* It was August 1978. Within shouting distance of September. South Carolina in the summertime is muggy hot, from the time the sun comes up until a rain shower briefly cools everything down. After that, the breath-robbing humidity returns. The night brings only slight relief. I worked second shift, managed to have my schedule end my day at 9:00pm. I hopped in my '66 Plymouth Satellite, *dropped the top, and hustled to spend a couple of hours with NotTheWife before she went to bed. She was a senior in high school, her family had transferred from an air force base in Spain. I was two years out of school, graduated a year early. We made plans for Friday night, it was her birthday. After that, we talked a little less. Later, I tucked her in and kissed her goodnight.
* It was 12:00. Midnight.
* I made a beeline for my best friend Greg's house. He called before I left for work to let me know he'd scored some really good..., well, never mind what he got. But he was right, it was good. And after watching some late night Ultraman episodes, we walked to the Zippy Mart just outside base housing. This was before everyone drove to where they wanted to go. We had a serious case of the munchies. And it was close, too.
* There, over next to the magazine rack, stood a Bally's "Eight Ball". On the back glass, Arthur "The Fonz" Fonzarelli was lining up a pool shot, while Pinky Tuscadero looked on. Behind her sat Richie Cunningham and "Potsie" Weber, most likely talking about girls, with a juke box supposedly blaring, "One-two-three o'clock, four o'clock rock! Five-six-seven o'clock, eight o'clock rock!" At least that's what you were led to believe, because Bally neglected to get the OK from ABC to use the "Happy Days" characters, so the figures on the back glass were just cartoony enough to distinguish them from being who we all knew they were.
* The guy behind the counter threw up his hand as we came in, then reached under the counter for the Windex and paper towels. It was part of our ritual to clean the playing field glass. We returned the cleaning supplies and pulled a cheap level off the shelf, making sure the table wasn't out of level. After completing our pre-playing ritual, we began to play.
* Dropping in a few quarters prompted the electronic chimes to begin. As we played, we talked about everything, girls, music, how each other's day was, girls, the world. Customers came in, some just regulars, others because they saw us while driving by. Those that played the silver ball dropped a quarter with us. Some heard the lovely sound that accompanies scoring enough points to win a game or matching. When waiting for my turn, I took the opportunity to neatly, but discreetly, carve my name and NotTheWife's name in the upper left of the back panel. Soon, though, it was time to leave. We left a few games for the guy behind the counter. He would play them after he straightened all the shelves in the store. Walking back to Greg's house, we made plans, but nothing that interfered with me and NotTheWife's plans. And for the rest of 1978 and a large part of 1979, I and many of my friends played that game. Then one day, a couple of us came in to find a hole where "Eight Ball" had been. According to what the guy behind the counter heard, the game "wasn't producing enough revenue". There was never again a pinball machine in that store.*
* And although there's no way to prove it, when "Eight Ball" left, everything changed. NotTheWife and I went our separate ways. She's a travel agent now (thanks, Facebook). Greg's mom & dad split up. I flashed thru a speed trap on my way home from an Emerson, Lake & Palmer concert in Columbia (Hwy 76/378 was a desolate patch of road going thru swampland and I had a 440 with a four barrel carburetor under the hood, gas was 45 cents a gallon and the road was straight) at over double the posted speed limit. I stayed until my dad retired from the Air Force. Others left for college. Some just left, never to be heard from again.
* To this day, when I think of pinball, it's the image of "Eight Ball" that comes to mind. It's not a rare game, over twenty thousand were made. And some people find it not challenging, even a bit boring, as it came out before the talking, wide-body Habitrail tables. There isn't *much to it, three bumpers, a spinner with a lane to the top, *four lanes at the top and a bonus multiplying lane along the right side with three static targets, one being the eight ball and special when lit. And it's more than 35 years old, the electronics are out of date. And the parts are getting more expensive, and harder to find. But I'd take one in a minute.
* Especially the one that says, "Buzz1126 and NotTheWife-Always and Forever"...
