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Pat Lawlor
Patrick M. Lawlor (born November 30, 1951) is a video game and pinball machine designer. Pat Lawlor had originally been a video game designer and had entered the coin-operated game design industry in 1980, working for Dave Nutting Associates. Lawlor's pinball career began as an engineer for Williams in 1987, when he co-designed a dual-playfield machine called '' Banzai Run'' with Larry DeMar. In 1988, he was assigned his first individual design project, a machine entitled '' Earthshaker!'', which was released in January 1989. Notably, ''Earthshaker!'' was the first pinball machine with a shaker motor. Early games Lawlor's first solo project, ''Earthshaker!'', was noteworthy for its implementation of a relatively obscure theme (earthquakes). The follow-up to ''Earthshaker!'' tackled a different form of natural disaster: tornados. The new game, ''Whirlwind'', was released in early 1990 to similar praise. Both games demonstrated components of Lawlor's design methodology. Fore ...
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Pinball
Pinball games are a family of games in which a ball is propelled into a specially designed table where it bounces off various obstacles, scoring points either en route or when it comes to rest. Historically the board was studded with nails called 'pins' and had hollows or pockets which scored points if the ball came to rest in them. Today, pinball is most commonly an arcade game in which the ball is fired into a specially designed Arcade cabinet, cabinet known as a pinball machine, hitting various lights, bumpers, ramps, and other targets depending on its design. The game's object is generally to score as many points as possible by hitting these targets and making various shots with #Flippers, flippers before the ball is lost. Most pinball machines use one ball per turn (except during special multi-ball phases), and the game ends when the ball(s) from the last turn are lost. The biggest pinball machine manufacturers historically include Bally Manufacturing, Gottlieb, Williams Ele ...
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Carlene Carter
Carlene Carter (born Rebecca Carlene Smith; September 26, 1955) is an American country music singer and songwriter. She is the daughter of June Carter Cash and her first husband, Carl Smith. As of 2020, since 1978, Carter has recorded 12 albums, primarily on major labels. In the same timespan, she has released more than 20 singles, including three number three-peaking hits on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts. Career Carlene Carter's earliest released solo recording was "Friendly Gates", a track included on her stepfather Johnny Cash's 1974 album '' The Junkie and the Juicehead Minus Me'', and credited under the name Carlene Routh. Her solo recording career began in the late 1970s with her eponymous debut album. In 1979, during a concert at New York City's The Bottom Line, she introduced a song about mate-swapping called "Swap-Meat Rag", from her album ''Two Sides to Every Woman'', by stating, "Well, if that don't put the 'cunt' back in country, I don't know what ...
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Stern (game Company)
Stern is the name of two different but related arcade gaming companies. Stern Electronics, Inc. manufactured arcade video games and pinball machines from 1977 until 1985, and was best known for '' Berzerk''. Stern Pinball, Inc., founded in 1999, is a manufacturer of pinball machines in North America. Stern Electronics, Inc. Stern Electronics was formed when the Stern family bought the financially troubled Chicago Coin in 1977. Chicago Coin's assets were purchased at bankruptcy sales forming the core inventory of Stern Electronics, Inc.; however, as a separate company, they did not assume any of the debt Chicago Coin had amassed. The first two games made by Stern were ''Stampede'' and ''Rawhide'', both originally made by Chicago Coin, which only had changes made to their branding and logos. After a weak start, Stern Electronics' sales started picking up by the end of 1977. By 1978, they had switched over to fully solid-state electronics for their games. In 1979, Stern acquired ...
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Pinball 2000
Pinball 2000 was the last pinball hardware and software platform developed by major pinball manufacturer Williams, and was used in the machines '' Revenge From Mars'' (under the brand name Bally) and '' Star Wars Episode I'' (under the brand name Williams) before Williams exited the pinball business on October 25, 1999. It is the successor to the Williams Pinball Controller platform. Unlike previous pinball machines, Pinball 2000 machines feature a computer monitor to display animations, scores, and other information. The player perceives this video to be integrated with the playfield, due to a mirrored playfield glass (utilizing an illusion called "Pepper's ghost") that reflects the monitor hung in the head of the machine. This allows the display of virtual game targets in the playfield's upper third that can be "hit" by the machine's physical steel ball. "Impacts" on these targets are detected by physical targets in the middle of the playfield, and by recognizing successful sh ...
