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"All of a sudden the gages started lighting up like a pinball machine." Susan Anton, Cannonball Run II, 1984 |
| The pinball machine has made
it's appearance in many films. You don't believe me?
Well, take a look at the list below, which I will update
every time I see a pin in a movie. In the films, don't
expect to see closeups of the pins due to copyright
issues. If you are a pro, you can ID the pin by the
cabinet or by a corner shot of the backglass.
EMAIL ME if you can ID some of these mystery pins or have seen a pin in the movies not mentioned on this page. So that you may find the scene quicker, I have indicated what numbered scene if I saw the movie on DVD. I've included links for each pin to the Internet Pinball Database, where you can view pics for most of these pins and get the information on them. If you wish to look up the movie in which the pins appeared, the Internet Movie Database is a great source. Wanna see more pins in the movies? Try John's Robertson's site of pins his business, John's Jukes rented to Hollywood for movies and television. *indicates a new entry |
| MOVIE | PINBALL MACHINE | SCENE | ||||
The Abyss |
Secret Service, Data East, 1988(thanks Marco Rossignoli, author of The Complete Pinball Book) | underwater station, when they have had their first contact with the "waterworm" that transform itselfs "nose" to the main character's face. (thanks Stefan L.) |
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| The Accused | ? I was told there were a bunch of pins in this movie. I haven't seen it since it was released, so I don't remember. |
bar rape scene (thanks Thomas for jotting my memory) |
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| American Graffiti | Buckaroo, Gottlieb, 1965 Royal Guard, Gottlieb, 1968 Sky Rocket, Bally, 1970 Vampire, Bally, 1971 Wild Wild West, Gottlieb, 1969 (First game by Mfg. To use 3" flippers) |
It's the scene where the Pharaohs go to a mini golf course, and enter the arcade where there are several pinball machines, ranging from 1965-71, and the movie takes place in 1962. Kinda like Happy Days, set in the 50's-60's, and the pins are from the 70's! |
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| Animal House | A row of about 5 pins I think. They were loaned out to the frat house during the filming of this movie. You have to look closely for them. Possibly Shipmates, by Gottlieb, which you can see the upper right corner of the backglass, and a woodrail from the 50's with score reels, and some other pins I can't quite see. |
DVD, scene 5, "The New Pledges" |
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| Arthur | Eight Ball, Bally, 1977 | Gameroom scene with Dudley Moore and Liza Minelli | ||||
| Bad News Bears |
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Bonanza Arcade scene |
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| Before Sunrise | Space Riders, Atari, 1978 | characters play this pin for 5 minutes. I haven't seen this movie yet. |
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| Big | Pinbot, Williams, 1986 | Tom Hanks apt., asks Elizabeth Perkins to "sleep over." (thanks Sean K.) |
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| Big Daddy | Space Station, Williams, 1987 | Adam Sandler's apt. (thanks again, Thomas) |
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| Blair Witch 2 | Time Warp, Williams, 1979 | Dead owl crashes through window at complex in the woods. Pin seen in the background, left side of the screen. |
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| Blues Brothers | 4 Square, Gottlieb, June 1971 | DVD, chapter 25?, Rawhide (bar scene, maybe not Rawhide number though) |
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| Blues Brothers | Monte Carlo, Bally, 1972 | same scene as above |
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*Boogie Nights |
Stardust,
Williams, 1971 Aladdin's
Castle, Bally, 1975 Hot Line, Williams, 1966 |
DVD, scene 14, 56 minutes into movie, at the disco DVD, scene 23, 1 hr. 21 minutes into movie, Dirk Diggler's house (thanks Marco Rossignoli) |
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Bustin' Loose |
Superman, Atari, 1979 |
arcade scene, 29 minutes into movie, front of cabinet barely visible | ||||
Car Wash |
Spirit Of 76, Gottlieb, 1975 |
DVD, scene 4 (19 min. into flick), "Title Song," kid uses pin as a lunch table, and scene 13, "Pop Bottle Bomber," (1 hr 7 min into flick.) | ||||
| *Chasing Amy | Pin-Up,
Gottlieb, 1975 Whirlwind, Williams, 1990 |
Arcade scene, about 40 min. into movie. Ben Aflick accidentally throws a skee ball which smashes the playfield glass of Pin-Up. When they walk into the arcade, you can see the head of a Whirlwind pin and the head of two Premier/Gottlieb pins. (thanks, Mike M.) |
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Children Of The Corn |
Medusa, Bally, 1981 |
DVD, scene 1, 2 minutes into flick, EM sounds heard in background, but you can see Malachai playing the Medusa pin. The cabinet is clearly visible. | ||||
Con Air |
Space Time, Bally, 1972 |
DVD, scene 1, couple minutes into movie, bar scene, pin in corner. | ||||
| Cop Land | Lethal Weapon 3, Data East, 1992 | Opening scene, Drunken Stallone playing this pin in a bar. |
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| Dazed And Confused | Fireball, Bally, 1971 | ? |
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| Detroit Rock City | KISS,
Bally, 1978 Nugent, Stern, 1978 Power Play (Bobby Orr), Bally, 1977 Strikes And Spares, Bally, 1977 |
53 minutes into flick, Convenience store scene. Power Play is barely visible on the far right in a row of four pins. |
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| Diner | ?, film set in late 50's | Tim Daley, Steve Guettenberg, Pool hall scene(thanks Sean K.) | ||||
Double Take |
Revenge From Mars, Bally, 1999 |
DVD, (1 hr 13 min. into movie), scene 24, "A couple of snags" (shooting scene in the mansion at the end of the movie) | ||||
| *Dude, Where's My Car? | Junkyard, Williams, 1996 | DVD, (1 hr. 1 min. into movie), scene 17, at "Captain Stu's Space O' Rama Arcade." Look for the pin in the back right corner. (thanks Svensson) |
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| Eddie And The Cruisers
II: Eddie Lives! |
High
Speed?, Williams, 1986 8 Ball Deluxe, Bally, 1980 |
About 15 min. into movie, bar scene, ?High Speed? About 50 min. into movie, during band practice, 8 Ball Deluxe seen in background |
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| Easy Money | ? | bar scene, about 1 hr 10 min. into movie. left corner of pin’s head, barely noticeable solid state display, but em sounds in background |
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Escape From New York |
Victory, Genco, November, 1941 | DVD, scene 25, "No Dead President", 1 hr 15 min into movie, there is a woodrail. It's the scene where Donald Pleasance is rescued by Harry Dean Stanton and Adrain Barbeau. During the brief fight scene, you can see a 40's style woodrail in the background. The cabinet is painted blue, with white stars. The pin gets bumped by a guy that Adrian Barbeau kills but the pin survives. Backglass is barely visible. It's a V shaped pattern with blue in the top center. | ||||
Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare |
? |
A pin in the gym of the youth shelter and you barely get a glimpse of the cabinet. |
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Frequency |
?Fish Tales, Williams, 1992 | Seen from a distance. Scene in diner where son confronts killer, I think. |
