PINBALL LEGENDS - where are they ?

[swinks]

I was just curious of who Heighway Pinball may be hiring, including JJP as well as other new comers like Homepin and it got me thinking lets start a list of all the legends of the 90's and 2000's and where they are:

John Popadiuk (JPop) - Zidware

Steve Ritchie - Stern
John Borg - Stern
George Gomez - Stern
John Trudeau - Stern
Greg Freres - Stern

Dennis Nordman -
Mark Ritchie -
Pat Lawler -
Brian Eddy -

and there are probably a few others that I have missed from the 90's, so feel free to add the names and possibly where they are.

[pinnies4me]

Brian Eddy -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Eddy

"Currently, Eddy is the President and Chief Creative Officer of Spooky Cool Labs,[4] a game design firm founded by former Williams programmer Larry DeMar."

[Greg]

Mark Ritchie
last I heard he was at Raw Thrills/Play Mechanix,
but that was 2-3 years ago

[Freiherr]

Former Gottlieb designer John Osborne who has since left pinball design and now lives, and works in another field, in Southern California.

[Freiherr]

Oops, you did say from the 90s, 00s. John Osborne memory haunts me from the 80s.

[Pop Bumper Pete]

Pat Lawler -
.

from what I hear, landlord of a factory in New jersey

[Homepin]

Plenty of newcomers with fresh ideas and a new approach.............

[swinks]

Dennis Nordman - has joined Heighway Pinball

[Homepin]

We should be careful being hung up on a certain small group of "known" names.

Look at almost every other human endevour.....music, architecture, artistic painting - the list is endless.

Just watching "The Range" yesterday gave me a few "new" artists I hadn't heard of previously but are superb.

Unless we allow fresh ideas and have fresh input we will only get "more of the same"

Now that the shackles of patents that have crippled development in the pinball industry are all expiring (some have and many others are coming up to 20 years when they can not be renewed) - - - - - time to move forward IMO.

[pinnies4me]

Now that the shackles of patents that have crippled development in the pinball industry are all expiring (some have and many others are coming up to 20 years when they can not be renewed) - - - - - time to move forward IMO.

Great point Mike, that will really open things up for many new entrants to used tried and true part designs, although innovative things such as bearing flippers you propose are a good thing too.

If you get the urge, you might like to start a thread with a list of expired and about to expire patents, be an asset to those looking at future projects.

[Ant68]

Pat Lawler -
.

from what I hear, landlord of a factory in New jersey

Landlord the chicago office  .

[swinks]

Now that the shackles of patents that have crippled development in the pinball industry are all expiring (some have and many others are coming up to 20 years when they can not be renewed) - - - - - time to move forward IMO.

Great point Mike, that will really open things up for many new entrants to used tried and true part designs, although innovative things such as bearing flippers you propose are a good thing too.

If you get the urge, you might like to start a thread with a list of expired and about to expire patents, be an asset to those looking at future projects.

good point, I started the thread out of pure interest Mike and agree with you on the new talent as well as fresh ideas

personally I would love to be involved in pinball design but it is a unique and extremely small industry to get into so just seems to be one for the :lucky", "legends", and "who knows who" world.

great idea Nick on the list of expired patents, would be interesting