Pinball Machine Exhibit Coming to City Hall

From the City of Alameda

Starting Tuesday, May 28, City Hall will be the site of the Pacific Pinball Museum’s (PPM) latest educational exhibit. 

Five pinball machines will be on display through July 1, and available to play for free between 12 – 1:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday. 

The five machines come from the electromechanical era of the 1970s. During this time, known as the third golden age, the pinball industry made more money than the motion picture industry. The games on exhibit are:

1. Bally Fireball (1971), a machine famed for its diverse selection of features;
2. Williams Gulfstream (1973), noted for its eminently playable tic-tac-toe theme;
3. Gottlieb Pro Football (1973), produced while D. Gottlieb & Company stood atop the pinball industry, this is a machine with an unusual playfield layout; 
4. Bally Captain Fantastic (1975), a machine with remarkable back glass art featuring Elton John as the Captain;
5. Visible Pinball Machine (1976), a modified 1976 Gottlieb Surf Champ, and one of PPM’s most prized machines. 

To kick off the exhibit, PPM’s mobile museum, Lil’ Ju Ju, a trailer with five additional electromechanical machines, will be open to the public from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 28 in front of City Hall.  

The Pacific Pinball Museum, located at 1510 Webster Street in the City of Alameda, was founded in 2004 by Executive Director, Michael Schiess. 

With a collection of over 800 machines, the PPM is a bay area attraction dedicated to preserving and promoting one of America’s pastimes. 

For the price of admission, museum patrons can play over 85 machines on exhibit.  

For more information contact the PPM at (510) 769-1349, or via email at info@pacificpinball.org or visit www.pacificpinball.org.