The two rarest bingos of all times Bally Broadway 51 and United Showboat

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Thanks for posting. Looks like it was fun. Good thing I wasn't there I may have come home with a Bingo or two - I see there were at least a couple attractively priced games there that would have been too tough for me to resist.

Also cool that Butch brought those rarities to the show.

Very clean looking machines too...thanks for sharing Ryan.

People talk about ghostbusters, lebowski, etc., being the coolest part of the show. Well, my vote goes to bingo row. Many folks don't realize the historic significance that these machines carry. It was VERY cool to see the VR bingo concept keeping the spirit alive.

I know bingos are a dying breed because of their weight, mechanical complexity, and newer pinheads not being interested. If anyone ever wants to learn how to play these at future shows, find me there and I'll show you. I guarantee youll have fun beyond the normal fun you have at the show

Thanks again for hauling them out!

-Mike F

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Great of all who posted these pics.
I wanted to try to get a pic of each one but every time I was in that row, the number of folks playing kept me from getting decent shots.
(a good sign of the interest!).

Everyone in this hobby wants to keep the heritage and history alive, and I think no more than those went to the time, effort and expense to bring these games in, for others to enjoy.

What a treat it was to see the variety, themes and complexity at work - KUDOS!
Thank YOU!

I have to go through my pics and sort out exactly what happened this weekend - it was all a blur.

I have lots of great stories and things to sort through, but mostly I want to say 'thank you' to all the folks who brought games and played them, or helped with set up/teardown.

It was a pleasure meeting you, Ryan!
Thanks for all the great pix.

How can I get one of those cool shirts?

Eric

Just wanted to say thanks to all the Bingo guys, I had no idea what I was doing and I had at least 2 guys spend 1/2 hr showing me how to play. Neat part was several other friends played and also were hooked, I am a solid state guy but was blown away at how much fun these bingo's are, Promise I won't walk past and empty one again with out taking a couple plays on it. I was the guy in the grey and yellow shirt in the pic

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Nick, you're a genius! That multi-bingo is awesome. Great to see you again, and it was great to meet Ryan as well. Always nice to see Jeffrey and his family too. I coined a new nickname for Vic Camp; "Bingo Star". He's such a character, and the best player out there. Thanks for bringing all those games. A couple of my friends tried bingos for the first time, and were drawn in by their interesting strategy and entertaining game play. It's great to see the enthusiasm for bingos and EM pins carried forward by younger people such as yourself!

Eric, I apologize - I must not have told you when I saw you that any four in a line or greater won a free bingo row T-shirt!

I will shoot you a message later and we will see of there's something we can do about getting you a shirt.

Last year we gave away signed copies of Jeffrey Lawton's fantastic bingo books. But I vastly underestimated the amount of interest and gave almost all of them away on the first day! This year I ordered triple the amount of giveaways and almost all of them were gone by the end of the second day. Just about perfect!

JR: always wonderful to see you and your brother at York! Thank you for showing such an interest and getting your friends hooked (and for letting me talk your ear off about how I built it). I appreciate all the compliments on the multi-bingo. It has been such a fun project and incredibly gratifying to hear the reactions from players.

I was so happy that Vic was able to make it. His excellent playing skills really showed Ryan (and so many more) quite a bit about ball control on a bingo.

I was glad he got to try Bally's final six card, Mississippi Showboat. The feature that allows for a sixth ball really gives a skilled player everything they need.

It's always my pleasure to bring games. I sincerely hope people give them a chance and enjoy them, and I think that (as with last year) that mission was a smashing success.

Feel free to post my winning picture! Very happy, what a great quality shirt with a great design. These games are so much fun! Although I'm still not going to give up the precious room to own one of these (or carry one into my basement!) I look forward to playing many more next year.

I played a bunch of the bingos on Friday. I don't fully understand them, but I'm always drawn to them by how cool they look. Thanks to everyone that brought these bingo machines to York for everyone to enjoy.

Everybody should make space for at least one in their collection. Get a nice working one and you will be happy you did. Every person who sees mine is just blown away when they have their first experience learning and playing it. Make room for a Bingo, you will be glad you did.

Yet! Give it time... Ha-ha! It was great to meet you and get you acclimated. Come say hi next year too!

Bright Spot was your winning game. Beautiful backglass artwork and a chance at a center spotted number. But you didn't need that! You got your four in a row by skill alone. I was impressed with your ball control!