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George Gomez
George Gomez is an industrial designer, video game designer, and pinball designer who has worked for Bally, Williams, and Stern Pinball, among other companies. He worked on the team that created the ''Tron'' video game, and headed the team that created ''Spy Hunter''. In 1984 after the 1983 video game crash, he left Midway to invent toys at the consulting firm Marvin Glass & Associates. He is the inventor of numerous toys, including Tonka's "Splash Darts" and Galoob's "Crash-N-Bash". After Glass, he worked on numerous projects through the contract manufacturer Grand products, including the Battletech Centers and several Sega, Jaleco and Taito coin op video games of the late 80's. In '93 he became a designer at Williams Electronics and designed several notable pinball machines including '' Monster Bash'' and was one of the lead developers of the Pinball 2000 system. After Williams closed the pinball division, he re-joined Midway Games and was one of key designers of the stree ...
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Cactus Canyon
Bally Manufacturing, later renamed Bally Entertainment, was an American company that began as a pinball and slot machine manufacturer, and later expanded into casinos, video games, health clubs, and theme parks. It was acquired by Hilton Hotels in 1996. Its brand name, and mid-20th century pinball & slot machine logo, are still used by several businesses with some trademark rights, most notably Bally Technologies and Bally's Corporation. History The Bally Manufacturing Corporation was founded by Raymond Moloney on January 10, 1932, when Bally's original parent, Lion Manufacturing, established the company to make pinball games. The company took its name from its first game, "Ballyhoo". The company, based in Chicago, quickly became a leading pinball maker. In the late 1930s, Moloney began making gambling equipment, and had great success developing and improving the mechanical slot machines that were the core of the nascent gaming industry. After manufacturing munitions and airpla ...
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Monster Bash (pinball)
''Monster Bash'' is a pinball machine produced by Williams. The game features some Universal Monsters including The Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Wolf Man, Frankenstein's monster, the Bride of Frankenstein, Dracula and The Mummy. Description The main goal of the game is to collect the instruments of the iconic horror characters and form the ''Monsters of Rock'' band. The table includes a ''Phantom Flip''; when this feature is enabled, the player can let go of the flipper buttons and allow the game to attempt a shot. The machine has an easter egg mode called “''Lyman’s Lament''”. It features different music and comments of programmer Lyman Sheats while the ball is played. The game uses the DCS Sound System. In 2018, Chicago Gaming announced they would begin production of a Monster Bash remake as part of their series of classic pinball remakes, which includes Medieval Madness and Attack From Mars. Modes Each of the six monsters has an associated mode that must b ...
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The Champion Pub
''The Champion Pub'' is a pinball game released by Williams Electronics Games (under the Bally label) in 1998. The theme of the game revolves around boxing in a 1920s pub. Description The playfield of ''The Champion Pub'' features several toys which include: * A jump rope area, in which the player must jump the ball over a rotating metal bar using a flipper-controlled solenoid * A speed bag area, where the player must knock the ball against a target with a pair of plastic fists controlled by the flippers * A rotating wall with a heavy bag on one side and a boxer figure on the other, which the player can hit with the ball to train for a fight or land punches against an opponent, respectively Game features include four multiball modes and 15 jackpot levels, 10 different international opponents, and over 300 speech sound effects. Gameplay The primary goal is to build up a health bar by making indicated shots, then begin a fight against one of the pub's 10 resident opponents and ...
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Safecracker (pinball)
''Safe Cracker'' is a pinball machine with a safecracking theme, designed by Pat Lawlor, and distributed by Midway (under the ''Bally'' label). It was created in 1996. About 1148 were manufactured. Description ''Safe Cracker'' differs from a standard pinball game in that the player is playing against the clock as opposed to having a certain number of balls available. If the player loses a ball, as long as there is time left on the clock they can continue playing. The machine is smaller in size than a standard pinball machine. The main objective of the game is to break into the bank's safe. The game can be broken into 3 areas of play: * The pinball playfield has numerous targets, the completion of which will allow entry into the bank via the rooftop, the cellar, or the front door. * Once the player has entered the bank, the game changes to a boardgame that takes place on the backglass. Using the flipper buttons to make choices, the player spins a dial that is numbered 1 thr ...
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