R.ic/;ord I'{. !3ue5c/;e/,
Marshall Fey and Jasper Sanfilippo
were inducted into the COCA Hall of Fame at the November Chicago
meeting. The presentations were made by President Erick Johnson and
Hall of Fame committee chairman Bill Petrochuk.
Richard M. Bueschel (1926-1998) was and probably always will be the
most prolific author and historian that our hobby will ever know. Dick
most enjoyed "the fun of the search and the knowledge gained". His
view was that "If it's good for the hobby, it ought to be done." He penned
dozens of books about coin operated machines.
He also edited a multitude of coin-op magazines and periodicals. Dick
inspired us by sharing his collection of coin machine paper including pho-
tographs, vintage advertising and trade magazines. Dick also helped to
lead the way towards the legalization of slot machine collecting through-
out most of America.
Dick grew up in the heart of the coin operated machine industry, Chicago, during the 1930's and 40's. His pri-
mary focus was on gambling machines, but he also wrote about pinball, arcade, penny scales and vending among
many other topics.
He served in the United States Air Force during 1945 and 1946. This led to his interest in Japanese war planes
and subsequent books about these aircraft. His business career was as a creative person in industrial advertising
agencies.
Our hobby would not be remotely close to where it is today, not only in historical knowledge, but in the number
of collectors, had it not been for the efforts and inspiration of Richard M. Bueschel.
Dick's award was accepted by his daughter Megan Bueschel.
fajor5/;o// Fe[
is best known as the author of the number one
selling slot machine book in the world. With over 35,000 copies sold it
is now in its seventh printing. It has been printed in three languages.
Marshall's story is about the experiences of three generations of the
Fey coin machine family. His grandfather, Charles is known as the
inventor of the three reel slot machine and scores of other coin operated
devices. His Father Edmund Fey invented, manufactured and operated
machines on his own. Marshall along with his brother Frank operated
and revamped numerous slot machines in their Reno Liberty Belle Res-
taurant for more than 30 years.
Marsh was the winner of the American Association for State and Lo-
cal History's "National History Award" in 1984. Marsh has spoken at
our C.O.C.A. meetings on multiple occasions. His book has helped to
spread the word about these fascinating machines and inspired both new and old co ll ectors since 1983. He has
educated antique collectors everywhere that these highly regarded slot machines are not only a good investment,
but fun to play. He continues to be a great ambassador for the coin operated machine collecting hobby.
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