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Cool Posts Ryan - yes moving Bingos is no picnic and transporting several to a show is something else. I am sure Nick appreciated having a first class guy helping. Sounds like a neat experience. Looks like you guys were a good team and all the Bingo row folks had fun working together.

I'll have to think about joining the fun next year. It would be a long haul. Probably worth a week of time if it would work out. I will give it some thought... You never know

It was so great to finally meet you, my friend! I'm glad we walked around and got to share quite a few multiplayer games on that Gottlieb Score-Board, right after we coincidentally both agreed what a fantastic game it was! You were one of the kindest people I met along with Nick/bingopodcast. Learning, playing, and winning (on) the bingo machines with you two spectating was an absolute joy!

#selfie (Turned out really great, haha! Not bad for a picture of two mugs at a pinball show!)

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I know *nothing* about the Bingo machines, I'll admit. Hell, this is very likely the first time I every played one.

I did okay - I had *no* idea what I was doing - other than I needed to get lit lights in the connected lines. I got 4 in a line only ONCE, and it was a game (can't remember exactly, I *think* it was 'Gay Time') where you could adjust the location of the numbers by moving them up or down.
Another game I played, I tried nudging the ball to where I wanted it to go, but I ended up tilting it. I thought I was being gentle, but after that, I didn't try that again on any of the other machines.

I liked the games I played, probably would have liked any of them.

Thanks to those that brought them!

Nice job guys! Great lineup there. Looks like you all might have added a few converts to the bingo world.
Nick, I've already PM'd you, but I'll say it publicly. YOU DID IT MAN! I never would have thought that anyone could accomplish what you did in such a short time. The game looks fantastic! Can't wait to play it.

Nudging the bingos is an art form - front to back works much better than side-to-side. It takes a bit of practice to figure out the best bounces. Sounds like you did well on one of my favorite games!

Bingo row was cool. I saw it mentioned in the whiterose gameroom show thread prior to the weekend and out of curiosity made my way over there Friday to check it out. Nick and Jeff enthusiastically and patiently explained the rules/strategies of these unique games to me and many others that were checking them out for the first time. I was able to win a shirt with 4 in a row on Broadway. These were my favorite part of the show this year, thanks to everyone involved.

The first game, I did it side-to-side. I did.. er, okay. The second time, I tried forward and back, and that's when I tilted. I didn't try again after that, instead tried to focus on the shooter.

Thank you so much Dennis! Without your numerous, invaluable contributions, it never would have happened. I can't wait for you to play it, either! I suspect you'll like it...

It's very light nudging that almost seems like it would do nothing that does it without tilting, yet still has an effect.

I'm really tempted to get one now. Especially since the prices didn't see too bad - one there had a $250 price tag on it, which surprised me.

I priced it to sell to a new bingo lover. Fully working, excellent condition machines are tough to find at that price, but I think everyone should have (at least) one. If anyone is interested in a bingo, feel free to give me a shout anytime. I track eBay and Craigslist as well with a thread on pinside (and luckily, while I've been holed up in my bingo lair, others have been keeping up with it). I brought the $250 and $300 games home with me, but I would love them to go to a good home.

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I'm working on my write-up, hope to post it soon!

As you continue to play bingo pinball, your style will evolve as well.

I like to grab the siderails to maneuver the ball, shifting my hand position as it comes down.

This allows for very fine control, and the ability to pull the game to shift the ball out of particular holes or around the beveled area around the holes.

A well-timed push will bump the ball into that number you need, but as Otaku says, it takes a light touch.

I play a lot of pinball (flipper and non), and these games always leave me excited and coming back for more. Starting with small odds and parlaying a four or five in line to a bigger and bigger winner is a lot of fun. Missing that number you need and having the skill and determination to bring the ball back to the ball return a few times.... That will make you sweat!

Some of the winners!

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I didn't get a pic of every one, but this is most of them.

A moment to consider the events of this weekend, and here is my experience.

For the past seven months, I have been working non-stop on the Multi-Bingo. I have stopped doing local service calls, I have stopped playing in the local pinball league, and I have pulled back the podcast to a bi-weekly sprint to allow time to work on the game. When I first got the game to boot some time in June, I knew I wanted to have it showable by October at York.

York is my favorite show (though I haven't attended many) for the smaller, laid back atmosphere (about 180ish games), but also for the people. A great group of collectors come together and bring some fantastic machines for all to enjoy. Some of the restorations completely blow me away - especially in the woodrail row.

