C.O.C.A. Times

Pick-A-Pack Machine
Indian Dice Machine
Larceny or Legally?
by Dan Applegate
There is a decades old question of whether or not one manu-
facturer stole the idea and concept of a trade stimulator from
another mfg. back in the late 30s. The answer will be ex-
plained after I have stated how both machines, The Indian
Dice and Pick-A-Pack, were acquired.
mechanism is identical with the exception that one machine
had parts and levers for 5 columns and the other for 3 col-
umns; both machines had a tilt mechanism located in the top
of the machine; The Indian Dice had a larger view area. Both
machines had a last-coin display window on the back door,
and a cast aluminum front with wood case. In 1938, the D .
Gottlieb Co. designed and built a very clever counter ma-
chine named "The Indian Dice". It had 5 columns that held
regular spot dice and had a disk in the back of the middle
column that displayed the house odds. The game had "hold-
and-draw" features. The object of the game was to beat the
house odds. This game operated on 1 cent thru 25 cents. Op-
eration of game went as follows: Insert coin of choice; pull
handle which would spin the house-odds disk that would be
displayed in the triangular window located behind the center
column, and at the same time the dice would be popped up
in the columns and come to rest. To hold the dice that you
The Pick-A-Pack machine was acquired in an antique shop in
Hot Springs, Arkansas, and the Indian Dice machine through
a contact made at the Chicagoland Game Room Show that
lead to a contact in Kentucky. On acquiring the Pick-A-Pack
machine, I was able to negotiate a price with the dealer. On
acquiring The Indian Dice machine, my wife and I attended
the March/April Chicagoland Game Room Show. We both
were looking for this machine at the parking lot sales and
both exhibit halls at Pheasant Run. After asking many deal-
ers, I came to a booth where a gentleman named Marcus
Axiotis informed me that a friend of his had this machine
for sell. Marcus was able to contact his friend,
who contacted me and we made a deal. I had
been searching for over 30 years for these two
machines. I was thrilled to acquire both of these
machines within a very short time. Never quit
looking, including antique shops, Chicagoland
Show, and even running ads in the C.O.C.A.
Times.
Now comes the fun part! By looking at the
comparisons of both machines you can see how
closely they resemble one another and that the
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