Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles or pick up a t-shirt at https://silverballswag.com/collections/silverball-chronicles Episode Begins at 16:52 Episode Summary: Ron and Dave Return to the Gottliebs, one of the best-known names in pinball. But did you know about Michael Gottlieb and the company he started with his father Alvin? Let’s chat about Gottlieb’s sale (again), the changes at the company and why they happened, Cheater the Gottlieb delivery ...
Jun 25, 2025•1 hr 27 min•Ep. 45
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Begins at 10:10 Episode Summary: Join us this month where Dave says ‘Swing on Over’ like 40 times in the preamble, Ron spoils JJPs next game with the help of Jersey Jack himself, reviews of 70s style, Jack’s business building and evolving that business over and over, pinball needing to move to the home consumer market, stripped down Sterns, building a...
Apr 14, 2025•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 44
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Begins at 18:08 Episode Summary: Have you ever heard the saying, “pinball is hard?” Well, the team at Barrels of Fun hasn’t, and they decided to smash on ahead and impress pretty much everyone. It’s been over 24 months since they launched their company and their first licensed game… and (as of this recording) they’ve manufactured all the games they sa...
Mar 03, 2025•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 43
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode begins at 13:15 Episode Summary: Do you find yourself craving? Do you ever hanker for a special little thing? Well, we have had multiple people email and inquire about Hankin, you might say they had a craving for another Australian-based episode. Let’s go down under again with Part 2: Hankerin’ for Hankin. Sources: Hankin Game List. Here The Aussie Pi...
Jan 07, 2025•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 42
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: The Gottlieb Family is an important part of pinball. David Gottlieb and Alvin Gottlieb made pinball what it is today. David’s vision and spirit and Alvin’s excitement and drive built the Gottlieb name into what it is today, and it will always live on. Join Dave and Ron this month as we talk about the beginnings of David Gottlieb, wide west da...
Oct 30, 2024•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 41
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: Manufacturing is hard. Pinball is hard, and when you’re starting on the other side of the world from all the suppliers and skilled labour, it’s that much harder. COVID-19 did not help Haggis Pinball is the latest cautionary tale of a pinball start-up that promised big and initially delivered but ultimately succumbed to the pressures of the in...
Sep 14, 2024•1 hr 51 min•Ep. 40
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: Multimorphic, Inc. manufactures the P3 Pinball Platform, a modern, physical-digital, multi-game pinball machine, as well as pinball machine control system products, such as the P-ROC and P3-ROC. Since 2009, Gerry Stellenberg and his crack team of engineers and software developers have created the first off-the-shelf pinball controller board f...
Jul 13, 2024•1 hr 43 min•Ep. 39
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Topic Begins at 12:12 Episode Summary: Bingo just isn’t the game you can play at a country fair or a sketchy gambling establishment. Bingo is also the big brother to today’s modern pinball. You’ll remember we spoke about Bingo machines and the issues they had in our Brief History of Pinball episode, but we figured Bingo needed its own episode. I mean, Roger S...
Jun 10, 2024•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 38
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: Roger Sharpe is hailed as the Man Who Saved the Game from our previous episode, but he did so much more! Roger has been involved in the birth of tournaments, the second rise of licensing, and mainstream journalism. He also has had a great film based on him and his relationship with his wife, Ellen. Join us as we talk about Roger’s last pinbal...
Apr 11, 2024•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 37
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: We’ve fought long and hard to avoid giving Roger Sharpe yet another ego-building podcast to spin his narrative and propaganda… but, here we are. Roger wrote about pinball. Played pinball. Promoted and evangelized pinball. Roger has been involved in the birth of tournaments, the second rise of licensing, and mainstream journalism. He also has ...
Feb 22, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 36
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: Last month, we learned about Capcom, the video game company that wanted to get into the pinball industry and ride the wave of popularity, just like Data East! It didn’t go well. Even after Capcom disappeared, the lure of what could have been remained. That’s when we stumble upon a crazy collector and dreamer who ruined himself. Join us this m...
Jan 28, 2024•38 min•Ep. 35
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Topic starts at 8:27 Episode Summary: Capcom was a video game company that wanted to get into the pinball industry and ride a wave of popularity, just like Data East! Sadly, they were a victim of the wrong place, wrong time. Add to that a bunch of mismanagement, Python Angelo, various lawsuits, and well... you end up like Capcom Pinball. Even after Capcom dis...
Dec 26, 2023•1 hr 27 min•Ep. 34
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Topic starts at 9:10 Episode Summary: Joe Balcer is a name that some people know and some people don’t. Joe spent his early beginnings at Sega Pinball, then Stern Pinball, and he basically helped start Jersey Jack Pinball. He then started up another company called American Pinball. Joe has been around; he’s worked for many bosses in many companies, and he’s m...
Oct 18, 2023•1 hr 57 min•Ep. 33
Silverball Chronicles BONUS: Our Top Pins Join Ron and Dave in this Bonus Silverball Chronicles episode as they choose their favourite pinball machines made by featured pinball designers from previous episodes! https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/nw2bie/Bonus_Episode_-_Our_Top_Pins9niuz.mp3
Oct 10, 2023•20 min
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: John Borg is known for his distinctive style and approach to designing pinball machines. His design philosophy is as distinct as a fingerprint. ‘Borgie’ focuses on creating layouts that offer smooth flow and satisfying shots. He aims to design pinball machines that provide players with a sense of continuous motion and engaging gameplay. His l...
Aug 31, 2023•2 hr 31 min•Ep. 32
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: Gottlieb is viewed as the romantic electro-mechanical giant to many. The pinball machine atop the coin-op pedestal for all other manufacturers to reach for… but it was its god-tier status in the 1960s and early 1970s that would ultimately lead to its epic cratering in the 1980s. What led Gottlieb into the Mylstar Nosedive? Was it a lack of le...
