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Average Fun Rating: | 7.8/10 (101 ratings/77 comments) [ Add Your Rating! ] | |||||
Manufacturer: | Bally Manufacturing Corporation (1931-1983) [Trade Name: Bally] | |||||
Project Date: | August 24, 1971 | |||||
Date Of Manufacture: | February, 1972 | |||||
Model Number: | 926 | |||||
Common Abbreviations: | FB | |||||
Type: | Electro-mechanical (EM) | |||||
Production: | 3,815 units (confirmed) | |||||
Serial Number Database: | View at The Internet Pinball Serial Number Database (IPSND.net) (External site) | |||||
Theme: | Fantasy | |||||
Specialty: | Zipper Flippers | |||||
Notable Features: | Zipper flippers (2), Pop bumpers (3), Mushroom bumpers (3), Slingshots (2), Captive ball kick-out holes (2), Messenger ball (1), Standup target (1), Spinning disk (1), Multiball (2 or 3), Left outlane kickback, Right-side ball return gate, Ramp skill shot. | |||||
Design by: | Ted Zale | |||||
Art by: | Dave Christensen | |||||
Notes: | The spinning disk was promoted in the flyer as a whirlwind spinner. To our knowledge, this is the only flyer to use that term. Fireball was not the first pinball machine to have this feature. An earlier example is Electro-Ball Company, Inc.'s 1932 'Jig-alo Electro-Ball'. 'Fireball' sold new for $895. A German version was also produced. Our example of the German version pictured here has a backbox with a Later Production serial number 5099 and a lower cabinet with serial number 5094. Because the production run for 'Fireball' began at number 1001, we would expect the final number to be 4815. These "Later Production" serial numbers point to a larger quantity made than what Bally documentation shows. Per a Play Meter article dated November 1977 (shown here), Chip Carter, son of President Jimmy Carter, bought a 'Fireball' pinball and had it delivered to his home in Plains, Georgia which was also the home of his father. An article in The Cash Box, Oct-15-1977, page 49 (not shown here) corroborates this. | |||||
Marketing Slogans: |
"A lightning storm of scoring action and profit power in a 4-player flipper" | |||||
Photos in: |
Newsweek May 30, 1977, pp. 54. Time October 31, 1977, pp. 80,81. pp. (Backglass) The Complete Pinball Book pp. 45, 122, 198, 208, 246, 248. Collector's Guide to Vintage Coin Machines 2nd Edition, page 4 Pinball An Illustrated History, pages 9 and 32 Pinball! (Sharpe) page 15 Pinball 1 Illustrated Historical Guide to Pinball Machines Volume 1, page 237 Arcade Treasures, pages 8 and 84 Pinball Machines (Eiden-Lukas), pages 27 and 144 The Pinball Compendium 1970-1981, page 38 Mike Pacak's Pinball Flyer Reference Book A-F Pinball Portfolio, pages 135-137 Pinball The Lure of the Silverball, page 105 The Pinball Compendium Electro-mechanical Era, page 189 Playboy, December 1972, pages 160-161 Play Meter, Vol 3, No. 21, November 1977, page 14 The Cash Box, Oct-15-1977, page 49 | |||||
Owners List URL: | http://www.pinballowners.com/owners/852 (External site) | |||||
Documentation: | 550 KB | Playfield Chart from 1973 Parts Catalog | [Bally Manufacturing Corp.] | |||
2 MB | Schematic Diagram (continuous) | [Bally Manufacturing Corp.] | ||||
Files: | 991 KB | Installation and General Game Operation Instructions | [Bally Manufacturing Corp.] | |||
288 KB | ZIP | Reproduction Artwork for Printed Cards | [David Gersic] | |||
Images: (click to zoom) | ||||||
Source: | Machine | Flyer |
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