He wanders his machines, spotting the kid with a habit of slamming the glass.

“Hey kid!” he shouts. “This is your last warning. Do not pound on the glass!”

ah, classic.

Well Gang we knew this was going to happen. TBH was wondering how this was going to go/how Tim was going to handle this.... guess I got my answer.

Sad. I've been going for years and love PHOF. I've defended and praised Tim for years on Pinside and appreciate everything he's done for pinball.

That being said, I just got back from PHOF and left saddened. So many machines in disrepair. Some of the pins that weren't turned off had issues. Even newer machines like WNBJM had an issue with the scoring reel. Tim wasn't there; hopefully he was getting some rest.

I left after 30 minutes and went back to New York, New York for my pin fix.

Didn't see a price?

Wish I lived in the Vegas area.

From what I gathered, it sounds like Tim wants to train someone to take over the day-to-day operations.

Wonder if he would stipulate the money all go to charity, or profits could be used to reinvest in the establishment?

Also I shake my head at the old farts with their "kids today.." bit.

“Kids today lack curiosity. They don’t take things apart,” he says. “If one of their handheld devices breaks, they throw it away and go to Walmart to buy a new one.”

You only think that if you're not paying attention to I dunno.. FIRST Robotics, "Maker" Movement, etc.. and so forth.

So does anyone have Tim's contact information? I'm certainly intrigued by this offer, but couldn't find somewhere to contact in the quick web search I performed.

When you run a tourist attraction in quite possibly the most manufactured tourist attraction city in the U.S., of course you're only going to be exposed to the "instant-gratification" crowd. Las Vegas has got to be the "instant gratification" capital of the US!

It's the place people go to get rich instantly, get married instantly, engage in a coitus nature instantly, etc.

No disrespect at all, but that physical location and the clientele that region attracts may be jading him more than anything else.

If that place existed in say, I don't know, Chicago, tacked on to the museum of Science and Industry, I bet it'd pull an entirely different group of people who love taking things apart and are naturally inquisitive about the way things work.

If I can get my fiancée to move to las vegas, I'm in. Waddlejrjr want to go halfsies?

I would take the job if it wasn't in vegas. I could not stand to live in that town!

I think I'd do it. Would have to be able to live off the quarters of course. I can't even begin to guess at what the finances would look like...

The place would be better served if he would just sell it. Agree on a price, and hand it off.

Let someone who isn't afraid of business paperwork hire the staff it needs and reinvest some of the money it makes.

tim Arnold needs to check his ego at the door. pull his head out of his ass. hire a staff of repair people and make the pinball hall of fame kick ass. it makes good money now. if all the games were in tip top shape it would kill.

If something could work I'd certainly be interested.

You have to give the author credit, he made it a whole six sentences before referencing Pinball Wizard.

I totally agree with this statement. I visit Vegas once a year and usually stop by the HOF. Great mix of games but could use some love. Clean up the place bit, organize it a little better, jazz it up... make it a cool 80's vibe.

How do you contact him?

When you contact Tim and tell him how to run his place, please post his response here.

I would love to take this on, but I'd want the PHOF located somewhere other than Vegas. Would love to put it somewhere more central to the country, St. Louis, Chicago, even Atl (good airport).

Hopefully he finds someone young and able. I always thought he was taking the PHOF with him to the grave since he never wanted to hire a proper staff.

Besides the rare games, it's the location that makes it special. So much happens in Vegas, and so many people pass through Vegas. Tons of traffic, perfect place to have such a large pinball collection.

As someone who lives near Asheville and Roanoke, give me the PHOF any day... It's the best place to play EMs that I'm aware of, not counting VFW which is open a weekend a year.

Sadly, despite this article, I think that's still the case. Tim is Tim, and he thinks no one else can "do it right." I just can't see him handing over the keys to his baby to anyone else. So I think when he taps out, the PHOF is probably gone for good.

Hopefully I'm wrong. I'd love to see him sell the location and machines to someone who either wants to run it for profit or wants to run it like a normal non-profit, hiring a staff and actually paying employees actual salaries. I was there this weekend and more machines were run down and non-operational than I've ever seen there before (and I've been there dozens of times over the years). Still a fun stop, but it was a little sad to see how far behind he's fallen in trying to keep everything up.

Moreover, it actually rained this weekend in Vegas and Tim had maybe a dozen games out in the parking lot behind the PHOF just soaking up the water. I don't know what the state of those games was -- maybe they were all garbage before the rain. But it was more than a little ironic to see someone who thinks of himself as the last of a dying breed of people who care about pinball to leave games outside during a rainstorm.

This is a whole Willy Wonka type feel to it. He needs to find someone he can trust. A lot of guys out there will take the keys and sell the games immediately. I would sign up for the move out to Vegas

Hah, love that comparison. Works so well. Although to me the PHOF is better than a chocolate factory

I still think this.

The lack of any real specifics in the article (timing, donating/selling or just turning over operations, what will he do next, etc.) makes me think that the "protege" thing was a mention that came up only in passing, and the author decided to run with that as the focus.

Might as well just give all the games to his brother and bring them back to Ann Arbor.

