WhizBang Pinball

Sweet Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T11:56:00.009-06:00

We wanted to squeeze in a quick blog update before this year ends in a few hours. And even though we may not reach the wide audience through this blog we wanted to give y'all a heads up announcement as we start a new year at Whizbang Pinball.

2011 was the milestone year for our young company as we finally got it all together and finished the first two games of the four Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons that we are building. Pinball Expo in October was the debut of the the near-finished EM and Solid State versions of the game allowing us to take orders and deposits for 3 of the 4 games at the show! We couldn't have been happier with the response to the games and the printed playfields.

Wayne Neyens, the original designer of the Continental Cafe that we used as a host game, got to play the game again this year.

Going forward we will provide a more in-depth behind-the-scenes picture of the lead-up to Expo when time allows and also give thanks to the whole crew that made this project happen. But for now we want to wish everyone a happy and healthy New Year and we are more than excited about the possibilities for pinball in 2012!

2011 at Whizbang Pinball gave us more opportunities to travel to new places and meet new friends of the silverball. We can't wait to complete the build of the final two WNBJM games within the next few months and start thinking about the future of not only Whizbang custom games but also the commercial games we will create for Jersey Jack Pinball.

This shot was taken in early October, in the late hours of a long day at the Whizbang studio after successfully getting the first solid-state game up and running. Thanks again to this crew for taking the time and putting in the hours towards meeting the goal we set for Pinball Expo. Without the expertise, knowledge, and group passion for the art of pinball this project would never have been completed in the 2-year gestation period. Pictured above(l-r)Greg Freres, Dennis Nordman, Kerry Imming, Greg Golminas, Bryan Kelly, Ken Walker, and Mark Weyna (and behind the lens, Jean-Paul DeWin). Like Kerry said, "I didn't know the water was going to be this deep on this project." Neither did we. We'll plan on having an entire blog post thank-you note to everyone that contributed to WNBJM.

Back to the great response to the printed playfield art, we are announcing today that we are putting together a list of interested people that would like to own a "Second Edition" silk-screened WNBJM playfield. The first batch of playfields sold out very quickly and we've had a good number of people asking about a rerun. So if you or anybody you know would like to get on the list, please let us know by emailing us at whizbangpin@comcast.net.

We already have a list of people that have been contacting us since October so let us know as soon as possible so we can get this in the works. The price is $600 (plus shipping) and once we have the final list compiled we will email back with how to place the final order and how much the down payment will be to secure your order. We will also announce this on Facebook and RGP as well. We hope to get the order placed by the end of January.

We also have a couple interested parties in the 4th of the four games we've created and will eventually make another announcement to update the status on that game.

All the best for a Whizbang New Year!
Cheers!

Greg & Dennis

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009-2011 WhizBang Pinball LLC, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Photos on this post courtesy G. Freres and JP DeWin

Step by Step, Inch by Inch

2011-09-18T22:24:00.005-05:00

This will be a very quick update since we are now within the one month window of Pinball Expo 2011.

The playfields have been routed and progress has been made in the silk-screen department at CPR! We should be seeing printed playfields before the end of the month and then lots more to do getting said playfields into the cabinets, plugged-in, dialed-in, flashing, dingin' and dongin', and shined up real purty-like ready for the big Whizbang event.

Coincidentally, I just got this link from a show called "My Generation" that was filmed at last year's Pinball Expo and includes a nice segment on Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons.

Hope to see you at this year's Pinball Expo in Wheeling Illinois!

G&D

(Photo courtesy of Classic Playfield Reproductions)

Another Summer Growing Season

2011-09-03T11:03:00.030-05:00

Looks like we need some dustin' on the old blogger desk. It's been a while.

Four months have gone by without a proper update and we apologize for this gap in communication BUT we can safely say that we haven't been wasting that time and we are still progressing with all of our plans - Whizbang Pinball is cranking on all cylinders and will have some beauties to show at the upcoming Pinball Expo in Chicago later in October. Please keep all fingers and toes crossed and then, just for good measure, knock on wood with said phalanges.

We did get to spend some time in Seattle at the Northwest Pinball and Gameroom Show in June which was a great start to our summer. We are always treated well when we travel to Seattle and really appreciate the enthusiasm that crew and those fans have for the game.

Dennis stayed home for this show so the Whizbang booth was a family affair. Andi helped with the booth while I was yabbing away with old and new Northwest friends and after the show we were able to spend a couple extra days seeing the sights.
We got to visit the famous Shortys - a very cool place for Pinball, hot dogs, and beer...and just a few scary clowns. All people interested in Pinball have to make the trip to Shorty's while in Seattle! We want to thank Ewoud (pronounced Ay-vout...I think...or maybe A-Bomb?), the Dutch proprietor of Shorty's for inviting us out and sharing his passion for pinball with us. Not to mention his shuttle bussing us around town as well. For some reason I never got a picture of Ewoud for the blog. I'll have to work on that next time. Speaking of Scary Clowns, we did see a few familiar faces at Shorty's - JPOP, Rick from Planetary Pinball, Jim Shelberg, Steve Ritchie, and John Youssi.

What's a trip to Seattle without a visit to Pike's Market where the fresh fish fly (try saying that 5 times...sober) every day. But when I heard about the Gum Wall from Michael and Mellisa from the Pacific Pinball Museum, I had to see this living work of public art for myself. And add a swatch of color to the canvas.

We re-visited the Mecca Cafe while in town as this is where Whizbang Pinball all began with a few ideas back in 2009.

The NWPGS crew also asked me to create their poster art for this year's show. It was a real kick to see my work hanging on telephone poles all over Seattle!

Andi also sat down with one of the Na'vi while they were in town for an exhibit at the EMP Museum.

And on the rainiest Seattle day (actually the ONLY rainy day during our visit), we visited the Seattle Pinball Museum that opened last year and seems to be a great place for pinball. Charlie and Cindy Martin had this idea and brought it to reality - a bit of pinball history, old-school storefront arcade, all the while helping the community with charitable events. Keeping the silverball rolling! Thanks to both Charlie and Cindy for their time, hospitality and support of the Big Juicy Melons!

And to cap off the show we got invited out to Todd MacCulloch's house for an after-party and got a chance to see his amazing collection of vintage coin-op games. Thanks to Todd for the invite - we had a great time. Any time Andi gets a chance to win against Steve in a competitive venue is a good day. Here the two Aquarians battle it out on Cool Gunman with Gary Flower spectating or giving Andi some suggestions to catch up.

Transitioning from the last post, where we talked about the design of the playfield art, this summer was the time to get the design into production mode and turn the pretty picture into something that a silk-screen printer can use to create the screens that will transfer the ink to the wood. There are other methods of decorating playfields these days compared to when we first started working in the pinball biz, but we felt to create the quality custom product that we've put all this energy into over the past two years, then it was important to provide the customer with an amazing finished product, thus the choice to go with silk-screen other than newer digital methods.

I'll spare you the overly technical aspects of the process but we now have the art in CPR's (Classic Playfield Reproductions)hands and will hopefully have the first printed playfields within the next few weeks. I've been in this business for quite a while, and the anticipation of seeing the first printed "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons" playfield is as exciting as seeing my first ever playfield (Harlem Globetrotters)come in from the printer. It's amazing. My level of interest hasn't changed since 1979 - I guess that's a good thing.

CPR also have the plastics art and will follow-up the playfield printing with the plastics (for the non-pinball readers, the plastics are small islands of printed plastic, cut to various shapes to fill in areas above the playfield where the ball doesn't travel...easier to see rather than explain.) Since the playfield art has to align to the playfield engineering drawing, we sent Dennis' drawing to CPR to make sure his drawing was routing the layout exactly where we want all of the elements of the game mounted (Flippers, Bumpers, Gobble Hole, colored inserts, etc.)

We received the routed playfield for proofing purposes last month from CPR and aligned the drawing to the wood. CPR triple checks alignment and positioning to make sure we are all on the same page and checks-off each position on the mylar overlay as they go.

Once we approved this piece of routed wood, we then gave CPR the greenlight to proceed with routing the run of playfields and prep the artwork for films. Once the films are made, screens can be burned and the magic begins to happen. If CPR wasn't located in Halifax we'd really like to document some of the behind the scenes progress to share here to help complete the full-circle. Maybe we'll get some help with that.

In the meantime Dennis is building the next cabinet, just like the first cabinet (well, we do plan on some unique touches for each cabinet so all 4 aren't exactly alike), and by the end of this month we'll begin to have all the pieces of the puzzle to assemble WNBJM 2 and present the first 2 of 4 finished games at Expo in October.

The first game, the one we've shown at all the previous shows, is considered our "Artist's Proof" and will remain EM for now (or forever depending on the buyer's preference.) WNBJM 2,3, and 4 will be the EM to Solid State Hybrid conversion that we've mentioned before. A lot of behind the scenes effort has been happening in that realm and we will also have all the pieces to that puzzle in the next few weeks.

By the time we get to Expo we will have invested 2 years to date from the time we showed a tiny rough sketch and a half a cabinet, without legs. It's been a great journey, and it's not over yet. We have met a lot of new friends along the way and learned a lot about pinball in the process. Since that time, pinball is in a new place in it's evolutionary history and we are more than excited to be part of any and all aspects of what we can some day refer to as the "Renaissance of Pinball". Lofty words eh?

Let's bring it back down then...We'll try to squeeze in one more juicy update before Expo.
G&D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball LLC, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Photos on this post courtesy G. Freres and A. Freres

Playfield Sketch Phase

2011-04-09T11:55:00.012-05:00

It all worked out...Dennis did clarify later that my email had so much content about the direction of the playfield art he just needed some time to absorb the ideas, and start kicking in some ideas of his own.

