The thing I love the most about pinball is that every pinball machine has a story. Whether it is a proto game, or changed hands with other collectors - there's always a unique story. Here is the story about a game I acquired 3 months ago.
First a bit of background - As most of you know, my Father was either the first, or one of the first Operators in Australia. He was importing games in the 50's. Recently, I found some old manifests and sales listings from 70's suppliers in the USA. I found a really strange set of documents on what appears to be very thin paper - almost a "wafer". There were many of these papers, which were manifests of imports that clearly were LCL imports (pinball containers didn't start until the late 60's).. On one of the VERY faint papers (I can't scan or copy it - it can't be read easily), there's a listing of pinballs, Jukeboxes and Bingos. On this shipment, there was ;
Miss Annabelle
Rocket Ship
Picnic
Sittin' Pretty
Universe
Sunshine
The Rocket Ship is currently at a collector's house in St Kilda. He purchased a large amount of Bally Bingo's, Juke boxes and woodrails from my Father around the same time as an operator bought a lot of the pinballs. this was somewhere in the mid - late 60's. I tried to buy back the Rocket Ship - as it was definite part of this shipment AND he knew my Dad really well. He refused as he knew it was one of the first, if not "the first" pinball in the country..The seed was already in my head. I WANTED a Woodrail - and it had to be either THAT Rocket Ship, or "anyone's" Rocket ship. Recently, that opportunity almost occurred, but the planets didn't align..
Fast forward to 3 months ago. Chris Pyrgolios (Pinball medic) was picking up another parts order and invited me to have a look at some EMs had had purchased from an operator. I went over and had a look and behold, there was a woodrail - and upon further inspection - it was a Gottlieb "Miss Annabelle". It had it schematics, original score card and it looked really nice for an original game. I looked at the schematics and once I unfolded them, I was immediately taken aback. It had my father's distinctive hand writing on the schematics. I checked the circuit, and it was a "mod" to the coin mech - a very similar mod he did to the Bally Bingos. THIS game MIGHT be part of the original manifest ?
So I bought the game. I now have a woodrail. I checked the schematics over and over - it HAD to be part of this original shipment. Checking the transformer - it had telltale signs of Dad's handiwork - it had the same 240 Volt ceramic fitting on the power cable. I'm 95% sure THIS is part of the original shipment. This could be a piece of Australian Pinball History.
I called Gav (resident woodrail expert) and I could not contain myself. The game needs work, and might not be a "Rocket Ship" or "Mermaid" - but i don't care. I may be able to restore this game (after I've finished the massive backlog) for my own collection.
Here are the pictures ;
It needs work - and it will have to wait. BUT - I own a woodrail and I'm sure it IS part of the original shipment..
There will be a resto thread in.. um.. 2065 ?
