Coin Machine Review (& Pacific ...)

-
-
COIN
MACHINE
R.EVIEW
18
FOR.
S EPT.
194 1
one time so skillfully that it makes the
average chap feel tired just watching him.
Heroux pioneered penny arcades in the Pa-
cific Northwest and Alaska. Right now
he's the guiding light of amusement centers
at Redondo Beach, Playland Park, the
Fun Palace, Anchorage (Alaska) and
Olympia. A month ago, in partnership
with Leo Smith, he purchased the old dog
track at Playland Park and invested a neat
sum of money in constructing the North-
west's finest midget auto race set-up. He
also leased the Aurora Speedway for stock
car racing. The skeptics sneered, "It can't
be done. Nobody's interested in that sport;
it's dead and forgotten." Yet the cars were
romping before packed throngs before the
second week of the season. To keep the
spare time from lying too heavily on his
hands, Heroux purchased an interest in
the Spokane auto race game and affiliated
himself with the Vancouver, B. c., track.
We've got to hand it to Clayto n Bal-
l a rd, the Packard Pla-Mor representative.
We've seen birth announcement cards and
birth announcement cards, but when it
comes to ingenuity and cleverness and ap-
propriateness, Clayt rolled away from the
field like a German tank. Shaped like a
phonograph record, this unique card had
printed on the outer rim: "Garna and
Clayton present the first recording of the
Ballard Symphony." Then around the disc
hole: "James Burton, 8lh lb., August 9,
1941."
Back in 1932 an energetic young chap
was selling novelties to retail stores. He
SEATTLE-"Great!" "Swell stuff!" "A
brilliant job!"
Tossed into one big consensus bowl, the
reaction to M r s. Fran k Co untner's spark-
ling guest column was overwhelmingly en-
thusiastic-equivalent to a five-star movie.
But this is another month and another
column, so back to the news track we
go .. . .
A 40-acre dairy ranch in Mt. Vernon,
with red-dipped sunsets and clean sweet air
has just won the decision over King Coin
and deprived the Row of one of its most
illustrious duos. Handsome "Collegiate"
Van B oo th sold his operating interests to
J oe Bish and J ohnny M ichael, and with
wife Beulah resigned as office domo at
Western Distributors. As an inducement
to purchase, the chap who sold the ranch
to them included 18 cows, with a little
bull thrown in.
The wings of romance fluttered over
Harper-Meggee recently. Three employes
paused from their work, looked up, and
were promptly arrowed by Daniel Cupid.
Warehouseman D on O a kley said "I do"
to blonde Be ula h Holbe n while Clerk
Conne r Gr ay went nuptialing with Be tty
Wethe rby of Portland.
In case you haven't already noticed, this
fellow Earl H e r o u x is a tireless dynamo
who can handle so many varied interests at
NEW GAME CLOSE OUTS
Chicago Coin's LEGIONNAIRE .................... $84.50
Exhibit's WEST WiND .................................... 84.50
Genco's ZIG ZAG .......................................... 89.50
Keeney's SKY RAyS ........................................ 79.50
Stoner's HI STEPPER ...................................... 84.50
ALSO
135 GOOD USED GAMES
Write For List!
•
Complete Line of
ARCADE EQUIPMENT
COME IN TODAYl
MAC SANDERS
2837 West Pico Blvd.
REpublic 5161
Los Angeles, Calif.
came across a digger machine one day, saw
the important part novelties played in their
operation, and decided to give it a whirl.
Thus was born Alber t H. (Bert) Farm·
er, coin machine operator. In succeeding
years, he built his route into a formidable
array of games, with phon os and pin tables
added. Last month, after almost a decade
in the business, Bert Farmer bought a 5
and lOc store in Rainier Valley and there-
by returned to his old line of selling
novelties. Bert no more needed the revenue
from that five-and-tenner than Sally Rand
needs a dress, but sentiment and cold logic
are poor bedmates.
Along with the store, Bert operates a lu-
crative line of cigarette machines. Before
settling down in the fertile valley of Rain-
ier, Storekeeper Farmer completed a tor-
rid, two month vacation that took him
from Coast to Coast and through Alaska-
15,000 miles in all. And you know what
he brought back with him? A half interest
in the Marlyn Fish Company of Ketchikan!
Seattle Sh avin gs - Thelma Oliver's
picture appears on the inside of the Bally
Mfg. book match boxes-which inspired
one of Coin Row's waggiest wags to quip,
as he lit a stogie: "This is the first time
I ever struck a woman!" ... "Sweetheart
of the Operators" is what the Victor-
Bluebird people are calling the new Stand-
ard line of discs. . . . Personable Jack
T u rner is manager of the newly opened
Hart Novelty's Seattle Packard office.
Vacationing in the wilds, Curly Gohr
let his thick, unruly hair grow wild and
his heavy beard bristle-and there you are,
Mr. Goldwyn: Frankenstein's stand-in is
ready. Action, camera!
Rock-Ola is rocking 'em in Alaska.
Portly H. M . Br own is going over big
as the Far North's traveling ambassador
of clinking coins. The combined efforts
of Brown, Operator Walte r Blanton and
C. R . Merr ill broke the location ice in
Ketchikan with the first installation of
"Mystic Music" telephone equipment . . . .
Add Alaska item: Milt Roumm has
heavy interests in a gold mine near Sitka,
Eskimo Operative No. 3 reports.
Babblings from Decca: The birthdays
of Decca's Doyle Gu dgel and Marshall
Huffin e both arrived ' the same day, Au-
gust 23. Instead of presenting the boys
with gifts, the rest of the force stood
around like vultures, waiting for the lads
to finish filling orders so they could ap-
ply pressure to the part of their trousers
that wears the shiniest . . . . 29 years with
the same firm! After practically becoming
an in titution, the capable E thel Truckee
bade farewell to Hopper-Kelly and went on
the Decca payroll. . . . Another newcomer
to the Decca picture is Washington State
College cooed Virginia Mattern , who reo
places Ruth Allbright in the office.
Catch one glimpse of that smile and you'll
agree there's nothing the "mattern" with
this lassie .
Nostalgia plus business plus pleasure all
combined to lure Solly Solomon, Western
Distributor's Seattle chieftain, to the sunny
south and his ex-borne, Los Angeles. It
was a ten-day jaunt, via automobile . . . .
Ron Pepple has just purchased a home
sweet home out Queen Anne way. . . .
The singing voices of Dick Todd and Bing
Crosby are so strikingly similar, that it
even fooled a Victor factory man.
Vic Sager, Missoula, Mont., phono op.,
was wrestling with the salmon during a
five-day fishing expedition to the San Juan
Islands. . . . Joe Hart sold his Seattle
route to Johnny Michael. Who's route is
next on the Michael Time-Table for a
New Order in Seattle Coindom?
Louis Kama/sky •
Mention of THE COIN MACHINE REVIEW is your best introduction to our advertisers.