Both Dennis and Mark were as excited about the direction as I was and I think the selling point was possibly this initial direction I started with:

"Ok, so Melony isn't alone in this story...Melony comes from a family of melon growers...generations with the innate ability to grow the biggest juiciest melons...and she lives on a large farm...and her family's last name is (coincidentally/appropriately/conveniently)...Mellon! But wait, it gets better. Melony has twin sisters."

The last four words sold the pitch - we bantered these ideas around (and expanded them) via email whilst I started getting the back of my hand dirty with graphite. Once I tore myself away from the initial idea of keeping the playfield simple, geometric, and less illustrative (in keeping with vintage playfields from the 30's through the 60's) I was able to open up the design direction to more possibilities. And since the playfield isn't loaded with a rule-set like the games I was used to working on once the Solid State era kicked-in, I knew I could still meet the less-is-more approach but still be able to engage the viewer/player with interesting details and characters.

So just like the usual steps in the art process it all starts with an aggressive list of crazy ideas, pencil roughs to see what might work best, and then a constant editing and tweaking process while filling in the appropraite spaces with appropriate (or inappropriate) art.

Since this direction was now about creating a scene (so to speak) I was able to look at the empty engineering drawing in terms of a foreground, middle-ground and background.

The top of the playfield where the ball enters the lanes became the sky and the bottom of the playfield became the ground level.

And by keeping the simple scoring features "emblematic" in nature, I was able to focus on the 3 sisters as the anchor point in the wide-open center of the playfield.

So welcome to the Mellon Family Melon Farm (color sketch), growers of "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons", a farmstand with an abundancy of fresh produce and strange characters. Most of the crazy road-side "signs" from the previous (Dream Sequence) blog posts relate in some way to elements of the playfield art.

Please note: The story and characters depicted on this game are fictional. Any similarity to actual people, fruit, animals or plants may or may not be intentional. No animals were harmed in the creation of this art. There was a snowblower incident but that was way before we started on this project.

This is just the starting point. In the weeks ahead I will create the finished version of the art for the printer. Currently we are planning on 11 spot color silk-screen printing. More about that later. Our goal as pinball industry guys is to create the best looking art and design package we can with authentic silk-screened parts.

Still havin' fun! We'll fill in more blanks next time.
G & D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball LLC, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Wake Up Call - The Playfield Begins

2011-04-06T21:29:00.003-05:00

Sometime after Pinball Expo last October it was time to get real about designing the playfield art for "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons" - the design department was finished with their part and it was all in my lap - nothing stood between us and a finished playfield except time and some good ideas. Thankfully the Dream Sequins paid off and I was able to get things started on paper. Literally.

My computer crashed hard sometime before Thanksgiving and I was dead in the water for about a two week period while the hard drive was getting repaired, replaced, reconfigured and rebooted. Without a back-up computer I had to put some jobs aside for a few days which afforded me time to reconnect with my pencil (I'm not speaking in code here, I really did get the pencils out, and the electric sharpener, and the paper. In fact, my #2 pencils were so old, the erasers were all dried up...and I'm still not speaking in code.)

Dennis and I had talked a few times leading up to this point about playfield art. He basically drove it through my thick skull by reiterating over and over that he wanted to make sure the playfield art was clean and clearly showed off the shots to the player, including the score features, in a clear and concise way. With the retro theme and the retro feel of the geometry and simplistic rule set that we inherited but tweaked from the original 1957 game underneath, Dennis made it more than clear on several occasions (ad nauseum) that the best playfield art consisted of a series of "emblems" that showed off the game play and rule set with bold lettering and beautiful geometry to enhance the layout. He may have even spoke words to this effect..."You have a whole backglass to tell the story, so just make the playfield pretty to look at and very easy to see the important shots." And I think my answer may have been (paraphrasing)..."You do know I've done some playfields before this project, right?"

This was an interesting juncture in the design process because I was certain that my direction would be a much simpler approach than some of the games I've done in the past. Dennis is taller than me so I do listen to him now and again. I studied (crammed - I'm an artist not a historian) a lot of the playfield art from the 30's through the '60's (thanks to Shaloub's "Pinball Compendium" books)and made up my own mind that a "less is more" approach would be the best solution for our game.

But when I woke up that morning, turned the shower on, and started thinking about the playfield, the ideas started to flow faster than the water from the shower head.

I'm never sure how this happens, why it happens, never sure when it will happen, or worse, if it ever will happen, but when it does, it's an amazing experience. The real "AHA!" moment was when I realized there was more story to tell...the backglass art was only part of a larger story.

I couldn't get down to my studio fast enough to start writing some ideas down on a sheet of paper...in fact, I found something to write on even before leaving the bedroom. (I wonder if that's why Visa never got that payment?)

As I wrote, I fought against the original "plan" that was in my head from the beginning...and I began to realize...this is not less, this is more than less, this might even be more than more. But I kept writing. I could always edit later.

Once I had the basic ideas down on paper I started to transfer them to an email to Dennis. As I typed I kept adding ideas and visual gags to the story. I finally got the basic direction of my playfield "storyline" to a point where it was ready to share.

I included both Dennis and Mark on the email - after all, as I learned from my days in music, a trio can provide richer harmonies than a duo. I was looking for more input and honest opinions to validate the direction and make sure that it was a good approach for the game and the project. I checked email a little while later and got one sentence from Dennis (which is normal but this time the lack of capital letters and exclamation points made me nervous)..."I'll have to think about this."

What!? What does this mean? What's there to think about? My high-flying idea machine suddenly crashed...just like my hard drive.

Next time...
See the results of the list of ideas for the playfield art and how they relate to the (Dream Sequence) 3-part series.

G & D

(No photos or art were used in this post to save time.)

(Dream Sequins) - Part III

2011-03-24T22:53:00.006-05:00

The truck begins to pick-up more speed as we barrel down the gravel path, now feeling every bump and pothole in the road. A barking Collie runs from the field and chases the truck, eventually running ahead.

And then, one last sign…

You made it! Welcome to the home of…

Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons – The Sweetest Treat That Can’t Be Beat!

As the truck continues with a mind of its own, my mind races to take in the crazy scene…

An old beard, sitting on a crate cradling his shotgun like a prized trophy…
A cow with a Honeydew Melon stuck on her horns…
A guy on a parachute floating down from the crop duster…

Suddenly, an old fighter plane nose dives into a pond about 200 yards away. The horse that had been racing the truck steps on a watermelon and rears; I can hear the rider yell “Whoa Nellie!” I hear a cowbell clang and the Collie bark. The horn on the truck is honking on its own as well as a flock of geese overhead.

The truck hits a bump that sends us into slow-motion...my glasses leave my face, my passenger’s pipe floats weightlessly from his mouth, no longer lodged between his tooth gap, and the farm-hand and the crates he loaded get launched from the flatbed.

And now, straining to see without my glasses, I open my eyes as wide as possible to see what’s ahead. I see what looks to be the biggest mountain of melons I had ever seen (not that I had actually ever seen a mountain of melons for comparison.)

And standing in the middle of the road, three of the prettiest women I had ever seen.

And all three women holding…

"BIG JUICY MELONS!"

My passenger’s voice startles me out of the slow-motion sequence and I react by hitting the brakes!

(End Dream Sequence)

Next time we'll show the visual results from this crazy dream. Until then we'll reveal the playfield sketch at the Midwest Gaming Classic this weekend in Brookfield, Wisconsin. Hope to see you there.

And yesterday, Dennis and I tore off the temporary plotter-printed decals that have been on the game since last October and installed the new cabinet decals that were printed at Planetary Pinball - even though this cell phone photo show doesn't reveal the true colors of these printed decals we can easily say that the colors are Big and Juicy! Kudos to Rick and his team at PlanetaryPinball.com.

More exciting announcements to come.

G & D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball LLC, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Photos on this post courtesy G. Freres

(Dream Sequence) - Part 2

2011-03-23T13:33:00.005-05:00

A large arrow on a piece of plywood points to a gravel road that cuts between a small grove of trees and then meanders into the rolling green hills. My vehicle follows this path as if on auto-pilot. This road seems smooth for a path cut by years of farming, the stake-bed gliding effortlessly over the puddle filled ruts and bumps. I’m still dreaming.

More hand-made signs begin to pop into view, out of nowhere, like the old Burma-Shave advertising signs along the highways.

The first four signs read…

Mellon's fresh melons

Just up ahead

Big Juicy Casabas

As large as your head.

The truck comes to a complete stop by itself. I really haven’t been driving at all. Just a passenger with my hands on the wheel.

Now there’s a guy, a big bearded guy, overalls and a corn-cob pipe, standing next to the passenger window. He puts his thumb up and smiles an almost toothless grin. I tell him to get in. He climbs in, slams the door shut, says nothing but points ahead…as if to say… keep going.

The truck rolls forward and picks up speed. The green hills are coming into focus the further we go down this path. Rolling fields of melons as far as the eye can see. On one side of the road…watermelons. On the other…some kind of muskmelon or cantaloupes. The road comes to a “T” and the truck automatically turns right at “Sharp’s Corner”.

Four more signs…

If you’re thinkin’ ‘bout fruit

You found the right place

Hand over your loot

And put a smile on that face!

I hesitate but I feel compelled to look at my passenger. He’s still smiling. I can now see that the stem of his pipe fits snugly between a gap in his teeth. And then he quietly mutters one word…”melons”…as his eyes widen and his smile gets bigger.

The truck slows to a stop once again. This time a farm-hand standing on the side of the road hoists a few wooden crates onto the back of the flatbed. I try to tell him something but no words come out. He jumps up on the truck and thumps the bed with is hand as if to say…let’s go.

