Putting the Best Foot Forward
ANOTHER national coin machine show has passed into
n
history. Once again we pause to reAectonnow much
good the 1936 Show did for the industry.
There can be no doubt but what this yearly exhibition of
new equipment and the concurrent gathering of Rne fel -
lows from all parts of the country-and from many parts of
the world-is a great buying stimulant. It is positive proof
that our industry is taking its place in the national scheme
of things and that operators, jobbers, distributors and monu-
facturers all receive something from the yearly exposition
that spurs them on to greater accomplishments in the year
ahead . This last show did more than anything else to con-
vince me that the coin machine industry is big enough dnd
fdr-sighted enough to progress- to tdke full ddvdntage of
its unlimited possibi lities. Yes, Topsy has "growed up."
But Topsy is old enough now to know that she will rdte
better if she keeps her neck dnd edrs cledn when she goes
out in public. When Topsy WdS dn infdnt the people didn't
Pdy much dttention to her. Her annual birthddY pdrties
were modest dffairs dttended only by her closest dcqudint-
dnces. But as Topsy blossomed out they begdn to tdke
notice. They sdid d lot of things dbout her- some. good dnd
some not so compl imentary. And dS is customdry, the spici -
est gossip spredd the farthest. Topsy went on dbout her
own business, turning now dnd then to cldmp down on a
few of the worst gossip-mongers. When she stdrted wedr-
ing some new clothes, they immediately osked each other
where she got the money. They didn't red I ize thdt Topsy
hdd developed for herself dn honest job dnd WdS edrning
herwdY·
Topsy's birthday pdrties grew in importdnce. The·society
editor started calling up to " put d piece in the pdper."
People read about her dffdirs dnd were impressed. The
guests a IWdYs hdd d good time, dS long as her parties hdd dn
dir of exclusiveness . But when the gdtecrdshers cdught wind
of the good times and free refreshments to be hdd dt Topsy's
they spoiled the fun for everybody. The invited guests were
disgruntled dt the intruders. Some of the crdshers credted
disturbances in front of the house dnd gdve d bldck eye to
Topsy's reputdtion .
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The thing we hedr about most in the coin machine bUsi-
ness is td xes, tdxes, taxes . Where do the budget-bdldncers
get their ideds dbout the eXdggerdted earning power of
coin mdchines? Certdinly not to any gredt extent out of the
occdsiondl boastful ddvertisements of mdnufacturers in the
trdde pub.licdtions, few of which ever get into the hdnds
of the public. The tax-rdisers get m~t of their ideds out of
the newspapers. And where do the neWSPdpers get them?
Well, from such d glorious public spectacle dS the Ndtional
Coin Mdchine Show, for one thing .
I say fine dnd ddndy-give every operator, every jobber
dnd every distributor th e time of his life dt the Show. H e's
certainly entitled to it, dnd this is one time in the yedr that
the mdnufdcturer can show his apprecidtion. But allowing
the public to crdsh in does no good to anyone concerned
-Iedst of dll the industry dS d who le.
There WdS d record dttendance dt th e 1936 Show- some
8,000 or more. But whdt percentage of these people
represented the industry or its allied trdd es or even inter-
ested outsiders who might become operdtors? Nobody
knows . I do know that a lot of the crowd was mdde up of
curious folks out for a skyldrking good time dt somebody
else's expense . One edrly gdtecrdsher, overwhelmed by
the industry's hospitality, was picked up drun~ in front of
the Shermdn dnd told th e police he hdd d swell time- free
liquor in every room dnd all that.
The newspapers went to town with the story, told the
public thdt the Co in Mdchin e Show WdS a drunkdrd's pdrd-
dise, dnd not only lured huge mobs of outsiders to the
hotel but dlso droused in their minds the question : "Who's
Pdying for the party? " It WdS only natural that they might
answer it for themselves: " The tremendous profits from coin
mdchines'" Another idea for the tdx-Ievying legislators .
Now the operdtors dnd other bona-fide visitors dt the
Show were good natured dbout it and didn't mind jostling
dround d few thousand folks who were out enjoying d free
drcdde. Some of the ops bought machines without getti ng
close enough to the booths to see them . But a lot of the
mdnufdcturers ' cash went for entertaining totdl strdngers. ·
Every construl=tive criticism to hdve dny vdlue should be
dccompdnied by a suggested remedy, dnd here 's mine:
Provide dll the fun dnd refreshments you wdnt to in the
individual rooms butddmit guests only by cdrds issued dt
the booths to bond -fide customers dnd their privdte guests . .
If elimindtion of the general public from the exhibit hdll is
thought desirdble, it is d simple mdtter to hdve members of
the industry dnd their guests apply d month in advdnce
through the trdde press for identificdtion cdrds which will
ddmit them to the Show. Registration dt the door has proved
ineffective in keeping out d lot of deddhedds that seriously
hdmper the exhibitors' sdles efforts.
The money sdved by the mdnufdcturers in refusing to buy
drinks for dny dnd eve ry Pdsserby could be well spent in
d definite public reldtions progrdm, or dt ledst in a more
direct method of sales promotion for the individudl manu-
'"
facturer.
In this way, we Cdn dll have our fun dnd our future, too .
PACIFIC COIN MACHINE REVIEW, 1113 Venice Boulevard, Los ·Angeles, California. Phone: Fitzroy 8269. Paul W.
Blackford, editor and publisher; E. G. Thomas, Advertising Manager; ,Lenore Cady, Circulat i on Manager. Chicago office:
35 East Wacker Drive, CENtral 1112. C. J. Anderson, manager; E. W. Ziemann, assistant manager. SUBSCRIPTION
RATES: $1.00 per year, $2.00 for 3 years, 25c per copy. Forms close on the 5th of each month. Issue is mailed on the
10th. Advertising rates upon application.
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COIN
MACHINE
REVIEW
FEBRUARY ,
1936