Tom should talk with the Pacific Pinball Museum. They have some big plans for the future.

http://pacificpinball.org/articles/pinball-museum-needs-your-help

This guy has transferable skills and is available for immediate work

image_(resized).jpeg

This is

This is why I built the acrylic pin. Most folks will never go out to the PPM and see what they have. Vegas is a destination and the PHOF is a huge bonus. Take it to Cali and you might as well kiss it goodbye for the average guy that can't travel just for pinball attractions.

You youngsters have no respect.

These games will eventually be sold off, restored and showed the love they deserve by us...And when they hit the marketplace again "PHOF" will precede the games title, ie; "PHOF-Taxi"

That's a cool enough legacy...your own sub category of games.

The most interesting thing to me is the Triple X that Tim is working on pictured in the article. A 2 player version of OXO not pictured or referenced in the IPDB?

I think my favorite part is the first pic showing some chica bored off her ass and wanting to get the hell out of there

I saw it there a few weeks ago. Says "sample" inside the head.

image_(resized).jpg

I went to the phof back in 2011 and was astounded at the terrible condition of the games. The absolute most basic thing a pinball game needs is to be level. If you can't level a game and routinely keep it level, you shouldn't be in the business. Most games weren't anywhere near level and many had broken playfield parts flying around the game while I played. You'd think a "hall of fame" collection of ANYTHING would consist of nothing but the best of the best. Yet, it felt more like a pinball graveyard. It sounds like the place has gotten worse since 2011.

I know he is a grumpy guy.. But why are not a slew of Pinside guys in Las Vegas not raising hands to go in and volunteer to fix machines? Sure he's tough but he has an amazing level of knowledge especially on EM's.. If I was single I'd go and try and learn as much as possible fixing machines and playing everything there.. I went there in mid 2015 and it was in decent shape...

Vegas is a fun town, wonder why there is not more tournaments and events held at the PHOF?

It's every pinball addicts hall of fame and IMO it's up to the community to save it.. Nobody is getting rich running the 5013c that is the PHOF..

Yeah he's getting burned out. I get that.. Maybe he's to stubborn to really accept help... But if this was turned over to the pinball community and some Richie Knuclez level volunteers could work together to form a BOD, the duties could be split so it would t fall on one person..

Just want it to go on and not dissappear..

A great place run by a man with great passion. Some people read that passion as rude. I'm indifferent. I've had him be very friendly and just plain ignore me.

I think the PHOF can't exist as it does now without Tim. It can exist as something great, but it will be different.

PHOF is like a hoarder that is open to the public, not concerned about condition or playability, just a ton of games. I congratulate him on the money he has donated to his favourite charities.

Did any of you ever check out the little alcove of pins from the PHoF in The Riviera? Man, being able to play Vegas while drinking a dirty-ass martini in the last standing (sadly, not standing no more) Casinos is a real pleasure.

I wish Tim would just sell the collection to someone who cares. It doesn't - it SHOULDN'T - have to stay non-profit. Hire some talented people at a good salary, fix all those machines up, throw in a bar - while of course keeping a huge amount of the PHoF all-ages - and it would be incredible. I'd invest in that shit in a heartbeat.

Don't say that, Clay will want to buy them.
Then we will have to built another palace!

This is the line that Tim will not cross. He runs the place on a shoestring budget squeezes every last penny to make amazing donations to charity. No other person could run the place the way Tim does and if he thinks he will find someone, he is fooling himself. He is truly a one of a kind.

If someone else takes over the PHOF, some changes will have to be made. It could still be a charity, but I'd say at least two full time technicians would need to be hired to get the games up to snuff. That might bring in more business but could still be a big loss for the Salvation Army. On the other hand, Tim has also completely resisted selling PHOF merchandise. I agree it could complicate things when it comes to the charity and sales tax etc, but who wouldn't buy a tee shirt or hat every time they go there? What pinball artist would not donate some time to develop awesome logos and artwork for the merchandise?

Oh well. Tim is Tim. I once worked at the PHOF for ten weeks shopping games 8 hours a day as an unpaid volunteer. It was a cool experience and I got to know and respect Tim. That's how I know that he will never change his basic rules for how he runs the place. The question is whether Tim will allow his "protege" to implement change as they see fit. If not, he should sell the place and all but his favorite machines off, make a big donation to charity and retire to playing in the big shed.

I feel like I could pull off "Charlie".

If it was closer I might be interested but it sounds like a PITA to help out as it is. Wouldn't mind making these repairs a little more than a hobby (and have occasionally already) but in a toxic/stressful for the wrong reasons-environment, it wouldn't be any fun.

Tim, thank you for your dedication to pinball and charity. Trips to the PHOF are always a highlight of my Vegas vacation. Please know that there are a lot of pinball owners out there that respect the effort it takes to keep these games running. The fact that the money is going to charity is an amazing bonus. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I Think Tim is Just great for trying to keep this all running for the Public and charity,
but indeed, we all see the need for change.

I approached Tim about doing PHOF Branded LEDs, but quickly knew he had no time to be troubled.
I left off leaving him to consider a Vending machine, to dispense packages of Bulbs from a Credit Card,
or a Gumball machine that popped out a Bulb for a Quarter, etc...No luck.

I truly wish him the best.....he had always made time to chat, and be friendly, once he knew you were a fellow pinhead.