The next four signs…

This farmstand is diff'ernt

We got flowers with names

And a guy that got burnt

By spectacular flames.

The signs, as well as the road, seem to go on forever now…

Our fruit is all fresh,

All ripe for the pickin'

Tom Turkey might gobble

While Nellie's a-kickin',

But be careful you don’t

Start squeezin’ too tight

Cuz’ Ol’ Leroy is cleanin’

His shotgun just right.

The truck has picked up considerable speed as we climb the steepest part of this dusty road. My passenger is now laughing, way-out-of-control, the farm hand on the flatbed is pounding his fists on the top of the cab, and a horse and rider appear to be racing against us through the melon fields. Dream becomes nightmare.

Four more signs lead us to the top of the hill. I have to read quickly at this speed…

See the Mountain of Melons

Where everyone grins

Come pick the ripe ones,

But keep your hands off the twins!

When we reach the crest of the hill, a lush vista opens up in the valley below. A huge brick farm house stands watch over the vast acreage.

The crop duster returns, flying over the area pulling a banner that reads -

Visit the Mellon Family Melon Farm.

To be continued...

(Dream Sequence) - Part One

2011-03-15T21:29:00.012-05:00

The air is warm, the feel is cool, it’s at least 30 years before cell phones and I’m driving on a road that straddles the fault line that runs anywhere between Northern California and South Central Florida – not that one exists but…it is a dream sequence.

All eight cylinders are cranking in a vehicle that needs only one battery, has zero factory-installed air-conditioning, and doesn’t care how much of the 34 cents per gallon in leaded fuel it’s using to get me there.

Where am I going?
I’ll know when I get there.

Because it’s the weekend and this is entertainment. I get in the BIG red stake-bed and drive.

Summer was made for driving without destination. To leave the city behind in search for a new piece of road and maybe even find the new place, the one the rest haven’t quite found yet.

All of this, when TV had two colors and six channels, years before they started harvesting wind, before the first laptop (or desktop) was born, when fresh fruit was still packed and stacked in wooden crates.

Windows down and the AM radio struggles to hold onto the faint broadcast signal from maybe 50, maybe 200 miles away… Some country song that sounds like 50 other country songs that I can barely identify. Can’t identify. And then a commercial with only a few words from a peppy jingle making it through…”You’ll wonder where the yellow went…”, interrupted by the larger crackles from some distant thunderstorm, “…with Pepsodent!”

But right here, right now, the skies are clear except for a crop duster pulling an advertising banner. Not close enough to read.

Where the hell am I?

Nowhere, directly in the middle. Wide open fields, green hills, distant forms.

Barns with painted advertising slogans, some cracking and fading in the summer sun pitching products and companies that no longer exist.

See Rock City, DeKalb, Mail Pouch, Funks G Hybrid, Lay Or Bust Brand.

And then, a simple hand-made sign appears just off the shoulder…

Melons Up

Another 50 yards, another hand-made sign with poor spelling…I hope…

A Head

And one more…

5 miles

I hear my voice, me as a kid, in my head…Are we there yet? Another sign answers my question…

You’re almost there!

"How do you dream this stuff up?"

2011-03-10T21:14:00.034-06:00

Over the years, a lot of people have asked us similar questions about the design process in many different ways:

And my personal favorite…

Most of the time, speaking for myself, dreams have nothing to do with the creative process. Daydreams, absolutely, but the sleep induced dream state is often a more frustrating version of real life. Time moves too quickly, or often too slowly. Work is a nebulous entity where nothing gets done, with co-workers asking inane questions about things that have nothing to do with the seemingly anxiety ridden task at hand. Scenes shift quickly and nothing seems quite right with the world.

But let’s get back to talking about dreams.

So let’s assume for a minute that dreams did play a big role in the design of this first Whizbang Pinball project.

We’ll set the dial on the Way-Back Machine for 2009, when Dennis first pitched the Big Juicy Melons concept to Greg.

Wait a second…I know what you’re thinking…this blog is loaded with flashbacks. Y’all want to know what’s going on right now…like how’s the playfield art coming along (slacker)?

Fair enough. Over the next few posts we’ll use this dream vehicle to help preview the direction of the playfield art and how it all ties together with the overall theme of the game. After all, much of the art direction hit me in one productive four hour brain-drain a few months ago…right after waking up.

And for those of you not as familiar with pinball or it's design process, here's what a playfield looks like when the artist gets it from the designer.

And here's what I see when I first start thinking about the art...

So you'll have to excuse me...it's time to go to sleep so I can start to dream...

Goodnight.

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball LLC, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Photos on this post courtesy G. Freres

Pinball Expo 2010 - Fun With Fruit

2011-02-21T20:16:00.022-06:00

I couldn't think of a more attention-getting image from this year's version of Pinball Expo than this picture of Phoebe and the Melonheads (oooh, good name for a band)taken by our pinball pal, Dr. Jim Shelberg who produces one of the best and longest lasting pinball periodicals, The PinGame Journal. Once Phoebe agreed to help promote the game by wearing the t-shirt, it was all downhill from there.

Thanks to Pheobe and Jim for the support...based on this picture it looks like the support is mutual.

So when you have fresh fruit laying around the show booth for marketing purposes only, along with a cardboard cut-out of "Melony" herself, things just start to happen.

Melony was very popular with the boys.

But,seriously, the best part of this show for us was the fact that the game got played...it got played all weekend, from before we actually had the booth set-up until we shut down on Saturday night/Sunday morn about 1:30 a.m.

And the hood was open maybe a total of two times with only a minor adjustment needed - a testament to the meticulous work that Mark and Ken provided in the run-up to the show.

Ironically, one of the first people to test-drive the game on Thursday afternoon, just after we got it set up and plugged in, was one of the legendary former game designers from Gottlieb, Wayne Neyens. Wayne actually designed the Continental Cafe game that we used as the host game for this project so this was a special moment to see him play what remained of the game that he designed in 1957. Wayne designed a vast array of Gottlieb pinballs throughout the 50's,60's, and 70's and it's always good to see and speak with these gentlemen that worked in the golden years of pinball.

Wayne was viewing the show with a former Gottlieb President and colleague, Judd Wienberg, who also took a turn on the Melon Machine. Dennis got to speak with Wayne for a while and got his take on this crazy idea...it seems Wayne liked the whole idea just fine.

We were fortunate to have a great location at the show that provided a constant flow of interested players to the booth. It was a real family affair - Greg's wife Andi, Dennis' wife Barbara, Greg's daughter Lindsey and family friend Ari watched over t-shirt and backglass sales throughout the weekend. Unfortunately the camera wasn't always available but we want to thank everyone for their help.

Our friends from Germany (Martin and Anja)were in town for the show and Martin provided a lot of help getting the game and booth set up and kept us fed with imported Gummi candies.

Another former design colleague, Jim Patla, stopped by to kick the tires.

The Korn man-handled the melons for a while and showed off his old-school pinball skillz.

Later in the weekend we celebrated Expo with the annual banquet and were highly entertained by another former art and design colleague, Python Angelo.

I was surprised when Python invited me up to the podium to accept the first-ever Sea Shell Design award directly from Python. He referred to me as an art manager that sailed like a British Battleship against his crazy Romanian Pirate Art ship. Something like that - you had to be there.

During dinner, Dennis and I bid a fond farewell to our Booth Babe, Melony, as we offered her up to auction for a worthy cause, the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Darren Sheldon, a big fan of the project, was the winning bidder. Thanks to Darren for his generosity! And take good care of Melony - she's a bit sensetive to sunlight.

All in all it was a successful weekend! We met a lot of new pinball friends and look forward to being able to show more progress in the near future. Thanks again to all that helped getting the game this far.

Epilogue:
After the show wrapped up we spent some time with Martin and Anja - we asked what would you like to see in Chicago?

"The Bean"

Next time will start talking about the playfield art design, reveal the "hybrid" direction we plan to take on the three games we plan to build after this first "artist's proof" game, along with some dates and shows that we'll be attending later this spring.

G & D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball LLC, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Photos on this post courtesy G. Freres, D. Nordman, J. Shelberg

Out of Hibernation 2011

2011-02-20T12:37:00.040-06:00

The term hibernation in the title of this post is more about this blog and its lack of recent updates than about any progress we've made on the "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons" project. On the contrary, we've been moving steadily forward with a blizzard of progress (too much winter keeps things focused indoors... to come up with bad metaphors) and we plan to bring said progress to the Midwest Gaming Classic in Milwaukee in March. More about that later.

Since our last blog update so much has happened that we were having some trouble trying to figure out how best to pull it all together in this format and still have time to continue working on not only the project but also our other responsibilities in life. So hang on because this post could get lengthy, or maybe it will just get split into sections...let's see what happens.

Jersey Jack Pinball

One of the bigger announcements in recent pinball history was the formation of a new pinball manufacturer called Jersey Jack Pinball. This news has been covered on Pinball News and other sites like The Pingame Journal so we won't go into lengthy details here but the first project will involve two parties of Team Whizbang (Dennis and Greg)who will be working on the first project, Wizard of Oz, along with former co-workers and partners in design, programmer Keith Johnson, sound designer Chris Granner, and game designer Joe Balcer.

Juggling these new responsibilities will get interesting as time marches on but we intend to keep our Whizbang progress cooking in the background, as we have all along, and will continue to make appearances at various shows around the country, along with the game (whenever logistically possible), as we get closer to having the first of the 4 WNBJM games completed. So hang in there with us - we are more than excited to be part of a new chapter in pinball history!

