Coin Machine Review (& Pacific ...)

YES SIR
•
The Dates
Jonuory
13
14
15
16
1941
48
COIN
MACHINE
REVIEW
•
What?
Coin Machine
Industries
Exposition
•
Where?
Hotel Sherman
CHICAGO
St. Louis
mysteriously holding back any announce-
ment of plans following recent discontinu-
ance of his Wurlitzer franchise, will hold
a Christmas party for operators and allied
businessmen; in reality this will be the
December meeting of th e associated own-
er's group. On the program are attendance
prizes from the record company branches
surrounding the Balensiefer showrooms at
1500 Market Street, refreshments, an extra-
ordinary musical program, and gifts for
everybody attending. Officers for the group
will be elected during the short business
meeting preceding the party program.
One of the strangest incidents in the
trade occurred during early November,
when Fred Pollnow, Automatic Phonograph
Corp., Al Bussmann, president of the Buss-
mann Mfg. Co., and Martin Balensiefer
vi'sited Cuba, Mo., to open the Missouri
quail season with Ralph Denton, popular
rural Wurlitzer op. Staying overnight in a
Cuba hotel, the group left a fine hunting
dog in the car driven by Pollnow, parked
on the street below. During the night a
windstorm approaching tornado proportions
arose (later killing a dozen people in that
section of the state) and creating a hi'gh
scream through the wires on th e street on
which the car was parked. This terrified
the dog so greatly that when the three co in
machine men reached the car in the morn-
ing, the dog had torn every inch of the up-
holstery lining out of the interior of th e
car, including the roof, floor, sides, and
door panels, in a mad attempt to get out.
Happily, however, it was found that an in-
surance policy covered the damage--and
the insurance company stated it was the
first time in underwriting history that such
an event had occurred and had been paid
for. It was a dubious distinction for Poll-
now.
An important change was noted in No-
vember when it was announced that John
LaBan, who has been local manager for
A.M.I. in St. Louis for several years, has
purchased the A.M.I. holdings for St. Louis
and East St. Louis, Illinois. The purchase
included 350 phonographs, and all new
wired-music installations in the city.
Jack Beckman, popular veteran operator,
has been ill for some time in care of physi-
cians. A new Buick delivered last month is
helping to ease his mind somewhat. The
route is humming with activity, he says.
Mike O'Gilvy, Peerless Vending Machine
Co., led off the local Nimrods with a hunt-
ing excursion into southern Missouri in
November. He shot a full complement of
ducks, one per hour for his three-day trip.
Midwest Novelty Co. changed hands,
being sold to Bill Zucker, Wellston, Mo.,
who will operate a route of 20 machines.
Zucker was a busy operator for some time,
once heading Paramount Amusement Co.,
then dropped out for two years, reentering
this November with the purchase of Mid-
west routes.
Clay Stewart,. National Amusement Co.
BOOM FORESEEN . . . "BUMPING"
ABOLISHED ... DOG VS. UPHOLSTERY
... ASSOCIATIONS MEET . .. OWNER-
SHIP CHANGES.
- - - - B y ROBERT LATIMER·----
ST. LOUIS (RC) - A business boom far
ahead of anything St. Louis has exper·
ienced for the past decade is character•
istic of coin machine circles here into
December. The upsurge of sales, particu-
larly predominant in the pintable field,
although phonographs are similarly boom-
ing, is traceable to
the larger amount
of employment and
c onsequent freer
money in the city
through federal
government con-
tracts in hundreds
of factories.
Most operators are
too busy to give
more than a casual
"hello" to friends,
and there was a no-
ticeable decline in
Robert Latimer
the average number
of complaints pour-
ing in steadily to both associations in re-
gard to slow delivery of new machines.
Manufacturers are better geared to supply-
ing all machines in demand this winter, it
was generally agreed.
The Associated Phonograph Owners of
St. Louis, meeting in the Statler Hotel dur-
ing November, established a precedent by
winding up all old business for 1940 during
the proceedings-intending to save all time
of th e December final meet for the election
of new officers, and spreading of the Christ-
mas spirit. The entire membership was on
hand for the November meet, making it th e
largest of the year.
Reason for this, says president Clay
Stewart, was the presentation of a new
idea of optional closed competition for the
200 or more operators responsible for most
of the music merchandising in the Mis-
souri metropolis and suburbs. Under this
new plan, "bumping", or taking up of loca-
tions on a basis of route seniority will be
abolished, and the location owner can
choose his operator according to how good
a job the latter does of making the phono-
graph profitable.
Part of the membership, which includes
all incorporated firms in the city, has sig-
nified intention to use the plan, and a group
of smaller operators is expected to come
over to it. It is entirely optional, secretary-
manager Ed Fisher explained.
On December 18, Martin Balensiefer,
popular operator-distributor who has been
CARL TRIPPE -
Price Plus Guaranteed Safisfacfion
ALWAYS! A SQUARE DEAL WITH IDEAL
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READY TO OPERATE
I
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Keeney Anti Aircraft Gun
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!Black Cabinet! ................................ $89.50
Evans Ten Strike 1150 Diall ................ 59.50
Seeburg Jailbird Gun (Without Basel 69.50
Chicken Sam (Without Basel. ............. 49.50
Baker Sky PIiot ...................................... 89 .50
Terms: One Third Deposit. B,alanee C. 0. D.
IDEAi. NOVEi.TY CO.
"'
1518 MARKET ST.
ST. LOUIS, MO.
https://elibrary.arcade-museum.com