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Soliloquy
ofapinball
By R.I. Lyttle
Remember me? I am the hottest,
best-selling pinball machine of 1975.
My name is not important, but the
story I have to tell may interest you .
My manufacturer's expectations
were high and I had the potential to
fulfill them - but here I sit , in my
prime , in a back corner of my
owner's service area . I wait for a
" someday" - a "someday" when I
will be able to entertain people once
again . I am only three years old , but I
feel fifteen and very tired . You see,
my owner made the all-too-common
mistake of failing to practice a little
preventive maintenance . Will you go
back with me and witness the
circumstances that led to my down -
fall?
March 12, 1975
I arrive in the distributor's location
and am immediately placed in the
showroom . Many operators who
have been waiting for my arrival are
here to greet me . I am the star of the
day! Everyone is excited about my
potential as a big money-maker and I
know that I can follow through .
March 14 , 1975
A clone of m ine arrives, and the
distributor decides to let me go to my
new owner . Now I can begin to fulfill
the purpose of my existence . I am
taken to my owner's establishment
where the few necessary adjustments
are made .
March 15. 1975
I am placed in one of my owner's
leading locations , and am left on my
own .
March 29 , 1975
Two weeks have passed and I
have been going non -stop , making
my own r's rewards substantial. This
is terrific , but I never imagined that I
PLAY METER , August, 1978
cou ld begin to get so dirty in such a
short time .
My owner just emptied my cash
box , but , in his excitement over the
con tents, failed to notice the gather-
ing grime .
He just left and I suspect that I
won 't see him for another two weeks .
I hope that I can maintain the same
performance level , despite my filth .
Maybe he was just in a rush and will
clean me next time .
April 12 , 1975
My owner just arrived , and I wish I
could tell him about one person who
has been really rough on me . I hope
he sees that my tilt mechanism needs
adjustment , because I don 't think
that I can take much more of the
abuse that I am being subjected to .
lt 's such a simple thing - surely he
will notice!
I find it difficult to understand this
person , my owner , as he is leaving .
He has again neglected to give me
two minutes of his time , and here
comes that impatient roughneck
again . Looks like I'm in for another
pounding ...
May 10 . 1975
My owner is just walking in the
door with his tool box , and he's
heading straight for me . He appears
to be upset. I think the customer at
this location has been complaining
about my performance .
My owner has me open and is
looking for the source of my
problem . He is twisting and bending
my points, which is not required , and
I am beginning to feel weak .
An hour and a half passes without
him discovering the source of my
malfunction . Now he 's livid and
cursing the manufacturer . I wish I
could tell him that the only problem is
a dirty plunger on one of my solenoid
coils . If he had taken the time to keep
me clean , this wouldn 't have hap-
pened so soon . Doesn 't he realize
that I am a delicate mechanism and
must be kept clean to give optimum
performance?
He has now decided to clean my
playfield but is using an abrasive
cleanser, and I can feel the dirt being
ground in , especially around my
bumpers . My surface is now per-
manently marred . He has removed
the rubbers and cleaned them , and,
after their replacement , has caused
some of my switches to be out of
adjustment.
Now the
playfield
glass - but he 's only cleaning one
side of it.
I am now back together and ready
for play - he thinks . He s leaving
now , and telling the customer that I
will be all right. Boy , is this guy a
winner! I am, in fact, in worse shape
than I was prior to his service call. I
also overheard him confide to the
customer that I am not the product
he believed I was , and that I must
have been assembled in a last minute
rush on a Friday evening .
August 5 , 1975
Here I am , in my first summer,
feeling like a derelict in the industry .
My owner has arrived and has
withdrawn $10 .25 from my cash box
for this two-week period . He is telling
the customer that I am going to be
replaced by another machine which
he thinks is a better one than me .
August 6, 1975
I am now placed in a poor location
without adequate supervision . My
owner plugs me in and does not
realize that I operate most efficiently
on 115 volts 60 cycle . This location
has a voltage line drop and is only
supplying me with 105 volts . I know
that when he returns he is going to
blame my malfunctions on my " poor
quality" once again .
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