Whoa Nellie Rewind
The last real blog update only hinted at the preparation of the game for its second debut at Pinball Expo last fall. Our goal was to make sure the playfield was not only playable but also all of the scoring working properly with the newly configured single player set-up (compared to the original Continental Cafe's 2-Player set-up). Again, we thank both Mark Weyna and Ken Walker for their expertise and help in getting this accomplished.

On September 19, 2010, (about one month before Pinball Expo) the game lit up for the first time as WNBJM. This picture shows the insert panel with the original 2-Player layout from the host game. This was a first step in getting the game playable. Rewiring to the single player mode would happen a bit later with the help and guidance of the folks from Team EM.

While the electro-mechanical business was happening through Mark and Ken, we decided to take a closer look at how to dress up the front of the cabinet. Ken recommended that we continue the slat look that we used on the base cabinet onto the front of the playfield cabinet. Dennis grabbed a couple pieces of slat wood and stuck it on the front to see if it would work out ok with the door panel.

We quickly learned that this was the best solution - along with the decal art to mimic a crate full of cantaloupes, this would be an excellent way to finish not only the front but also the back of the main cabinet.

Here's a look at the game with the first mock-up decals. At some point before Expo we invited Roger Sharpe out to the studio to give the playable/scorable version of the game his first flip since March in Milwaukee. He was more than happy with the results.

Here's another view of the game with the original insert panel,both scoring reels still intact, and some extreme close-ups from the balls-eye view.

Greg and the Pacific Pinball Exposition

At the beginning of October I flew out to San Francisco with my wife Andi to attend the Pacific Pinball Expo and speak about pinball art and the WNBJM project. This was the first time we've been to this event and what a show they put on! Michael Schiess and Larry Zartarian (and the rest of the PPE crew) do a wonderful job in the presentation of the games - it's really a celebration of the art and technology that has driven pinball throughout the years.

Steve Ritchie was kind enough to share some of his booth space so we could sell some T-Shirts and take orders for the soon-to-be-printed backglass art. We met a lot a freindly pinball folks and had a great time. We even got to see our former colleague and fellow pinball artist, Doug Watson. Doug has done some amazing art packages including Attack from Mars, T2, Indiana Jones, among countless other games.

The back wall of the show is an amazing display of huge mural-size canvas paintings of backglass art from years gone by created by two local artists, Dan Fontes and Ed Cassel. Their attention to detail is fantastic and we learned that Dan works from a houseboat studio in Sausalito and has to work in small horizontal sections at a time to complete the painting. Incredible!

I found it interesting on the Sky Raider mural to see the bubble-headed future-girls flying around in jet packs similar to the bubble-heads I had flying around in a game called Party Zone that Dennis and I worked on in 1991. The biggest difference - our bubble-heads weren't armed...it was just a party.

We also got to see Michael Schiess' Visible Pinball project that he did a few years ago. This is an incredible piece that shows the inner workings of a game while it's getting played. It is an actual game - Surf Champs - that he customized with all clear parts to show off the technology of the day. He even had the art screened transparently to be able to see through to the underside of the playfield and backglass. Very cool!

I also got to meet Wade Krause, a silk-screen artist from Fresno, who's worked on several custom pinball projects over the past several years. If he wasn't so far from Chicago we would have liked to work with him to get the WNBJM playfield screened with an artisan's touch. I've talked with Wade on the phone several times and he's been a wealth of information. Someday we will work with Wade on a future project. I'm sure of it.

The Final Countdown to Expo aka "Game Hell"
Back home in Chicago, Mark made a few more trips out to Dennis' to continue to get the game ready for a full weekend of play at Expo. Dennis also mentioned that Gary Flower was going to be in town and wanted to come out to see the progress we've made on the game.

Gary is a British pinball author, historian, and all-around great player who's never missed a trip to Chicago for the 26 years that Pinball Expo has been in existence.

After a nice BBQ dinner, Dennis served up some of his neighbor's famous home-made lemoncello. After a glass Gary mentioned that he best take it easy as he was getting a bit "squiffy". I really enjoy learning more of the English language from folks that speak "real" English.

Don Caldwell and Tom Lucht, fellow pinball enthusiasts, drove down from Milwaukee later in the evening since Gary would be staying with Don for a few days before Expo. They got a chance to test drive the game before heading back to Wisconsin.

Later in the week the final press proof for the backglass art was scheduled for Friday,October 15th. A second pass was required to get the colors dialed-in on Saturday morning. Everything went well and I was able to pick up the printed backglasses on Tuesday the 19th - just one day before Expo. Whew!

On Sunday the 17th, I went out to the shop to put the most recent mock-up decals on the cabinet. This was the same day we invited Roger out to play the game before Expo.(Note: We are currently having the final decals printed through Planetary Pinball, another great pinball resource that made its official start-up announcement at Expo.)

After picking up the printed backglasses on Tuesday, I took one out to the Whizbang shop on the Eve of Expo while Mark and Dennis were busy making the last minute adjustments to the game. This was already a full day for both of them and then I showed up to tack on a few more hours.

It was now time to experiment with the LED lighting for the backglass and see what might work best. We learned that we needed to adjust the distance of the insert panel further from the backglass for the best lighting but at this point we had to go with what we had and make that adjustment later.

After playing with lighting for a couple hours, we finally had a chance to sit back and just play the game for a while.

Dennis went into the house and poured some of that home-made lemoncello and the three of us toasted to all of the work we had done so far.

It was a great moment near the end of this leg of "Game Hell". We were finally ready for Pinball Expo 2010, exactly one year after we debuted a partial cabinet concept with a rough concept sketch for a backglass, we finally had a playable game.

Next post we'll bring you up to date with some much delayed photos from Expo and let you know what to expect in the near future. Meanwhile, the playfield art continues to shape up and more cabinets get the first phase makeovers from pinball to fruit crates.

And very soon we may begin a series of sneak peeks into the thematic storyline behind the "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons" playfield art...the backglass is only half the story. The big thaw approaches and it will soon be planting season on the "farm".

G & D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball LLC, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Photos on this post courtesy G. Freres, D. Nordman, M. Weyna, J. Guarnieri

We've Been Framed!

2010-12-07T20:26:00.008-06:00

And now a word from our sponsor...

Not only can you purchase an official "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons" T-Shirt but we now have Backglasses and Hand-Crafted Frames as the perfect compliment to this unique piece of art.

The frames, just like the rest of the project, are painstakingly hand-crafted with major TLC by Dennis Nordman. You're not going to find a better way to frame this backglass at a price like this - craftsman quality at an affordable price. Dennis takes several steps to get the frames weathered to look just like the Fruit Crate wood used on the custom cabinet for the game. The frames themselves are a work of art - no two frames are exactly alike - this ain't no mass production! And we finish them off with a custom Whizbang Pinball metal tag for authenticity.

These frames are ready to hang (hardware already attached)...just peel off the protective liner from the front of the acrylic and you're ready to enjoy some new custom pinball art. Looks great in almost any decor...

You can purchase the Backglass, Framed Backglass, and Official "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons" T-Shirts at www.pinballlife.com - just go to the Whizbang Pinball Store on the site. And while you're there take a look at the rest of the site for all your pinball needs.

We delivered the backglasses and frames to Terry at Pinball Life World Headquarters last week. He now has one hanging in his office. Thanks Terry!

(Glass size is 24.25" x 26" - Frame size is 31" x 32.5")

Thanks for the continued support and happy shopping!

G & D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball LLC, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Photos on this post courtesy G. Freres and T. Dezwarte

Why we do it.

2010-11-13T14:48:00.008-06:00

This will go down as the briefest posting to-date but we just wanted to share this link with everyone to help the non-pinballers reading this blog understand the passion we share with so many for this game-in-a-box.

The folks at the Pacific Pinball Museum do a great job in preserving the art of pinball for what will hopefully be many years to come.

Enjoy this brief documentary entitled "Pinheads: The Story of the Pacific Pinball Museum".

Cool.

G&D

Summer Flashback!

2010-11-06T21:00:00.032-05:00

On September 11, 2010, these Prehistoric Pelicans were seen wandering behind Whizbang Studio. I had just taken a picture of Mark Weyna standing by his...911

...and he pointed and said (paraphrasing) "Holy Crap, there's a couple of dinosaurs behind you!" I turned to see the Sand Hill Cranes taking a hike towards the backyard (apparently they also heard about the bridge that Dennis built earlier in the summer.)

In just a few short weeks these cranes would be headed south as the summer of 10 was winding down and turning into one of the best seasons in Chicagoland...another "too- short" season called "The End of Road Construction until March."

Our short enough summer was shortened even more by a lot of work getting the game ready for Pinball Expo just a couple of weeks ago. For those of you that showed up at our Expo booth we say thanks again for your input, suggestions, purchases, and overall support. The game played like butter thanks to the major efforts of Mark Weyna and Ken Walker, a huge part of team Whizbang and the Weyna-Walker Watermelon Warehouse...Wholesalers of Weigh-Good Wizardry.

So since we owe you some blogtime from the proceedings that led up to Expo, we felt it appropriate to relive a bit of our summer and show you how the playfield got from the hand-drilled piece we brought to the Midwest show in Milwaukee to the fine-tuned whitewood that was not only playing but scoring at Expo.

Flashback, Flashback, Flashback...(echo....echo...echo...)

On a beautiful day in May (28th), the Friday before the official beginning of summer, we loaded up the truck and brought a fresh and minty whitewood out to Harvard, Illinois...cowtown of cowtowns (and proud of it.)

Some of you may already know that Harvard is the home of Pat Lawlor's design studio. For the less-than-pinball-savvy readers, Pat is one of our colleagues that made some of the coolest pinball games from the 1990's and beyond. And we took him up on his previous offer to rout our first whitewood in his amazing workshop.