Jun 26, 2023•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 31
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Topic Starts at 9:10 Episode Summary: A Centenarian is someone linked to longevity, someone who has seen it all come and go, then be reinvented again. Wayne Neyens is pinball’s Centenarian; he was there at the beginning, and he was there when it ended… a couple of times… and he witnessed the rebirth we now see today before his passing at age 104. He was the l...
May 13, 2023•1 hr 35 min•Ep. 30
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Topic starts at 10:50 Episode Summary: What can you say about Keith P Johnson? He has 4 of the top pinball machines in the Pinball Awards’ Hall of Fame. He coded some of the most revered and most panned pinball codes in our hobby. In addition, Keith was one of the most important pieces in designing the Jersey Jack operating system and building their philosoph...
Mar 31, 2023•2 hr 20 min•Ep. 29
Topic Starts at 11:11 Episode Summary: It’s time to revisit our ‘Pinball Is Dying’ series. This ongoing series is made to depress and to delight. What do we mean by that? Well, the pinball industry and the hobby around it has always been fragile. It has ups and downs which during its history has swung violently. Brilliant minds have come and gone. Many have been crushed by the emotional weight of competition and the stress of impending layoffs. Join us this month as we talk about the final Bally...
Jan 15, 2023•1 hr 57 min•Ep. 28
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Topic starts at 10:03 Episode Summary: A Brief History of Pinball is a great place to begin! Let’s wind the clock back WAYYY back. We’re going to visit the beginning of many ‘games’ in the early days of fancy pants Europe, the importation of table games to America, New Jersey’s part in all this, Harry Williams, Wayne Neyens, and all those innovations that mak...
Nov 28, 2022•2 hr 3 min•Ep. 27
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: George Gomez is the Creative Architect of pinball as we know it today. Without our Homie Gomie (trademark Zach Meny), Stern Pinball would not be the creative studio it is today. When Stern began to be rebuilt in the 2010s, it was the creative curiosity of George Gomez that enabled the company to build a modern pinball design studio and foreve...
Oct 14, 2022•2 hr 23 min•Ep. 26
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: The late '70s were a boom for pinball manufacturing. Bally and Williams had transitioned to Solid State early and evolved their platform, but Gottlieb struggled to keep up. However, by early 1980, Gottlieb knew they needed a new solution and were preparing their System 80 platform. System 80 was a big leap forward, and it was much more flexib...
Sep 02, 2022•3 hr 1 min•Ep. 25
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: It is often through failure that we learn, and after the collapse of Stern Electronics, Gary Stern did not give up. He collected himself over a year and then would work with Joe Kaminkow and Shelley Sax on building Data East Pinball. Often the butt of jokes on quality, code depth, and artwork, Data East would become the only survivor of the 1...
Jun 19, 2022•2 hr 33 min•Ep. 24
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: John Popadiuk, also known as J-Pop, created some of the most interesting and whimsical playfield designs of the 1990s. He went from a god tier Bally-Williams designer to a start-up pinball company owner and finally to a pinball pariah. John once described his journey as “a long tale of woe in some cases, but also tales of glory in others.” Hi...
May 17, 2022•2 hr 9 min•Ep. 23
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Topic starts at 8:38 Episode Summary: Ramps are mesmerizing and hypnotic and create excitement deep inside when you shoot them. You can almost feel the ball rolling around a bend in a ramp. Too many people Pinball IS Ramps. In fact, when one of my non-pinball friends saw my Tron for the first time, he said ‘Woah, I wanna shoot that ramp’. The only goal he had...
Mar 22, 2022•2 hr 25 min•Ep. 22
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: There are many stars inside the pinball industry, but few create such an emotional ripple in the hobby when they pass. Lyman Sheats gave so much for pinball and always wanted to give more. A perfectionist who was often too hard on himself, Lyman was always looking for ways to improve his games. This month Ron and Dave talk all about the begin...
Mar 02, 2022•2 hr 29 min•Ep. 21
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: The '90s saw the biggest leap in pinball mechanics and technology that the hobby had ever seen. The Dot Matrix Display and how Bally/Williams leveraged it made the pins from the previous decade look like a horse and buggy. The purchase of Bally by Williams created a competitive shark tank, forcing designers and engineers to continuously one-u...
Jan 05, 2022•2 hr 4 min•Ep. 20
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: The early 1980s were a boon for pinball manufacturing. Bally and Williams had transitioned to Solid State early and evolved their platform. Gottlieb struggled with System 1, and as soon as they found their stride with the new System 80 board set, pinball was dying in the early 80s. By the mid-80s pinball was clawing its way back, but Gottlieb...
Dec 01, 2021•2 hr 27 min•Ep. 19
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: The Bally-Williams Era has often been considered on of the most mechanically exciting times in the Pinball Hobby. In fact, many of the games of this era still carry a hefty resale price on the secondary market. The magic of pinball and the world under glass was brought to life by Bally-Williams. Many pinball personalities who purchased assets...
Oct 27, 2021•2 hr 6 min•Ep. 18
Want to Support the Show? Visit our Patreon at www.patreon.com/silverballchronicles Or pick up a tee shirt at https://tinyurl.com/kz5xt4hc Episode Summary: When we last left Steve Ritchie, pinball was dead. It was done. Williams, gone. Bally, gone. Gottlieb/Premier, gone. The last manufacturer standing was Sega which ended up being sold to one Gary Stern and became today’s Stern Pinball Inc. Steve Ritchie was ready to make a return to pinball after a hiatus, but the pinball landscape was differe...
Sep 04, 2021•3 hr 2 min•Ep. 17
