Volume 7, Number 16
September 1, 1981
................... ...
Staff
Publi h r ancl Editor:
Ra lph . Lal l II
E
Dav id Pi rson
Managing Edit or:
Ray E. Tille
Administrative A i rant:
alerie ognevich
Art Director:
Ka tey c hwark
Cir ulation Manager:
Rene ' . Pi r on
Tech n i dl Writ n :
Ra nd y From m
Za Oliver
Frank
nin sky
BPA
Clrcu~tlon
Audit Applied For
LAY
Ill
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Play Meter's Distributor Survey ................... 23
From this first-ever polling of the handlers' sector of
the coin-op industry, a number of measures of
the health of their businesses can be made.
Here is our analysis of the Distributor Poll's findings.
The Leisure Market ............................... SO
A thorough summary of the size of the free-time
players market: enlightening comparisons of cash
spent in the United States for the various separate
fields of entertainment-movies, boating, media,
etc.-are outlined for this in-depth piece by Marion
Cutler and Jane Patterson. It's wonhy of study by any-
one with a pocketbook interest in coin-op.
Mar
n rai,
h ar r
Jane Peterson
M arion uti r
la~'ifiecl Aclv rt i\ing:
al ri e og n vi h
Typograph r :
haron M Call
Advert i ing Manager:
David Pi r on
Luropea n Reprc' ntativc :
E ma L li
PLAY METER , September 1, 1981 .
Volume 7, o.16. Copyrig ht 1981 by
Skybird Publishi ng Company. PLAY
METER (ISSN 0162-1343) is pub-
lished twice monthly on the 1st and
15th of the month . Pub lishing
offices : 320 O ld Hammond
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may be re~roduced without
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METE R, P.O . Box 24170, New
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Europ an O ffi e : PLA Y METER
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atford Road , orthwood Midd .
England . orthwood 29244 .
PLAY METER , September 1, 1981
He Dealt with the Man in the Blue Suede Shoes .... 41
A newcomer to the industry may look on any coin-
op piece as a 'pot of gold.' But the game may be
more of a millstone around the neck- particularly
if the seller had dealt out of his overnight case ...
'How to Know When You've Been Burned' is an
alternate title for this exclu ive Play Meter report ,
first-hand from an operator who found out.
Ups and Downs of Used Game Sales ............... 52
Unloading equipment that has worn out its useful-
ness in cash-box draw is an eternal question for the
operator. What's happening today at the distributor
level-their attitudes, break-even point for taking
used equipment in trade, and other insights - is
presented in this article by Valerie Cognevich.
Editorial ........................................... 4
Mailbox ........................................... 7
Coinman Interview ................................ 8
Equipment Survey ................................ 24
International News ................................ 38
Music Programming ............................... 45
Frank's Cranks .................................... 56
News ...................................... 38, 60-65
Technical Topics .................................. 68
Critic's Corner .................................... 72
New Products .................................... 75
Classified Advertising .......................... n-83
COVER: Photography courtesy of Monroe Distributing
Company.
3