Responding to Otaku's reflection on the 'lives' of our now collectable pinball machines - if I hadn't been fascinated by these machines in the 60s and 70s, I doubt that I would own any now. The pintables of my youth were 'forbidden fruit' locally, as we were chased out of arcades if under 16, especially on school days. My pinball playing (this is in the UK) was at seaside arcades during summer visits, and occasionally at travelling fairs. At both, time was short before the family or gang wanted to move on, so we never got to play a particular game more than once or twice - so we rarely got good at any which meant that extra balls or free games were virtually unheard of, apart from the occasional number match bonus. I remember being really excited when I visited the funfair at Battersea Park in 1969 (a frequent attraction for me as there were so many good arcade machines), and discovered a Rally West Club, which seemed incredibly futuristic with its Nixie tube electronic scoring and electronic sounds. I thought - surely this is the future of pinball?

That was in the 60s - then in the early-to-mid 70s my girlfriend/wife and I sought out pintables in arcades in Central London, and of course they were all still em games. But the odd thing is, apart from Big Ben I can't recall the names. At seaside arcades at that time (Southend in particular) the trick was to go to the far back of the arcade and there were usually some older machines - a woodrail or two, including some really early 50s games - great to see and so different to play, though usually poorly maintained. Then in 1978 I bought a Williams Doozie (1968) from a local firm that put machines into cafes. I walked into the big storeroom full of em machines, and the guy said "tell me which one you want and I'll tell you the price". I chose the Doozie and bought it for 75 pounds. I think they were all 75 pounds. My (then) wife became a real wizard - much better player than I was/am. We once pulled off a 'hustle' in a pub while on holiday. Some local youths were playing a Spanish Eyes and she asked them - all 'innocently' - how to work the flipper thingies and could she have a go? She rolled the reels over to zero first game, and I'll never forget the look on their faces. She even became secretary of the Pinball Owners Association. We had the Doozie for a couple of years before we had to sell it to make room for our new daughter. (Putting on a suitably mournful face I reminded her of that today when she visited with her own kids.) Fast-forward nearly 40 years and I have a Doozie (of course), a Flipper Parade, and a Full House. And the sad thing is, with all that pinball activity 'back in the day' - not one photo to show. So sorry folks about the lack of visuals.