Pat loaded Dennis' drawing into the computer and told Dennis he had to make a few changes to get the router to to read it properly.

These revisions gave me time to wander around the PLD studio and shoot some pictures (with Pat's permission.)

After a few minutes, Dennis saved the file and Pat loaded it into the system that runs the router.

Pat made a few adjustments to the head...

...pressed the big red button...

...of course Pat's shop has a red button(inside pinball joke #1)...

...and the router started doing its dance on the pristine maple veneer.

Whoa Nellie!

Dennis took a look at the first holes and realized his drawing was still a bit off...slots instead of holes. Doh! Even Pat's monkey couldn't believe it.

All was not lost though - within a few minutes and a couple more minor mods the machine started to do its work and in about 45 minutes...

...it was time for lunch.
And, of course, we had to play with the clock (inside pinball joke #2.)Looks good, huh?

After we got back, Dennis grabbed a hammer and the "special tool" and started finessing the switch slots - a perfectly normal procedure in the world of pinball design.

Voila! Se Magnifique! Our first official machine routered whitewood! Another step in the art of pinball. Thanks again to Pat and his well appointed model shop! We appreciate the support...and we'll be back. If you'll have us.

So the day was great, a big step in the design process that got us closer to our bigger goals, a great outdoor lunch talking about the glory days past and glory days yet to come, and all this goodness on the brink of what looked like a great Memorial Day weekend!

On the way out of town, I hit rural State Highway 23, windows down, my '97 CRV purring like it did in '97, and Sinatra comes on the radio with "The Summer Wind"...how much better could the day get...for McHenry County's finest looking to make quota for the month?

I haven't seen a speeding ticket in 30 years! Oh well, it could have been worse. At least I didn't have to give up my license and I didn't have to go back to McHenry for court. Online traffic school and a certificate! So I got that going for me.

So as the summer wore on and got hotter and drier than most, we also cranked up the heat on transferring the parts and wiring from the first whitewood onto this new whitewood. Slowly but surely Team Whizbang made strides in getting the WNBJM playfield to the next milestone...playable, scorable, wiring transferred and dressed for "production", and the big switch from the original 2-Player scoring from Continental Cafe, to the 1-Player configuration and added 4th scoring reel for the higher scoring opportunities that Dennis' layout provided. October seemed so far away.

Next time we'll show some of the behind-the-scenes efforts during the final month before Expo...the run-up to showtime that we in the game business refer to as "Game Hell".

And we'll see some surprise visitors to the Whizbang Shop of Horrors! Sorry, I guess we missed Halloween too.

And more information coming soon about where to buy WNBJM shirts and backglasses and framed backglasses...we're getting some much needed help!

G&D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball LLC, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Photos on this post courtesy G. Freres and D. Nordman

Long Time, No Blog, eh?

2010-10-06T13:43:00.008-05:00

Apologies for not keeping this blog more up-to-date but things have been way-out-of-control busy for us as the melon project gets closer to harvest time.

We have made great strides this summer on "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons" custom pinball and now have most everything working properly, with just a few clean-up items left to go. If you are headed to Pinball Expo in Chicago this month (October 20 - 24, 2010), we will be trucking this stack-o-crates to "market" and have the game there - playable! You'll be seeing a "nearly complete" game! (Note: The term "nearly complete" refers to a playable game with most of the artwork completed and printed...with the exception of the playfield and plastics... slacker artist ran out of time.)

But listen up, kids! There's more! We will also be selling the official "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons" BACKGLASS at Expo or you can get on the pre-order list by contacting us at our email address, whizbangpin@comcast.net. The backglass art was completed in early September and we'll be press-proofing the first run sometime next week! It looks something like this...

These official "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons" backglasses will be silk-screen printed, 4-color process, on 26 X 24.25", 1/8 inch (.118) clear acrylic. We chose acrylic over tempered glass for weight, ease of shipping, and general safety (We've seen too many tempered backglasses go "POP" for almost no reason.) They will also have a white and opaque layer printed for lighting in the game (or lightbox.)Each piece comes with a pre-masked protective liner to protect the front surface from scratches. Each backglass will be packed with care a slip-sheeted for more protection to the printed surface.

But wait, there's more! Whizbang Pinball will also be offering Custom Frames to proudly display this unique piece of pinball history. The frames will be hand-crafted at the Whizbang Studio, weathered and aged to fruit-crate perfection, ready-to-hang on your gameroom, workshop, office, or living room wall (hey, it is ART), and emblazened with an official Whizbang Pinball metal tag to let you know you're buying an "authentic" Whizbang product.

AND, if we get enough interest, we will also be offering the ultimate in gameroom must-haves, an Offical Authentic Custom Whizbang Pinball Lightbox to illuminate those Big Juicy Melons! Built with the same hand-craftsmanship as the Custom Frame! It will almost be like owning the game - just place the lightbox on top of another playfield, strap it down, and press start!

The cost of the backglass only is $300(USD). Price of the Whizbang Custom Frame or Lightbox will be determined by Expo showtime. And cost of shipping and handling will be determined once we have the finished backglass in stock.

So don't delay...be the first on your block, in your league, or at the office or bar to own an official "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons" backglass and frame - a truely unique piece of Pinball history.

Hope to see you at Expo! If you're interested in owning one of the THREE custom games that we're building we can arrange a time at Expo to discuss this further.

We have more to blog about and get you caught up next time when we show you what we did with our lazy, hazy summer. (Hazy, yes, lazy, not so much.) As a wise man once sang, "...like painted kites, those days and nights, went flying by."

And this just in...if you are anywhere near Lake Delevan or Lake Geneva area in Wisconsin, a place called The Purple Onion is now carrying official "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons" t-shirts. And very soon other Whizbang Pinball merchandise. The Purple Onion is located on County Road "O" between US Route 14 and South Shore Drive, next to Millie's Restaurant. Tell 'em Whizbang sent ya!

See you at Expo!

G&D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Melonhead TravelBlog - Part 2

2010-06-26T21:26:00.088-05:00

Summertime, and the living is easy...yeah, right. Finding the time to update the blog is getting more difficult as life has become much busier in recent months. Busier in a good way.

We are definitely making progress behind the scenes on WNBJM and will have some updates shortly. We can't wait to make some real announcements but there is so much happening simultaneously that we don't know when exactly things will come together.

In the meantime, enjoy some more travel scenes from my recent trip to Germany in early May. After a short introduction, I'll let the pictures do most of the talking.

I was asked to speak at the German Pinball Association's spring show in Volklingen,Germany by our more than gracious and hospitable host, Martin Wiest. Martin has been a regular visitor to the Chicago Pinball Expo throughout the years.

He has an extensive collection of games and houses them at a rented space with a group of other collectors in what they call "Pinball Heaven". This basement location is unique in that it has a stairway that leads to nowhere...an unused stairwell that the group refers to as the Stairway to Heaven, hence the name of the location.

I was able to share this lifetime opportunity with my wife, Andi, which was the best thing for both of us after a very long and trying 2009. Even an ash spewing volcano couldn't stop us from making this trip!

It was an unforgettable experience thanks to both Martin and his lovely wife Anja for welcoming us into their home and showing us 4 countries in one week!

Flying a bit south of the ash cloud added about 45 minutes onto the overnight flight but we landed in cloudy and rainy Munich with a warm welcome and started our jet-lagged week after lunch with some sightseeing in downtown Munich.

BMW headquarters - a German tradition on wheels.

Hangin' with the Beatles in Hamburg.

We visited a dozen cathedrals in one week - each one unique in it's own way.

An afternoon German tradition - "Kaffee und Kuchen"

Another German tradition...Beer!

And another German tradition...the world's best wurst!

As you can see, as an artist, I was overwhelmed with the rich history we were surrounded by in Europe. Every view is inspiring and almost every head turn...a statue or a gargoyle.

This gargoyle is dedicated to game programmer's who don't like a game rule idea...

This statue dedicated to game designers who may have lost or nearly lost a finger and tend to disagree with any team member's ideas...

This intricately carved wooden face is dedicated to pinball artists that wait until a game designer has left the room when the art is not yet good enough...

This bronze face is dedicated to guys who dig naked gold women in pools...

Whoa Nellie! This modern girl is actually in Luxembourg City and she reminded us all of the Big Juicy Melon project...for some reason.

After our Munich experience we visited with Martin's "Pinball Heaven" group and made some new pinball friends. The guys introduced me to some special Munich microbrews and I even left with some parting gifts - a couple of custom beer glasses with the names of the pinball games I've worked on throughout the years.

This was a pinball "first" for me when Chris asked me to autograph his head - sporting a special "doo" for the event. I told him I'd sign it only if he went straight to the tattoo parlor for a more permanent solution. I hope he didn't follow through.

The actual pinball show took place in a location about a five hour drive west of Munich in an industrial town called Volklingen, near the border of France. When we first arrived to where the GPS took us, we weren't sure if we were in the right place.

A looming steel mill from the late 1800's stood before us, looking like the birthplace of rust itself. Once we were assured we were in the right place we quickly learned that the German Pinball Association couldn't have picked a cooler location for their show. This aging steel mill, retired in the 1970's, and now repurposed as a cultural center to celebrate the industry, history, and culture of Germany was the most amazing venue for a pinball show ever!

Once we got inside, the strange industrial surroundings reminded me of a scene from Charlie Chaplin's "Modern Times". My wife said it best..."If I wasn't here to see this myself, no description or pictures could have captured the look and feel of this place."

The show started with a welcome from the Burgermeister (Mayor) of Volklingen himself. I would say there were nearly 100 different pinball games to play brought by association members from several different countries.