This year, I was sprinting so hard that I didn't have much of a chance to reach out to collectors. Luckily, collectors reached out to me, and advised that they would be able to bring 'x' number of titles. I informed folks if we would have duplicates and luckily some were able to change plans. I sincerely appreciate every person that brought a game, came to play, or flew or drove great distances just to experience the Bingo Row (more on that later).

So, let's start with the beginning of the week - on Sunday morning, I flew to Atlanta for a business conference. The week before I was able to clean and wax my games, change some less bouncy rubbers and the like, and generally got all of my games ready to be played or taken to the show. I wasn't sure which games I would be bringing, but knew I was bringing 5 bingos (including the Multi).

Last year, I brought every bingo I owned, and even plunked a new game right onto the free play floor when it arrived. This year, I wanted to scale back a bit - so from 6 I went to 5. (Leaving my beloved Bounty and Night Club at home)

I was flying back into Richmond on Wednesday. The day before the show. My friend Ryan flew down from Michigan, and our flight times matched very well - I was able to pick him up and we went to Harbor Freight for some new ratchet straps and to pick up the rental truck. This was the same size truck that I used last year - it holds quite a few games very comfortably.

I should mention at this point that Ryan is unflappable. He really is a ray of sunshine and his positive "never say die" attitude really helped pull me through the exhaustion and difficulty of loading after the biz trip.

Unfortunately, it started POURING rain the minute we picked up the truck. We drove back to the 'bingo parlor' (as Ryan calls it), and the doggone sky had opened up. I was hoping for a break in the rain, just so that we could move, disassemble and load the games without them getting rained on the whole time.

...after a fitful night of sleep - waking up every hour to check outside - it finally stopped raining at 6AM. "RYAN, WE GOTTA MOVE NOW". My garage is sealed as well as it can be to protect the games and provide climate control. I thought I had not sealed the garage again, and Ryan and I lifted with all our strength - the door wouldn't budge. I knocked the insulation out of the way (whoops ) and we were able to lift the garage door. Step one: complete!

Next, we had to load up the truck. I typically like to remove the heads from the bodies, load them up, the balls from the game, bag them, then the legs from the bodies and load the cabs and the legs. We did this for all the games except for the Multi. I had never had it apart since building it, and I wanted to ensure that that didn't cause a problem. So we loaded it without legs and strapped to the side. No problems.

We bounced down the road all the way to York without much incident, but with a nice drizzle the whole time, and some larger rain closer to Richmond.

When we got to York, it was 6:30. I was freaking out the whole way down the road, 'we'll never have enough time to unload these games and get them setup before tomorrow morning.' Ryan again said we'd find a way.

Luckily, Chad and Len were on hand and absolutely incredible. Chad and Len had brought the Big Time the previous year, and this year, they brought the Beach Club and the Big Time.

I couldn't believe the speed with which they were able to dolly the games out of the truck. We got them all set up except for two by 8PM, and then we had to leave.

I was so happy that all the games were off the truck and everything was ready to roll the next morning.

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Next morning was Friday! We missed the fun setup day (as far as playing games), but we were able to get the final two games set up before the doors opened to the public.

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Next, I turned on and tested every game. Everything worked fine, with the exception of the Multi! The game would not automatically lift the first ball. The override switch worked fine, but it was acting very funny with that startup sequence. It happened on every game, too, which is a bit unusual because many have distinct lifter sequences....

The other issue was that my UPS was complaining about low line voltage. I figured there might be a problem like this, and assumed it was due to all the games on the line. I usually think the show handles power distribution very well, so I was a bit curious about this... but I let it go. I asked for a separate power strip and plugged the UPS into that then into the power strip for the show. This didn't stop the beeping. Hmm... well, it was running. That's all I needed to know. My score and instruction displays (which are very sensitive to low voltage) would reboot and act a bit funky, but I was typically able to resuscitate them by rebooting the main computer (part of the boot sequence forces a reboot of the score and instruction displays).

Well, moving on - had a great first day, was showing folks the games and teaching newcomers how to play the bingos, when I decided to go try the 'Thing' and a few of the woodrails in the row behind us. I also found Ryan, who challenged me to a few woodrail games, and we ended on a nice Bally woodrail pitch and bat. While we were playing that game, I was called over to my games on the PA.

I ran over there (nothing much like it to get your heart pumping), when I see the power acting very erratically. Jeffrey had been through and turned off all of the games in the row (THANK YOU Jeffrey), and I spoke with the show folks and let them know what was happening. They came and checked it out, called the fairgrounds, then brought in a big ladder to check the power feed.

