamond Lady #711 (1988)
- TX-Sector #712 (1988)
- Big House #713 (1988)
- Robo-War #714 (1988)
- Excalibur #715 (1988)
- Bad Girls #717 (1988)
- Hot Shots #718 (1989)
- Bone Busters, Inc. #719 (1989)
System 3 pinball machines[edit]
Dancing Dolls Slot Machines
- Lights...Camera...Action! #720 (1989)
- Silver Slugger #722 (1990)
- Vegas #723 (1990)
- Deadly Weapon #724 (1990)
- Title Fight #726 (1990)
- Car Hop #725 (1991)
- Hoops #727 (1991)
- Cactus Jack's #729 (1991)
- Class of 1812 #730 (1991)
- Amazon Hunt III #684D (1991) – conversion kit
- Surf 'N Safari #731 (1991)
- Operation Thunder #732 (1992) – last Gottlieb machine to use an alphanumeric display
- Super Mario Bros. #733 (1992) – based on the Super Mario Bros. video game by Nintendo;[6] first Gottlieb machine to use a dot-matrix display (DMD)[citation needed]
- Super Mario Bros. - Mushroom World #N105 (1992)
- Cue Ball Wizard #734 (1992)
- Street Fighter II #735 (1993) – based on the Street Fighter II video game by Capcom; in 1995–1996, pinball machines were produced under the name Capcom, originally were made in the Gottlieb factory
- Tee'd Off #736 (1993)
- Gladiators #737 (1993)
- Wipe Out #738 (1993)
- Rescue 911 #740 (1994)
- World Challenge Soccer #741 (1994)
- Stargate #742 (1995) – based on the Stargate movie
- Shaq Attaq #743 (1995) – starring Shaquille O'Neal
- Freddy: A Nightmare on Elm Street #744 (1994) – based on the A Nightmare on Elm Street movie series
- Frank Thomas' Big Hurt #745 (1995)
- Waterworld #746 (1995) – based on the Waterworld movie
- Mario Andretti #747 (1995) – starring Mario Andretti
- Strikes 'n' Spares (1995)
- Barb Wire (pinball) #748 (1996) – based upon the Barb Wirefilm and comic
- Brooks N' Dunn #749 – This game was entering production just as Gottlieb shut down and ceased operations. Two prototype machines supposedly exist, although some claim the design never proceeded past the whitewood stage. Playfield components, such as plastics, ramps, mechanisms and Translites were produced for the games about to enter production; enough for about 10 games to exist. Only buggy prototype software exists and was never completed.
Gottlieb was last to introduce a solid-state system, and last to cease manufacture of electromechanical games. The first version of Gottlieb's solid statepinball hardware was called System 1, and had many undocumented features. Designed and developed by Rockwell International's Microelectronics Group of Newport Beach, CA with circuit board manufacturing and final assembly in El Paso, Texas. Likely it was rushed to compete with the new solid-state games from other manufacturers, particularly Bally.[citation needed] An entirely new platform was produced in 1980, System 80, which was refined in System 80A and System 80B. Following the System 80 platform, a new platform named System 3 was first released in 1989 and was used until the company's closure.
See also[edit]
- Tommy, the 1975 rock opera based on the 1969 album of the same name by The Who
References[edit]
Dancing Dolls Slot Machine Machines
- ^LAtimes.com
- ^ ab'Goodbye Q*Bert--Mylstar ceases operation'. Electronic Games: 14. January 1985.
- ^http://www.ipdb.org/search.pl?searchtype=advanced&mfgid=94
- ^ ab'Gottlieb changes company name'. Electronic Games: 12. October 1983.
- ^http://www.ipdb.org/search.pl?mfgid=93&sortby=date&searchtype=advanced
- ^'Gottlieb's Super Mario Bros. Pin'(PDF). Cash Box. 55 (39): 25. May 25, 1992. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
External links[edit]
Donations are being accepted, please see PinRepair.com/donate for details, and/or please purchase the Pinrepair.com/topThis Old Pinball repair instructional videos. (Especially TOP1 which covers EM pinball game repair.) |
Gottlieb Pinball History & Evolution from 1947 to 1979. 08/01/12, cfh@provide.net If you have any of these Gottlieb games for sale, please email me atcfh@provide.net.I will buy just about any Gottlieb (or Williams) pinball(though my favorites are really the 1950s 'woodrail' pinballs).But in particular I am really looking for Cyclone (4/51),Watch My Line (7/51), Skill Pool (8/52), Grand Slam (4/53), Twin Bill (1/55),Harbor Lites (2/56), Roto Pool (7/58).And from the 1970s looking forJoker Poker EM (1978),Space Walk (1979). Why The Interest in Gottlieb Woodrails?