The pinball world is a small place when it comes to "customizing", "mods", and the quest to make an old game new, different, or better than the original.

After being around pinball for the better part of 30 years, I've never actually played in a tournament. I had to travel across the globe for another pinball first! I had a great time playing with my "team" and even though I didn't exactly place, I played respectably for a first time tourney player.

Another amazing part of this adventure was my proximity to Luxembourg and a connection we made at the show.

I grew up knowing that my ancenstors immigrated from the country of Luxembourg. When I learned how close the show was going to be to the Luxembourg border I asked Martin if we'd be able to travel there after the show. As fate would have it, not only was my request granted but several of the show's attendees came from Luxembourg for the weekend. When they learned that my family had its origins in Luxembourg, they invited us to visit Luxembourg City on Monday and showed us around for several hours. A special thanks to Helmut Deimel and Jean-Claude Ruhl for being such avid fans of pinball and taking the time to show us their beautiful and interesting capital city!

During the show I sat with two groups of avid fans to talk about my pinball past and our pinball future as well.

After the show ended on Sunday afternoon we hit the road for more "local" sightseeing. Martin and Anja had never been to this area before so for them it was all new as well. We crossed the border into France and spent the rest of Sunday visiting the Alsace-Lorrain region, stopping by the largest U.S. cemetery in Europe (a hugely moving experience, especially because we were there in time to hear "taps" - ironically one day after the anniversary of VE Day), followed by yet another afteroon stop for the German tradition of "Kaffee und Kuchen"(only this time at a bakery in St. Avold, France.) Across the street from the bakery we found a familiar name on the sign.

Speaking of names, we came upon a small French village with a large fortress in the hills outside of town and a very peculiar name.

We are fortunate that both of our wives have a good sense of humor.

I was intrigued by things that we don't see in the U.S. - which was mostly everything in plain view but I also captured a few other items of interest.

Like cool and unique circus posters...

...and cool cars travelling down narrow streets...

...and cool bikes...

...and cool Fords...

...and...French Food in Luxembourg...

...and more Kuchen...

The final leg of our journey brought us south to the Bavarian Alps to visit the ornate homes of King Ludwig II. The weather took a big turn for the better and we couldn't have finished our stay in Germany in a better place. We actually stepped into Austria just to say we visited 4 countries in one week!

While visiting the castle Neuschwanstein (famous for being the design that inspired Walt Disney's Cinderella castle), a few folks noticed the Whoa Nellie shirt Martin was wearing and mentioned it between themselves. Turns out they were from the LA area and found the shirt entertaining. Yep, our big juicy melons got noticed in the Alps...by Americans. Melons Gone Internationale!

...and Two German Nellies!

I wish I could name and thank all the great people we met in Germany - everyone welcomed us like old friends and we'll never forget our trip - all because of pinball! Another special thanks to Reiner (hopefully spelled correctly) for getting the beer glasses made and for the handcrafted pinball themed gifts! And to all the great people associated with the GPA - thanks for the memories!

Next time we'll show some real progress on the game and get ready for the start of "game hell."

Enjoy the summer holiday weekend!

G&D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Photos on this post courtesy G. Freres or M. Wiest or A. Weist or A. Freres

Melonhead TravelBlog - Part 1

2010-05-31T22:15:00.033-05:00

We're back! We've spent some time away from the blogosphere so it's high time we get back on the stick and show you some more Whoa Nellie progress. Growing season has officially arrived and hopefully we're on track to harvest the Big Juicy Melons in the fall. We still have a lot of work to do but we really want to get Game One done as soon as we can and make sure Whizbang Pinball is off to a great start. So hang in there with us as we share some postcards from the edge of pinball.

Our time away from the usual progress was partially due to the unique travel opportunities that were presented to both Dennis and I to get out of town for a while and talk about pinball with a bunch of enthusiastic collectors, players, and fanatics. It never ceases to amaze us as we continue to meet the players and collectors of the games we designed, and they share stories of their personal collections, their favorite games, and the pride they take in the restoration process.

For the folks reading this that aren't as close to the world of pinball as others may be, pinball fans, the ones that tend to collect multiple games, aren't collecting comic books, garden gnomes or baseball cards...they are collecting major pieces of hardware, each machine weighing in at anywhere from 200 to 300 pounds (OK so maybe some garden gnomes weigh 300 pounds), with individual collections ranging from three games placed in a rec-room in the basement with other types of coin-operated equipment, to hundreds of games housed in temperature-controlled out-buildings, rented retail strip-center locations and other unique spaces either owned or rented by individuals or small groups of enthusiasts.

These people are serious about their hobby and take great pride in the games they own, whether they buy them NIB (New-In-Box) or find out about a "project" game in someone's uncle's garage, left to rot by the former owner who got it for free when someone else who owed him money offered a used pinball machine as a partial payment until things turn around. These games can often house critters, or the remains of critters, or the eggs of critters. Some have grown organic additions...mold, mildew, maybe some mushrooms...and the once pristene metal parts are most likely attacked by the cancer of rust...or other maladies as we have already begun to learn.

It's the stories of these "projects", brought back to a new life over a series of late nights, long weekends and vacation time used to pick up new parts out of state, a new life of not just working properly but cleaned, shopped, detailed and restored to better-than-factory condition, that gives us "industry" guys a real sense of just how important the products we helped create over the last 30 years are to this relatively small fraction of the world's population. We appreciate the enthusiasm and drive that pinball people bring to the party and it makes us proud to have been part of the development of pinball.

And it's this enthusiasm that has brought us back to pinball.

With that said, about a month after we went to the Midwest Gaming Classic in Milwaukee, we headed out to the home of Coors Beer, Golden Colorado, for the Rocky Mountain Pinball Shootout. We were invited to speak about our days in pinball and share some moments with a great group of pinball fans. And we also got to introduce a receptive audience to Big Juicy Melons!

Our plane landed in Denver during a driving rainstorm. We opted for the Super Shuttle to get us to the hotel and had a fun ride hydroplaning several times on the interstate through the almost 2.5 inches of rain that was already on the ground. By the time we made it to the hotel, the rain shifted to snow, piling up about 2 to 4 inches in a matter of a couple hours.

Dan Nikolich, the show's organizer, warned us that Colorado in April can bring any kind of weather experience. He couldn't have been more accurate because by the next day the sun came out and the snow melted before noon.

The weekend also afforded me the opportunity to get together with my daughter, Lindsey, who is currently living in Boulder. She spent some time at the show and even came to hear us talk about pinball. When it came time for questions and answers I experienced a pinball show "first" when an audience member started the question with "Dad?"

Basil LeBlanc, who kindly invited us out to the parking lot after our presentation for a tailgate lunch, told us about a Coors standee of Elvira that he had purchased recently and that it had a monster next to Elvira that resembled one of the Party Monsters from our first Elvira game. We can only hope we helped inspire this point-of-purchase display.

Dennis made sure to protect the younger audience attendees from seeing too much Elvira.

Dennis also got a chance to show off his mad skills on Pirate's of the Carribbean, one of the games he designed for Stern.

It was a great trip to the Rockies where we made some new friends of the silverball and introduced a great audience to the Whoa Nellie project. Thanks again to Dave Mercer for his assistance with hawking our t-shirts and for giving us a rather "inside" idea related to melons that we will definitely work into the art package.

And thanks again to Dan and Holly for the invitation to the show. We appreciate the opportunity.

Next time I'll share some moments from my trip to Germany for the German Pinball Association show in Volklingen.

And of course we'll have some updates on the Whoa Nellie project soon and fill you in on a closer trip we took to Harvard, Illinois for some official business. The next few months will be critical to hopefully having the game finished by the fall. And as soon as we know when the backglass is ready, we'll start taking orders.

In the meantime, go out and buy a big, juicy watermelon and savor these early days of summer. Our local grocery chain has a radio commercial supporting "big, juicy melons" verbatim. 'Tis the season!

G&D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Milwaukee Postcard courtesy of CafePress.com
Colorado Postcard courtesy of Colorful-Colorado.com

All other photos courtesy of G. Freres

Whoa Nellie! First Flip on Youtube

2010-04-26T18:27:00.004-05:00

Here's another video of the Whoa Nellie whitewood "first flip" recorded and edited by one of our new pinball friends David Pizon at the Midwest Gaming Classic that he posted on Youtube. Thanks again David!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmOszBSi0YY

And here's another Youtube video from the original unveiling of the project last fall at Pinball Expo 2009.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrDy_NSgyOo

And one more in this multi-media series...this is a podcast interview on a new pinball fan site called SpookyPinball .com - it's Charlie and KT's first ever podcast that they recorded in Milwaukee as well. Click on the "podcast" button on their home page to hear what Spooky Pinball is all about and our interview starts around 21:30. They warned us that the interview questions would be unique and they were correct. Fun stuff from more new friends of the silver ball. Thanks Charlie for inviting us to be your first...victims. (Interview followed by the Psychostick classic "Beer Is Good".)

http://www.spookypinball.com

Next time we'll have a few pictures from the Rocky Mountain Pinball Shootout and an update on the playfield progress.

G & D

More "First Flip" Coverage

2010-04-19T13:06:00.013-05:00

In the last post I referred to some of the folks who had a chance to "flip" the freshly wired playfield that we had completed for the Midwest Gaming Classic show in Milwaukee. We were happy to have Roger Sharpe step up and offer his input on Dennis' layout.

These "crazy flipper fingers" belong to Roger Sharpe. The blur in this shot catches a "slap save" or possibly a "backhand".

Here's a video that Ken Walker took with his cell phone of Roger's "first flip" on Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons.

When we got back we asked Roger if he would share his thoughts - good or bad - on the layout and accessibility of the shots or any other tidbits of "pin-wiz-dom"...

