I was broken in on Gottlieb Add-A-Ball machines in Hartford, CT starting in 1973 by some high school buddies. We would go to Stanley's Smoke Shop and get a roll of dimes, and play Card Trix and Stock Car for hours. We would just take turns playing balls - we had no concept of playing competitively against each other. It was a cooperative effort of men against machine to make the game last as long as possible. It was your job to earn at least one extra ball every time you were up...I learned my nudging and short-flipper skills during those sessions.
We also played a lot of Pop-A-Card across the street from school at the hot dog place. It was 2 games for a quarter, so a little more expensive. But hey, it was newer and in better shape than Stanley's two well-worn ones, both from 1970.
When I moved back to the Chicago suburbs in 1975, I started looking for pinball and mainly found it in bowling alleys. The arcade explosion hit around 1978, and there were pinball and video game arcades everywhere.
I've never had to go very long without pinball in almost 50 years of playing - many great memories. I have 20 machines now, the most I've ever had. One of the few things besides music that I have done life-long.
I'm still keeping an eye out for a nice Pop-A-Card ...

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