The thing that is very unique about most Gottlieb woodrailsis the playing strategy used to score 'Replays' (a Replay iswhen the player wins a free game). On most Gottlieb woodrails,there were multiple strategies to winning replays. That is,you could win a replay (or *multiple* replays) by accomplishingparticular feats (in addition to passing a set score).This is unlike pinball games today,which give replays based just on high score.Yes 1960s 'metal rail' pinballs also usually had some feat that gave a Replay.But this was a single replay and a single feat strategy. Where mostpre-1958 Gottlieb woodrails had multiple strategies or ways to win Replays.Many Gottlieb woodrails had as many as six different strategies (ways)to winning replays (in addition to passing a high score value).This makes Gottlieb woodrail games very unique. Also some pre-1958 Gottlieb single player woodrails allowed the player to win from up to 26 Replays in a single game, or for just accomplishing a single feat! Gottlieb Artwork until 1965. Roy Parker's artwork is famous because of his attention to smalldetails. Another artist that worked for Ad Posters and RG wasGeorge Molentin. George did the artwork for most Williams, CCM,and Bally games during the 1950s. To me, the difference in thesetwo artists is night and day. Parker's artwork is very detailed.The women's hair, their clothing, the backgrounds, all very detailedand finely draw. Molentin's artwork is much less detailed, almostlike he rushed the work (which he might have, because he workedfor basically all the other game companies). Woodrail Evolution. As time progressed and single player woodrails evolved, they turned into'wedgeheads' in 1960. The nickname applies because the backbox cabinetis in the shape of a slight wedge. This cabinet design was kept untilthe last single player EM was made in 1979. These games are amoung the best playingof the Gottlieb single players. Generally the artwork wasn't nearly as goodas the 1950s woodrails, but the evolved game play made up for this. (Though not everywedgehead is a 'great' game, most titles are pretty darn fun to play.) When the 1970scame along with drop targets, 3' flippers, and 'wow' add-a-balls, wedgeheads had reallyprogressed with some great rules and gameplay. (See next section.) Why Single Player Games? Are there any 'good' Multi-player games? What About 1970s Drop Target, 3' Flipper, Gottlieb Pinballs? |
Parker women versus Molentin women. The art on the left is typical Roy Parker style artwork. Notice the detail in the dress and skin of the women, and the surrounding background detail. The art on the right is Molentin. The women is far less detailed, and not nearly as sexy as the Parker babe. Also the background is less detailed. Left art from Gottlieb's 1952 Happy Days. Right art from William's 1953 Nine Sisters. |

What Games are Here? Looking for information on fixing/restoring a Gottlieb game from thisera? See my web page at pinrepair.com/em andpinrepair.com/top for helpwith repair, and pinrepair.com/restore forhelp with restoration. As for repair, chances are nearly 100% nobody is going to fix or restore one of these games for you. The time involved is too great, and if you could find someone, for the most part themoney spent would be more than the game is worth. So the only alternative is to fix the game yourself, and the abovedocuments should help with that. How to find a game easily in this list: Start of Flipper Games with 6 reverse flippers, very similar playfield layouts. At least the first three games (and maybe more) in this series were originally sold with 1 1/8' balls (butfor restoration purposes, these games should use 1 1/16' balls). These games use a 'time clock' which looks like a bell mounted under the playfield. But it turns off the game after about 10 minutes from the start of a game.Otherwise there is still power to the flippers/bumpers after playingthe last ball.
Start of Flipper Games with 4 reverse flippers. These games MAY have comewith 1 1/8' balls (but for restoration purposes, these games should use 1 1/16' balls).
Start of Turret (center slot kicker) games with 2 normal flippers,'balls played' light, and wide-open playfield design.
Start of Safety Gate (between normal style flippers) feature.
Start of Trap Holes. Trap holes trap the ball and hold it,not allowing another ball into the same hole for that game.
Start of Gobble Holes. These holes did not trap the ball but 'gobbled itup' and allowed future balls to have the same fate.
Start of hinged front door with generic paint scheme.