Roger Sharpe:

"The Midwest Gaming Classic provided the first chance to actually flip "Whoa Nellie" and I must say how impressed I am by the original design layout that Dennis and Greg have put together. What they have been able to achieve is a sublime elegance that not only remains true to the integrity of this electro-mechanical era but the subtleties of a more modern sensibility are neatly woven together in a seemless presentation."

"The game play is smooth with accessible shots back to the top as well as balance throughout the middle of the playfield for direct flipper shots as well as backhands. "Whoa Nellie" is going to become a true classic unto itself as a result, and the graphics are the epitome of what pinball art has always represented for this unique entertainment attraction. Congratulations to "Whizbang!!!"

Yes! Only Roger can make the play of pinball sound like the description of a fine wine or a great restaurant experience. I recall back in my early days of pinball at Bally, when Roger was still writing for the coin-op trade magazines, it was always great fun to read the latest review of a new pin-game from Roger. Thanks for all the kind words Roger!

And thanks again to all the great people at the Midwest Gaming Classic and for allowing us the opportunity to showcase the game and get some feedback.

And thanks to Ken Walker for having some good tech on hand and sharing the video. There are some more videos in the works and hopefully we'll have a link to those soon.

And don't forget, we still have some of the first batch of WNBJM t-shirts available. Don't delay - it's warming up out there. Contact us a whizbangpin@comcast.net with size and color preference. We'll invoice you through Paypal and include shipping and handling.

And for those of you not on Facebook, just a reminder we're at the Rocky Mountain Pinball Showdown this weekend April 23 - 25. If you can be there our part of the showdown is at High Noon on Saturday the 24th. We'll be talkin' pinball from our perspective and showing some behind the scenes stuff from the days inside the business. Hope to see you there!

G & D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Video courtesy of "Doctor" Ken Walker

All photos by G. Freres

Springtime for Whizbang and Melony

2010-04-02T20:45:00.042-05:00

On a cold day in March, the first day of Spring to be exact, Whizbang hit a new milestone on the road to our first custom project. Actually there's been a flurry of recent milestones as our pace has picked up in preparation for our second ever public viewing of the Whoa Nellie Big Juicy Melons work-in-progress at the Midwest Gaming Show in Milwaukee.

But as usual we have to back up the truck to explain how we got to this point.

On a colder day in January, Mark Weyna invited us out to his place to play some EM pinball games in his collection. Dennis was still contemplating how to go about revising the original playfield to create a more player-friendly version of the original Continental Cafe game with its three "gobble-hole" feature. During this era of pinball design, gobble holes were a way to keep game times short so the operator could see more money in the cashbox on collection day.

We spent several hours getting more familiar with the style of play from EM playfields and started to learn which games had gobble-hole features that were less "f-you" oriented.

When shooting a ball into a gobble-hole, or more likely when a ball inadvertantly falls into a gobble-hole the player is rewarded with a score BUT the ball is gone. And, if you're playing your last ball...game over. But if the gobble-hole feature is lit when the ball falls in then the score reward is greater. The skilled player waits for that moment.

Apparently players were used to this mistreatment back in the 1950's probably because there wasn't much competition for a player's spare change back then...Pinball was King! By the time the '90's came around we were doing everything possible to keep players from straying away from pinball. But I digress.

Dennis also connected with another member of Team EM, Steve Charland, and they discussed the possibilities of adding more to the game than came with the original equipment (augmentation). Steve has hacked EM games and was quite confident that he could do most of what Dennis had in mind, however, Steve is on the west coast and we're not. Working through these hacks cross-continent was just too much to think about at this point and would also add too much time to the process. We made the next executive decision to keep this playfield simple, friendly, and with just enough of a Dennis-style layout to update the shots and use the entire length of the playfield from top to bottom.

Dennis drew his first layout and showed it to both Mark and Ken. This first pass kept a lot of similarities to the original CC layout. After a good deal of discussion, both of them were confident that if Dennis wanted to rearrange the geometry of the playfield more than this initial drawing, it should be no problem as long as the scoring scheme remained similar.

Dennis took another pass at the drawing and wanted to create more flow from the flippers back up to the top of the game. He also wanted the jet bumpers to provide good action and add the random factor, and he wanted the now solo gobble-hole to be shoot-able but also random at times.

After a couple more weeks of contemplation and discussion with Mark and Ken, it was time to push this layout to the "whitewood" stage of development. At the same time Ken was available to come out to the studio with Chris and deconstruct the original wire harness from the Continental Cafe game.

They spent a few hours painstakingly removing and labeling the wires so that there'd be a roadmap to follow when getting the new playfield rewired.

Dennis hand-cut the first whitewood and de-populated the parts from the original playfield once the wire harness was removed from the bottom.

He then populated the same parts on top of the new whitewood and set up a time for Ken and Mark to come back out to reconstruct the wiring and layout the new switch configuration as needed.

This was the first day of Spring as you can plainly see from this shot outside the shop. At this point we were one week away from the Midwest Gaming Show in Milwaukee, Wisconsin where we were scheduled to speak about the project. Dennis set a goal to have the game at least flipping (not scoring) by the time we got to the show. He had the studio "stocked" with nutritious snacks perfect for getting wired.

Mark and Ken spent several hours on the game that day and made great progress but just a few hours shy of working flippers.

The process of finding the right home for the right wire is tedious. There is a back and forth process checking one of the other Continental Cafe games against the wiring harness for the new layout.

Terry from Pinball Life asked Dennis if he could stop by and see the game since Ken had ordered some parts from him that we needed for the game. He paid us a nice compliment about the handling of the somewhat risque theme by keeping it within a PG-13 audience range.

Ken showed me the finer points of wire crimping since I felt left out of this tool party (that just doesn't sound right when I say it out loud.) I fortunately didn't
hurt myself or anyone else and I'm glad I don't get paid by the part.

Mark was able to return during the week for the final push to get the game wired, working, and flipping. Within a few more hours and with the flippers wired, the game was turned on for the first time as Whoa Nellie Big Juicy Melons! Only a few minor adjustments were needed to get the game flipping for the first time.

We "shot" the playfield for a while getting the feel of the new layout. All in all we felt pretty good about the layout, happy to see that the flippers could get the ball back to the top of the table without a problem. The bumpers weren't kicking perfectly but good enough for now. Mark left word with Ken regarding a couple issues that Ken could handle at the show before we let the public shoot for the first time.

With the timely delivery of our first order of t-shirts, we packed up the Whizbang sideshow tent and headed north to Milwaukee. After our presentation on Sunday, we plugged the game in, Ken made a few minor adjustments and stuffed a wad of paper in the outhole, and the first public flipping took place (better than a public flogging but I haven't checked RGP yet.) Keep in mind that the scoring features are not yet wired and since this first whitewood has no inserts, there is nothing to light-up, no bells dinging...just flipping the ball and shooting the shots.

After Dennis played the first flips just to get things checked out, he handed the game over to the interested show attendees. Besides, he's not a great tester or player of his own games.

Next?

"Melony" gets some attention from the crowd.

After several players gave it a try, Roger Sharpe showed up and skillfully batted the ball around for a while, giving us his valued opinions and making the shots look like "buttah."

Cameron Silver (in the background, far right), one of the software engineers from our 1996 Scared Stiff game, was also on hand to provide support and throw in his two cents.

Roger suggested adding a star-rollover switch on the left side "lane" up to the bumper area just to provide player feedback and a nominal score for making the shot. It's a keeper suggestion and Dennis has already added it to his drawing.

Overall, we were very pleased with the response from this show and, just like our experience in Seattle last June, there is still a lot of buzz about custom games from various sources. Ben Heck had his "Bill Paxton Pinball" game at this show and it's an amazingly creative piece from an avid, skilled, and talented fan of the sport of pinball.

On the next post we'll include some video links from that first public flip. But for now, this blog is officially caught up to real-time. We'll continue to fill you in on the latest news, direction, and updates as we head closer to the finish line sometime in the near future. And we'll hopefully avoid real-time posts like: "I'm going to Dunkin' Donuts for coffee because my back hurts." No tweets from us.

In the meantime have a great spring holiday season. I think we'll plant our official Whizbang Watermelon seeds as soon as the warm weather settles in and harvest them around the same time the game is complete!

Thanks for your support, as always, and we'll see you in Colorado on April 23rd!
More to come...
G & D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Flipper Cowboy,Slick Chick, and Dancing Dolls from the collection of Mark Weyna(Photo by G. Freres)

All other photos courtesy of G. Freres and D. Nordman

T-Shirts!

2010-03-27T08:11:00.004-05:00

For those of you not connected to Facebook, we are happy to announce the arrival of our "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons" T-Shirts.

Guildan Brand, Ultra Cotton, sizes M, L, XL, XXL, XXXL (limited qty's on the double & triple.) The art is screen-printed in full color on your choice of shirt colors - Black and "Prairie Dust" (the mock-up color is very true.)

Since we don't have a website yet the only way to purchase these fine garments is to email us at whizbangpin@comcast.net and include your name, sizes, quantity, color choice, and your shipping address.

The price is $20 each (regardless of size.) We'll be shipping via USPS Flat Rate so if you buy 2 shirts we "should" be able to fit them in the smallest box.

We'll also be in Milwaukee this weekend at the Midwest Gaming Classic at the Sheraton Milwaukee in Brookfield, Wisconsin showing the game in it's current state of progress and hawking shirts - so if you're in the neighborhood stop by and save a few bucks on shipping!

