Twentieth Century ''SPIRAL''
by Alex Warschaw
This machine was a free give away when you pur-
chased a total of $17.50 worth of Cigars (500) or 6
gallons of French Blackberry Brandy ($1 2.00), or a
1 case of Brandy and 1 case of Rye Whiskey for
$26.00. The ad states that the machine pays 20-24
cigars to the dollar. The merchant can make about
$5.00 to $7.50 profit on the order of 500 cigars, plus
he gets the free machine. More importantly he gets
the business of the customer who will hopefully buy
other items as well (matches for a penny?) .. .. thus
the name trade stimulator. Even the ad itself states
"it is a trade winner not a gambling device".
It always amazes me to look at the craftsmanship
of these machines and the ingenuity it took to create
it. All accomplished with time, patience and a
tremendous sense of pride in the work .... no power
tools, copy machines, Home Depot, etc ..... all for the
profit of a penny or a nickel. How many of us don't
even bother to pick up a penny or a nickel lying in
the street? If we do, it is probably more for the exer-
cise than the money. Makes you wonder what we
"won' t" pick up in a 100 years from now.
Anyone familiar with trade stimulators, especial-
ly the early oak cigar type has heard of the
"Twentieth Century Spiral". The name is actually
the "Spiral" and was made by the 20th Century
Novelty Company out of Springfield, Ohio, and has
a patent date of March 13th, 1906. It is 15 inches
high by 10 inches square. It is a wonderful classic
which has a spellbinding effect as the user watches
his nickel gyrate down a corkscrew structure as it
disappears out of sight into the waiting coin box.
There is a small flag which rotates at the bottom of
the base. The flag stops at a corresponding number
which designates how many cigars the user would
get. Typically the patron would win one cigar for
their nickel. Chances of winning 2 or 3 cigars was a
possibility but rarely occurred as often these games
were rigged. I have included with this article photo-
graphs of my "Spiral" to show you what the typical
one would look like.
Here is where the story gets interesting. I came
across an old original ad for "The Greatest Slot
Machine Ever Invented". It was called "The
Winner". Doesn't that machine look familiar, it is a
"Spiral" with a vertical coin entry. I have never seen
one, but have no doubt that it exists omewhere.
For further information, contact Alex Warschaw
at (walex6@qwest.net).
"The Winner,"
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