This all happened very quickly and I was very pleased and impressed with their response to this issue. The main power feed had come partially unplugged for our row. I went through and checked out all the games again and all were fine - except for the multi.

The power issue had fried something on one of the score and instruction cards. But, the UPS was no longer screaming that there was a power issue with the line, and it magically fixed my lifter problem! Perhaps both of the score and instruction cards are messed up - not sure - as they both tended to get stuck and require a reboot, etc. That may have been normal show low line voltage stuff causing a problem. Those Raspberry Pis are VERY sensitive to power issues.

Again, I really appreciated how quickly the show responded to the issue.

The rest of the day went very well, and folks had nothing but praise for the multi - which was very gratifying.

Final Day: Saturday!

Another busy day in the row, many more shirts given out, many more tutorials given, and lots of fun had by most.

The Multi received a lot of attention and play. The most common winning games were Miss America '57, Gay Time, Caravan, and the Multi. There were even a few on Double-Up which surprised me, since the star zones didn't count!

One of the best things about doing the bingo row, for the second year now, is the new players. People have told me numerous times that without the row and people giving tutorials as we do, they would never give the bingos a second look. As I can't stop saying - these games are phenomenally deep - require tons of thought and attention to win on, and have great artwork and really fun gameplay.

Try them - you might like them!

Vic Camp arrived in the morning and he was very excited to play the bingos and got a four in a line on his first game, and a five on his second! He played the multi and gave it high marks. I was very happy that the bingo guys tended to enjoy it. I think I've probably done a pretty good job on it if they can tolerate playing it.

Steve had to leave in the early afternoon, and Vic left a little while later, so we were unable to get the nice group photo this year.

Ryan and I loaded up with the help of Robert, who brought the Silver Sails & Carnival Queen, and has become a good friend over the past couple of years.

We loaded up, and got to speak with Rich before we left. I thanked him for another great show, and asked if he got to demo the Multi (he was very interested to try it, but I didn't want to pull him away - he was busy enough with the show!) - he wasn't able to do so, but I was able to get him a shirt to thank him for all his time and help in allowing the bingo row, and for putting on a fantastic show yet again.

I know it takes a ton of time to plan something like a handful of collectors bringing games - I can't imagine how much goes into the show preparation. Thanks again, Rich.

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Thank you again to everyone who made this year a success:

Dennis, Phil H, Phil B, Chris D and many others who helped with info and parts and ideas for the Multi.

The homebrew pinball community for welcoming me with open arms despite the lack of flippers.

Ryan for flying out from Michigan to experience the madness of the Multi reveal and to help load and haul all these games.

Vic Camp for coming out to play the debut of the Multi and experience the bingo row again.

Bingo Butch and Mike for bringing the Showboat and Broadway '51, and for spending so much time talking with me about the multi.

Chad and Len - I can't thank you enough for all your help throughout the show. It was great of you guys to bring the Beach Club and the Big Time, and to spend so much time with Ryan and I on Thursday and Friday. You guys are the best, truly.

Ed for being the inspiration.

Steve for being my inspiration. And for being a great roommate again. Great to see you man.

Jeffrey for being a great technical resource and for bringing the Miss America '57 and the Broadway. The games played great and that Miss America got a fantastic workout on Saturday.

Pete for bringing the Carnival Queen (love that game). I didn't get to chat with you very much - but I hope to again soon.

Robert and Sal for coming down and winning on the games and bringing the Silver Sails and the Carnival Queen.

Sal worked very hard on the United Showboat for his four in a line. For a slot guy, I think he did ok. (Thanks Sal for all your support).

Jim - who was able to overcome some serious setbacks just to play the games this year. Thank you for coming out. Looking forward to next year.

Everyone who helped give tutorials on the games - pretty much all of the above. You all are awesome.

Rich again for the fantastic show. 2016 will be forever embedded in my mind as the debut of the Multi - and it went swimmingly thanks to you and the crew.

Finally: the players. We had a great crew of returning and new players at the bingo row this year. You all make it a success. You all make us want to keep doing it. Sharing these games is a great joy. Where else can you experience 14 different bingos (one with forty different machines inside)? York.

Ryan gets a play tutorial on Mississippi Showboat from Vic Camp!

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Thanks for the report, Ryan. Sounds like it was a great event.

And congrats to Nick for showing off an incredible machine! The vision and execution of the multi-bingo has been nothing short of amazing!