Start of Double-Award games.(This allowed the player to put in an additional coin at the game startto double the number of any replays won. When one coin is inserted,the 'thimble' light (on the lower ball arch) is lit, telling the playerhe can add another coin for a 'double' game. This light stays on untilthe 10,000 unit is moved, turning off the ability for the player toadd a coin for a 'double' game. If a second coin was added,this will also turn the thimble light out, and the 'double' light on the backglass goes on.Note the credit unit on a double game is slightly different than a conventional1950s Gottlieb woodrail.)Start of game over and 'balls played' lightson the lower ball arch (instead of a ball collect tray), balls now drop into lower ball arch. This now allowed the use of a 'game over' light designation on backglass (thoughfor sometime, the backglass had this designation, but didn't havea light bulb wired to light it!).
End of Double-Award games. Start of Multi-Player games (note thesegames do not use 'balls played' lights on the lower ball arch).
Start of Multi-Special Gobble hole games; one gobble hole in center, when lit, givesmultiple specials.
Start of 31' Metal Legs, waffle-pressed metalflipper button guards (single player games only), and chrome cigarette holders.
Start of Coin acceptor above coin door on all games.
Start of three color cabinet era. To save money,Gottlieb used one less color in the geometric cabinet design. Notesince Roy Parker did not do cabinet art, Gottlieb always usedgeometric designs for the cabinet (unlike Williams, which usedgame themed cabinet artwork).
Another era change, as the roto-target became a promident featurein many games. Personally I'm not a big fan of roto-targets, asthey consume a huge part of the playfield, making it difficultto shoot the ball to the top playfield lanes.
Start of Match feature on single player games, which allows the player to win a free game by matchingthe last digits of their score to a randomly selected number. Also startof a the 'Game Over Relay' on single player games. This relay turns the power off tothe flippers when a game is over.
Start of Metal Coin door and back door.
All Gottlieb's now have a metal upper ball arch.
Start of rating chart feature on single player games.
Start of 'score-to-beat' backglass in single player score reel games.Score-to-beat was a pre-set fixed number, that looked like a small score reel (though it reallywasn't). Most of these games do not have playfield specials! (This limits their desirabilty.)
All Games Now have Score Reels.
Start of nickel-plated metal 'Jeweled' playfield posts.
Start of 'Shoot Again' feature on multi-player games.
Start of Ed Krynski as the game designer,replacing the management-bound Wayne Neyens (last game for Wayne was Cowpoke,though he did dable in a couple designs after that, like Paul Bunyon, Challenger,and Spirit of 76).Ed Krynski was a great game designer, designing for Keeney in 1960 untilcoming to Gottlieb in 1965. Ed designed for Gottlieb until 1984.
Start of Art Stenholm for artwork. Roy Parker'scancer has taken him down, and Art Stenholm steps in as the new Gottliebartist.
End of the Roy Parker artwork era.
End of the 'Jeweled' metal post era.
End of star burst bumper caps and start of new larger pop bumper body design.Start of new coin entrance metal. In my opinion, the games from here to mid-1970 arepretty unimaginative (exception being Target Pool/Mini-Pool,Domino,and maybe a few others).
Start of Vari-Target.
Games designed for export to Italy significantly declines.
I consider these to be the 'classic' Gottlieb electro-mechanicalpinballs from the 1970s, and some of the milestones in Gottlieb game changes.Starting at 5/70 with Crescendo, Gottlieb made heavy use of the modern styledrop target. This dramatically changed their games for the better,as the 1967 to 1970 titles before this seemed pretty unimaginative.Games titles listed below in bold use drop targets. Here's a list of 1970 Gottlieb EM games that made big use of drop targets.For some reason I personally like the games with a big bank of say 10 drop targetscompared to two smaller 5 drop target banks.
May 1970: Gottlieb starts using modern-style drop targets.
Start of games with end-of-ball bonus count down feature.
Gottlieb starts using 3' flippers ('Playball' first 3' Gottlieb flipper game).
Gottlieb start of 'half moon' backbox credit stepper with Super Soccer. Atlantis is the last game with the old style credit stepper unit.
Gottlieb halts using 'half moon' backbox credit stepper. (Back to theoriginal style stepper unit.)
For contrast, check out these popular 1970s Williams & Bally pinballs. Notice thedifference in the artwork between Then. Another interestingtidbit are Sonic and InterFlip pinballs made during the 1970s. These were made in Spainwith Williams parts. The cabinets are poorly made (press-wood), but thegames themselves are very interesting and well designed. They also used acatalized two-part finish on the playfield (much like the 1990s Williams'diamondplate' finish) that wears very well. |