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *Updated High Score List
High Speed 12,358,390*
Star Trek:TNG 6,235 ,743,500
Monster Bash 715,293,200
Fish Tales 271,060,190
Black Hole 4,191,100
El Dorado: City Of Gold 1,516,690
Tales of The Arabian Nights 102,741,550
Genie 707,240
White Water 976,964,110
Taxi 9,126,010
Creature from The Black Lagoon 251,868,360
Current rank-still a "Tommy" wannabe
*Total points: 961.9
* * * * * * * * * * * ** *Hall of Fame points: 9591
* It was 12:00. Midnight.
* I made a beeline for my best friend Greg's house. He called before I left for work to let me know he'd scored some really good..., well, never mind what he got. But he was right, it was good. And after watching some late night Ultraman episodes, we walked to the Zippy Mart just outside base housing. This was before everyone drove to where they wanted to go. We had a serious case of the munchies. And it was close, too.
* There, over next to the magazine rack, stood a Bally's "Eight Ball". On the back glass, Arthur "The Fonz" Fonzarelli was lining up a pool shot, while Pinky Tuscadero looked on. Behind her sat Richie Cunningham and "Potsie" Weber, most likely talking about girls, with a juke box supposedly blaring, "One-two-three o'clock, four o'clock rock! Five-six-seven o'clock, eight o'clock rock!" At least that's what you were led to believe, because Bally neglected to get the OK from ABC to use the "Happy Days" characters, so the figures on the back glass were just cartoony enough to distinguish them from being who we all knew they were.
* The guy behind the counter threw up his hand as we came in, then reached under the counter for the Windex and paper towels. It was part of our ritual to clean the playing field glass. We returned the cleaning supplies and pulled a cheap level off the shelf, making sure the table wasn't out of level. After completing our pre-playing ritual, we began to play.
* Dropping in a few quarters prompted the electronic chimes to begin. As we played, we talked about everything, girls, music, how each other's day was, girls, the world. Customers came in, some just regulars, others because they saw us while driving by. Those that played the silver ball dropped a quarter with us. Some heard the lovely sound that accompanies scoring enough points to win a game or matching. When waiting for my turn, I took the opportunity to neatly, but discreetly, carve my name and NotTheWife's name in the upper left of the back panel. Soon, though, it was time to leave. We left a few games for the guy behind the counter. He would play them after he straightened all the shelves in the store. Walking back to Greg's house, we made plans, but nothing that interfered with me and NotTheWife's plans. And for the rest of 1978 and a large part of 1979, I and many of my friends played that game. Then one day, a couple of us came in to find a hole where "Eight Ball" had been. According to what the guy behind the counter heard, the game "wasn't producing enough revenue". There was never again a pinball machine in that store.*
* And although there's no way to prove it, when "Eight Ball" left, everything changed. NotTheWife and I went our separate ways. She's a travel agent now (thanks, Facebook). Greg's mom & dad split up. I flashed thru a speed trap on my way home from an Emerson, Lake & Palmer concert in Columbia (Hwy 76/378 was a desolate patch of road going thru swampland and I had a 440 with a four barrel carburetor under the hood, gas was 45 cents a gallon and the road was straight) at over double the posted speed limit. I stayed until my dad retired from the Air Force. Others left for college. Some just left, never to be heard from again.
* To this day, when I think of pinball, it's the image of "Eight Ball" that comes to mind. It's not a rare game, over twenty thousand were made. And some people find it not challenging, even a bit boring, as it came out before the talking, wide-body Habitrail tables. There isn't *much to it, three bumpers, a spinner with a lane to the top, *four lanes at the top and a bonus multiplying lane along the right side with three static targets, one being the eight ball and special when lit. And it's more than 35 years old, the electronics are out of date. And the parts are getting more expensive, and harder to find. But I'd take one in a minute.
* Especially the one that says, "Buzz1126 and NotTheWife-Always and Forever"...
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *Updated High Score List
High Speed 12,358,390*
Star Trek:TNG 6,235 ,743,500
Monster Bash 715,293,200
Fish Tales 271,060,190
Black Hole 4,191,100
El Dorado: City Of Gold 1,516,690
Tales of The Arabian Nights 102,741,550
Genie 707,240
White Water 976,964,110
Taxi 9,126,010
Creature from The Black Lagoon 251,868,360
Current rank-still a "Tommy" wannabe
*Total points: 961.9
* * * * * * * * * * * ** *Hall of Fame points: 9591