- Gerry
http://www.multimorphic.com

PS - Ryan, how often do you wear shirts other than ones you designed?

Thank you so much Gerry!

I forgot to mention the company that made the multi possible was Multimorphic! I scoped out the various homebrew boardsets and frameworks and settled on the P3-Roc family and pyprocgame. I am incredibly happy with my decision and would encourage anyone to check out their products and upcoming game, the P3!

I never would have been able to make it in such a rapid timeframe without the hardware produced by Gerry & team.

Thanks again Gerry.
-Nick

Heh - thanks for the nod, Nick, but the credit goes to you. The P-ROC is just a tool. You brought the creativity, passion, and ability to execute.

- Gerry

Very nice what you and all the others did Nick !

And look at all those winners ! You must have had a very good crew teaching how to play Bingo... Wow. ( I'm still looking to score my first 5 in a row on Palm Springs - awful close a number of times but haven't scored 5 yet - I have gotten very good on Super cards, but a 5 in a row eludes me... Some natural 4's happen but that 5th number is tough )

All those winners and shirts - very nice. And I think I read that some Jeff Lawton books made it into new hands too. Excellent.

Drive or fly I must think about York next year if I can when the time comes...

I noticed Bingo Row was attracting all kinds of new players who are finding out how great these games really are. Looks like this guy with the thick eyebrows must have made a 4 or 5 in a line. Someone told me he was going around bragging he was the best bingo player at the show. Hey Nick, do you remember giving out a shirt to him?

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Heh, heh. That's Chief Silverball!

Vic, you know I don't remember seeing that guy - wonder how he got so good? World's stealthiest bingo player!

Nick, I got to tell you. The Multi-Bingo pinball machine is sensational! It plays just like any of the other bingos did on Bingo Row. Being a bingo pinball machine player for decades and love playing the games more than any other aspect of the hobby, I forgot the game had anything to do with circuit boards etc. For me the real magic happens when the player becomes one with the machine while trying to make numbers for in line wins. These days i still get a rush when making any 5 in a lines or other giant payout wins.

There were times i often thought of what it would be like to play every bingo ever manufactured. With 40 games already attached to your Multi- Bingo I guess it's possible you are going to make it happen? Hopefully in the future there will be others like the one you have created. Hey, you never know. Look at all the new flipper manufactures making games today.

It was especially nice seeing the large crowds of people showing interest in learning about these magnificent mechanical coin op machines. My hat goes off to all that brought games and helped out to make Bingo Row so successful again this year.

Thanks Nick for everything you do for the bingo and pinball hobby and thank you to everyone else who has kept the bingo pinball machine alive for all to experience.

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Ryan, Glad to see you now have Bingo play figured out. They make a modern deep pin seem shallow. Especially when you figure how they were played for money, despite the "For Amusement Only/No Gambling Permitted" phony signage.

Nick, Great to see your Multi being played by the public. I can't wait to play it sometime. Especially the Mississippi Show Boat.

Now, if we can just get Clay to allow a "Bingo Row" in the next expansion of the VFW.... I might even donate a six card.....

A word to those thinking of getting a Bingo; You can't have just one. You need at least on Magic Screen with OK, a Mystic Line, A six card and one of the Miss America's. Then, you'll want a Magic Squares, or a Bounty, or Miss Universe, or one of the Wheel games or, heck, why not one of everything?

I'd love a Bally Continental just to be able to put it together without help or a lift table.

Great work hauling them from Richmond, VA to York, PA.

Absolutely agreed!

I'm sure that can be arranged.

I would love to see an expansion of the 'row' to many other shows around the country/world. And I think the VFW would be a great place for a well-kept row.

Thanks for your kind words!

On another note, I'm proud to say I've played all of Jeff's, I mean Jeffrey's, machines at his home fifteen years ago. He stored two that someone I bought them from dropped off during an Arkansas-New Jersey run. When I went to pick them up with my (at the time, young) son, what a great lesson I got in playing Bingos as up until then, I only had a Six Card and a Mystic Lines. Both the kind that Mr. Lawton does not exactly care for. I loved Bounty and Lido. Lido was similar to the Malibu Beach I was picking up so we spent a lot of time playing it. Who are we kidding, I loved all of them. The only better collection has to be Bingo Butch's as I recall he has them all.

Nice to see Jeffrey hasn't aged a bit from the show photos. I've only seen him twice since at Expo's although we email every so often. He and the late Carol were very gracious hosts to my son & I.