The multi-page insert that was included in The Who's double album Tommy of 1968 features male and female, 50's-style, astronauts looking at each other on the plastics behind the short flippers. The flippers are set wide, with an island and two outlanes between them. Picture attached.
I've been researching for years without result.
Untitled (resized).pngHere’s your answer from another thread.
Published on January 5, 2017
Michael Gottlieb
In the late 1960s, the management of The Who contacted my Father on behalf of Pete Townshend. He was writing a "rock opera" and he wanted approval of the lyric in "Pinball Wizard":
"I thought I was The Gottlieb table king, but I just handed my pinball crown to him."
Well my Father was a WW2 Navy veteran and child of the depression. He did not understand "long hairs", "hippies", or even rock and roll for that matter so he said absolutely not.
So the Who went to Bally and they were fine with it which is why in "Pinball Wizard" Roger Daltrey sings:
"I thought I was The Bally table king, but I just handed my pinball crown to him."
But Pete Townshend's reference to one of his favorite pinball machines was left in the "rock opera" in the song "Acid Queen".
Pete was born in 45' and Gypsy Queen was 55' so he would have been 10 or a little older when he started playing this game:
Years later, the originator of pinball machine licensing, Tommy Nieman, did a licensing deal for the 1975 film Tommy and two legendary games came out of it. "Wizard" in 1975 and "Captain Fantastic" in 1976.
This was the beginning of the golden era for Bally Pinball where they embraced licensing and had one hit after another.
Of course, The Who themselves chose Gottlieb machines for the movie "Tommy" which is why Elton John and Roger Daltrey compete on a "Kings and Queens" and "Buckaroo".
But at the end of the film "Tommy", a lot of Pinball Machines get destroyed:
Ultimately, no matter how good of an opportunity, I could have never seen it working out between D. Gottlieb & Co. and The Who.
Quoted from Mikala:Here’s your answer from another thread.
Published on January 5, 2017
Michael Gottlieb
In the late 1960s, the management of The Who contacted my Father on behalf of Pete Townshend. He was writing a "rock opera" and he wanted approval of the lyric in "Pinball Wizard":
"I thought I was The Gottlieb table king, but I just handed my pinball crown to him."
Well my Father was a WW2 Navy veteran and child of the depression. He did not understand "long hairs", "hippies", or even rock and roll for that matter so he said absolutely not.
So the Who went to Bally and they were fine with it which is why in "Pinball Wizard" Roger Daltrey sings:
"I thought I was The Bally table king, but I just handed my pinball crown to him."
But Pete Townshend's reference to one of his favorite pinball machines was left in the "rock opera" in the song "Acid Queen".
Pete was born in 45' and Gypsy Queen was 55' so he would have been 10 or a little older when he started playing this game:
Years later, the originator of pinball machine licensing, Tommy Nieman, did a licensing deal for the 1975 film Tommy and two legendary games came out of it. "Wizard" in 1975 and "Captain Fantastic" in 1976.
This was the beginning of the golden era for Bally Pinball where they embraced licensing and had one hit after another.
Of course, The Who themselves chose Gottlieb machines for the movie "Tommy" which is why Elton John and Roger Daltrey compete on a "Kings and Queens" and "Buckaroo".
But at the end of the film "Tommy", a lot of Pinball Machines get destroyed:
Ultimately, no matter how good of an opportunity, I could have never seen it working out between D. Gottlieb & Co. and The Who.
But either way, that picture is not one of the mentioned games.
Quoted from Isochronic_Frost:But either way, that picture is not one of the mentioned games.
Yeah, I just realized that I misread his question, but still a good story to repost.
Quoted from professorpinball:The multi-page insert that was included in The Who's double album Tommy of 1968 features male and female, 50's-style, astronauts looking at each other on the plastics behind the short flippers. The flippers are set wide, with an island and two outlanes between them. Picture attached.
I've been researching for years without result.
[quoted image]
It's quite possible this isn't a real game/ was a custom art job for the gatefold.
Thanks loads Mikala for that story - you are right, what a great story to learn !
Still, wish I could learn the name, or definitively that it isn't a real machine as suggested by @crazylevi. That would at least explain why I can't find it.
Perhaps after the D. Gottlieb episode, The Who's lawyers decided best not to have any allusion to a real machine - although since Bally was OK with being mentioned, maybe it's one of theirs. I will focus my search that way.
Thanks again all for the quick response !
Challenge accepted:
Once I realized that image was too crisp for a drawing or painting by Mike McInnerney, and considering The Who was from Europe I went searching for rare games...
You were looking for "Apollo 9" by Automaticos
https://www.ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=5304&picno=72195&zoom=1
Neat bumper and flipper arrangement!
Apollo 9 (resized).jpgQuoted from MrVern:Challenge accepted:
Once I realized that image was too crisp for a drawing or painting by Mike McInnerney, and considering The Who was from Europe I went searching for rare games...
You were looking for "Apollo 9" by Automaticos
https://www.ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=5304&picno=72195&zoom=1
Neat bumper and flipper arrangement!
[quoted image]
Great detective work. That's a very cool looking foreign wedgehead. I wonder if any examples of this game still exist.
Quoted from yancy:My new favorite alternate term for flippers: defensas!
I had the same thought!
Thank you so much for taking the time and finding this ! I *thought* the art didn't quite look like that from any of the big 3 around 1969.
Don't look now, but the ipdb entry includes the line:
Photos in: "Tommy", 1969 vinyl LP by The Who, inside booklet (flipper area only)
Moreover, if you type Tommy into the Quick Search, the very first entry returned? None other than Apollo-9!
Good old hindsight!
This UK radio programme is sometimes given another airing: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00kfqmb
The guy on the left came to my house to record my Kings & Queens for the soundtrack segments. Interestingly, he reckoned that the machine in the film, Buckaroo, I think, (with the extra score reel) was supposedly then owned by the widow of the film's director so at least it wasnt destroyed.
Quoted from DanQverymuch:Don't look now, but the ipdb entry includes the line:
Photos in: "Tommy", 1969 vinyl LP by The Who, inside booklet (flipper area only)
Moreover, if you type Tommy into the Quick Search, the very first entry returned? None other than Apollo-9!
Good old hindsight!
I actually wrote them after I found it because I thought it was cool 
I did use their database and sorted out foreign machines from the era, which is how and where I located the flyer. The search function is impressive at IPDB!
Quoted from MrVern:I actually wrote them after I found it because I thought it was cool
I did use their database and sorted out foreign machines from the era, which is how and where I located the flyer. The search function is impressive at IPDB!
Ah, very nice! Lucky it began with an A, eh? It must have saved you a bunch of time, assuming you went down the list in alphabetical order.
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