You may not realize that pinball machines are still being produced today
although the number of full time manufacturers is now down to one and the
number of pinball machines produced is much lower than throughout most of its
history.
So what’s the connection with movies? Movies have been a major source for
pinball themes since “Wizard!” in 1975 was based upon the upcoming Rock Opera
movie “Tommy”. It was the first pinball machine with a licensed theme. The
overwhelming success of that pinball machine (selling 2-3 times as many pinball
machines as non-licensed pinball machines at the time) led to revolution in the
pinball industry with the pinball manufacturers producing the majority of
pinball machines with licensed themes since that time.
The two latest pinball machines that will be released this summer are based on
Shrek and Indiana Jones 4. You can see some pictures of these pinball machines
with detailed descriptions and other movie/TV related pins from the last seven
years or so at the following website (including Lord of the Rings, Terminator
3, Spider-Man, and Pirates of the Caribbean).
www.pinballnews.com/games/index.html . I own both Spider-Man and Lord of the
Rings from this list as well as another dozen pins (including many movie/TV
titles including Shadow, Star Trek Next Generation, Twilight Zone, Star Wars
Episode 1, and Simpson’s Pinball Party). It’s as addictive as posters although
they take up a lot more room and I know that there’s a few combo poster and
pinball people out there.
Here’s a non-official list of pinball machines based on either Movies or TV
shows over the past 34 years (the line between TV and Movies can be blurred at
times [Addams Family and Twilight Zone are famous as TV shows but the pins were
developed to coincide with the movies):
MOVIE PINS:
Addams Family - 1992
Addams Family Special Collector's Edition - 1994
Apollo 13 - 1995
Austin Powers - 2001
Back to the Future - 1990
Barb Wire - 1996
Batman - 1991
Batman Forever - 1995
Bram Stoke's Dracula - 1993
Buck Rogers - 1980
Close Encounters of the Third Kind - 1978
Congo - 1995
Creature from the Black Lagoon - 1992
Demolition Man - 1994
Dirty Harry – 1995
Empire Strikes Back - 1980
Flash Gordon – 1980
Flintstones - 1994
Freddie: a Nightmare on Elm Street - 1994
Godzilla - 1998
Goldeneye - 1996
Hook - 1992
Independence Day - 1996
Indiana Jones: The Pinball Adventure - 1993
James Bond 007 - 1980
Johnny Mnemonic - 1995
Jurassic Park - 1993
Jurassic Park, The Lost World – 1997
King Kong - 1990
Krull - 1983
Last Action Hero - 1993
Lethal Weapon 3 – 1992
Lord of the Rings - 2003
Lost In Space - 1998
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein - 1995
Maverick - 1994
Pink Panther - 1980
Richie Rich - 1994
Robocop - 1990
Rocky – 1982
Shadow - 1994
Space Jam - 1997
Star Trek: The Next Generation - 1993
Star Wars Episode 1 - 1999
Star Wars - 1992
Star Wars Trilogy - 1997
Stargate - 1995
Starship Troopers - 1997
Tales From the Crypt - 1993
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - 1991
Terminator 2 : Judgement Day - 1991
Terminator 3 : Rise of the Machines - 2003
Tommy Pinball Wizard - 1994
Total Recall - 1990
Twilight Zone - 1993
Twister - 1996
Waterworld - 1995
Wizard! - 1975
X Files – 1997
TV PINS:
Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends - 1993
Amazing Spiderman - 1980
Baywatch - 1995
Bugs Bunny's Birthday Ball - 1991
Charlie's Angels - 1978
Dr. Who – 1992
Family Guy - 2007
Gilligan's Island - 1991
Incredible Hulk - 1979
Popeye Saves the Earth - 1994
Road Runner - 1979
Six Million Dollar Man - 1978
Superman - 1979
Simpsons - 1990
Simpsons Pinball Party – 2003
Sopranos - 2005
South Park - 1999
Star Trek – 1979
Wheel of Fortune – 2007
World Poker Tour - 2006
If interested, you can find some pictures of these pins at www.ipdb.org using
the search function. You can also get a decent overview of pinball and links
to good information sites at
Bill
Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com
___________________________________________________________________
How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List
Send a message addressed to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L
The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
