THANKS
TO A FRIEND
THE TRIO
IS COMPLETE
by Bill Howard
In past articles I have featured the Exhibit Supply Bulls-
eye and the Ball Gum Vendor as two wonderful trade stimu-
lator-gambling machines. Both are very rare due to the rea-
sons discussed in those articles. The third "amigo" to these
machines manufactured by Exhibit from late 1924 to early
1926 is the Fortune Ball Vendor, also called "What Will You
Be." Before the spring 2008 Chicagoland Show, friend Tom
Gustwiller had the only known example (pictured) of "What
Will You Be." A friendly debate between us centered around
whether his machine or any other example ever came with a
marquee. His had one, which I believe to be an add-on. Re-
gardless of who was correct, after Ross Misner, the Rubber
City Wizard, performed his magic and restored it, Tom was
the proud owner of a great machine. In addition to having
the same case and back door as the Bullseye and the Ball
Gum Vendor, and working in much the same fashion with
the gumball's fall providing the action rather than the drop
of the penny, "What Will You Be" had an extra feature - pa-
per pictures of famous male celebrities of the day. A child
was asked what his occupation might be when becoming a
man. The child with penny in hand saw some great histori-
cal favorites from the 20's; Fatty Arbuckle, the dunce, and
Charlie Chaplin, the comedian, just to name a few. So this
machine not only represents a coin operated trade stimulator,
but also a wonderful picture commentary of life and enter-
tainment during the roaring 20's. I have carried around the
ad for "What Will You Be" for almost 20 years. The closest
I ever came to owning one was at the preview to Dr. Smith's
arcade auction in New York, when I dragged Mike Gorski
over to inspect an example in the auction and give advice. As
is true of many of the Exhibit table machines, the coin slot is
frag ile, often damaged and very hard to replicate. I sti ll re-
member the disappointment I felt when the Godfather shook
his head at the preview to that great auction and said "Bill,
you can forget this machine, it's too far gone." No wonder,
then, that almost 20 years later I congratulated Tom on his
find. I don't know what happened to the auction dog I passed
on, and I left Tom thinking I would never own a "What Will
You Be" to complete the coveted set of three Exhibits that
make up what I think are three of the most wonderful wood-
en counter trade stimulators a collector could own.
As I have said many times, one of the wonderful things
about this hobby is not necessarily the prizes you acquire as
much as the friendships you develop. To my joy and amaze-
ment, Tom approached me at the booth I was in at the Spring
2008 Chicagoland Show and told me he had a "surprise",
another "What Will You Be". Yes, it needed work, as it had
been painted over more times than the dignity of this prize
should have been required to withstand, but there it was.
There was so much rotten, foul coats of red, yellow and
green paint I had to strip and remove that the remnants and
dropping dried and froze the cash box until I could figure a
way to pry it out of the back. Nasty stuff, that old lead based
paint! I was able to restore the cabinet to its original, dark
quarter-sawed oak finish with the guts of the machine in tact.
Unlike the Bullseye and Ball Gum Vendor, "What Will You
Be" is not a gambling machine. The gumball simply falls
into one of eleven visible holes at random to tell you who
you will be via the pictures above the hole. The give-away
that the machine was a child's machine to vend gum and not
for gambling is the fact that the cash box has no dividers or
any slots cut in the clearly original cash box that would have
been needed to accommodate dividers. Without the dividers,
the owner-operator could not tabulate winnings or police
the possibly dishonest help, something gambling machine
manufacturers would never allow.
As you can guess, Tom had me over a barrel. But true
friendship and the financial rigors brought on by retirement
prevailed, and Tom once again helped out his friend, some-
one he long ago labeled as "Willie the Crumb."
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