Thanks for your support!
G & D

The Yikes of March - In Living Color

2010-03-15T21:53:00.030-05:00

Short of running through the streets of Rome dressed in a toga to celebrate the middle of March, we thought it best to save the airfare, stay on track and celebrate the anticipation of spring by sharing some color (sketches) for the WNBJM backglass art and give you a sense of some of the over-thinking that goes on in my brain.

Back in the beginning of January, I had worked out a schedule for my own progress on the art package for the game and it seems no matter how many times I put together a schedule, and no matter how "realistic" I think I make that schedule, time keeps on slippin'(slippin', slippin') into the future. Oh well, we are here, this is now, and tomorrow is just another step in the journey.

So here's a rerun of the black and white sketch (dyed green to honor St. Patrick and the green beer he drank) to help visualize the process of working into color. Keep in mind that this first color sketch is primarily to set the tone and work through ideas for the entire art package. This first attempt at adding color is still based on the rough pencil sketch so refining the drawing is a different step in the process.
Just for fun, I started by adding some flesh tones to Melony, took a picture of my screen, and sent it to Dennis to prove that I was making progress on the schedule as planned. This is not normally something to get excited about but I thought that since we have more people looking over our shoulders on this project it would be fun to chronicle even the smallest amount of progress.

During this phase of development I had to start thinking about the printing techniques that we might be using for the backglass. Earlier I mentioned that we had been talking to ourselves and to a lot of people about the value of this project and the expectations of the quality of the finished piece. Being that we're basing the project on a game from the late '50's, my original direction for the backglass was to print it "old school"...silk-screened line art/spot-color similar to most backglass art prior to the late 1970's. However, this technique is a bit outside of my comfort zone. (Cue the flashback music and soft-focus swirly background.)

When I started working in the pinball business in 1978 at Bally, line-art backglasses were being phased out in favor of a printing method that is visually more familiar to most people. Back then, record albums were still 12 x 12 inches and had become an art form unto themselves. But most record albums were printed on a lithograph press using an industry standard printing method called "4-color process".

(Side note: Pictured from left to right starting in the back row - John Reckas, Mary Beth Bush, Kevin O'Connor, Paul Faris, Margaret Hudson, Greg Freres [with excess hair]...Bally during the holidays, 1978.)

Without going overboard in explanation, a photograph or illustration is converted into a series of overlapping dot patterns comprised of only the 4 colors used on the press - Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black (aka CMYK).

This method is used in all color printing of magazines, books, newspapers, etc. It creates the illusion of "continuous tone" images by fooling the eye into seeing more color than is actually printed on the paper. (Please don't take notes, there's no quiz at the end of the post.)

Paul Faris was the art director at Bally when I was hired and was responsible for the change from the traditional silk-screened look of the backglass to the 4-color process printing technique that allowed the artists more flexibility in the way they approached the subject matter. For the first time soft gradations, blends from one color to another, and more realistic rendering techniques for facial features, vehicles, and backgrounds were now way more possible compared to the more simplified, flat-color trapped by line art techniques of the past.

Now I'm not here to diminish the efforts that artists like Dave Christensen or Gordon Morrison (or everyone before them) brought to the art of pinball. In fact, I believe there are more design factors and difficult choices that play a huge role in a well designed backglass using a limited palette of 10 - 15 separate colors. Dave's work on Mata Hari (as one example) is an amazing design with a rich palette that works on all levels - with only 10 colors.
And Gordon's work, even though limited by color range, had a depth based on his strong drawing and compositional skills. In fact both Dave and Gordon were probably the best draftsmen in pinball art when it came to the strength of their drawing abilities.

Without getting overly analytical about which printing methods are right or wrong for the art of pinball, I found myself just last month looking for the "right" approach for the Whoa Nellie backglass. Of all the pinball backglasses I've done, the ONLY backglass created in the line-art, multiple silk-screened color method that I was responsible for was "Lady Luck".

(Flashback 2 - Greg, now sporting less hair than the 1970's, but definitely not an 80's "man-perm"...but I digress.)

At that time (1986), we were in a very experimental phase, trying to find ways to "save" pinball from the video game monster that our own company had a major hand in creating. The company (Bally/Midway) was also living through a leaner time after the massive layoffs in '84 and the pinball area was probably a quarter of the size it was just two years previous. But new designers were bringing some interesting ideas to the table, literally.

Dan Langlois was doing crazy new stuff with games like "Strange Science" and the highly experimental and dimensional "Escape From the Lost World".

But it was this experimental attitude that allowed guys like Dennis to push on that envelope even harder with games like "Blackwater 100" and later, "Whitewater". And Steve Ritchie was kicking everyone's collective ass with games like "High Speed" and "F-14".

But at the same time, the venerable Norm Clark came out of semi-retirement to put together a design that went back to the basics of pinball. He felt that a good-old card game theme was in order, and with the help of George Christian, he brought in "Lady Luck" as a way to try and simplify at a time when the rest of the world was pulling out all the stops. At that point I felt that a traditional silk-screen art package was the right fit for this piece, and gave it a typical 1980's color palette with a nod to the great graphic styling of Playboy illustrator Patrick Nagel.

So with all that history said (and hoping you've recovered from the flashbacks) as a way to show my limited experience in this type of backglass art design, I began to approach the Whoa Nellie project with an interest in trying to pull-off a traditional backglass even though it could end up adding to our bottom line(remember, we're a couple of artists trying to create art and a business at the same time.)

This color sketch reflects the thought process of trying to print the glass within a 12-color limit rather than the unlimited palette of 4-color process. And three of those colors include the non-colors needed for the backglass art: The Black drawing or trap line (aka keyline), the White layer that all the art gets printed on and diffuses the light, and the "Opaque" layer that masks certain areas of the art to highlight "hidden" text at key points in game play.

By the time I finished the sketch, something inside was telling me that I might be better off doing what I do best. I became frustrated with the idea that I only had 9 colors to chose from to complete this scene. I found ways to "cheat" the system by planning for color-under-color techniques that we used in the past but knew I'd be dependant on the printer to have the capability to print with more transparent color as needed.

I've always enjoyed working in a style that splits the difference between the completely retro look of older pinball machines by using a combination of line-art and painted rendering that closer resembles a more comic book approach.

So at this point, without having pushed too much further into the finished work on the backglass, I'm more than likely going to plan for a 4-color process silk-screen on glass (not plastic translite) that will enhance the retro-theme styling (and soft curves) of Whoa Nellie Big Juicy Melons.

Since completing this iteration of the backglass, Dennis and I have spent some time thinking about further enhancements and additions to the art. We've also given a small amount of thought to ideas for the playfield but need to wait until the pf design is locked down before getting too far ahead of the curve.

Earlier, I had taken a picture of the cabinet after Dennis painted the inside with the cantaloupe color. After completing the first color sketch, I spent some time thinking about the cabinet decal that would eventually replace the "Best Point" mock-up label that we've been using since last October.

After finishing a sketch with two potential directions in color, I photoshopped the results onto the cabinet photo and sent the results to Dennis.

This was a sneak-peak for both of us to see a nearly complete color package for the project. After showing the choices to not only Dennis but a select group of friends and family (including my 89 year-young artist Mom who still has an eye for good color choices), the clear winner rose to the top. The next time we show the cabinet in public we will have the winning cabinet color decal sketch applied to the side.

Well, doing fewer blog posts seems to result in longer winded results so I won't keep you any longer for now but will set the "teaser" for the next post by revealing that I've made good progress on a t-shirt design (to further support the marketing effort for these melons) and should have something to sell at the Midwest Gaming Classic in Milwaukee next weekend (as long as UPS delivers). And the shirt art allowed me to get familiar with Melony (in an art sort of way) so that the backglass art will have a solid centerpiece to build upon.

Until then, Happy Saint Patrick's Day to all our Irish friends... (c'mon Pat, we're still waiting for the "Melonhead" whiteboard masterpiece from ya!)

Cheers!
G & D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Original "Peacock" design courtesy of NBC

Mata Hari Backglass by Dave Christensen (Photo by G. Freres)

The Amazing Spider Man Backglass by Gordon Morrison (Photo courtesy of ipdb.org)

Lady Luck Backglass (Art and Photo by G. Freres)

Dr. Dude Backglass by Greg Freres (Photo courtesy of ipdb.org)

All other photos courtesy of G. Freres

The Traveling Melonhead Sideshow

2010-03-01T09:28:00.004-06:00

March comes in like a...Melon! At least this year.

Whizbang Pinball would like to announce a couple of upcoming events in the near future where Dennis and I have been invited to speak about not only our past experiences in the world of Pinball design but also provide some more insight to our new direction in custom pinball.

First, you can see our sideshow in Milwaukee Wisconsin at the Midwest Gaming Classic on Saturday March 27, 2010.
For more information go to http://www.midwestgamingclassic.com/

Secondly, we're following the advice of Horace Greeley and heading West for the Rocky Mountain Pinball Shootout on April 24th and 25th. So if you're in the vicinity of Golden, or Denver, or anywhere close to the Rocky Mountains, we hope to see you there. Here's the link: http://www.pinballshowdown.com/

Thirdly, once we get the Whoa Nellie Brand Big Juicy Melons game completed (undetermined date), we'll be schleping the sideshow tent east to Toledo, Ohio for a big "World Premier" celebration that we might refer to as "Holy Toledo - It's Whoa Nellie!" More information to come as we get closer to completion.

In the meantime, keep thinking spring - it's gonna happen.

G & D

Inside Out

2010-02-23T18:34:00.035-06:00

Back in December we started to put more of our effort into getting the "business" side of Whizbang into place. We began to capture the costs involved in getting the first game completed and started estimating our overall time spent on each step of the process of getting a custom pinball machine not only finished, but marketed and hopefully sold to a happy customer. And then more happy customers, and so on, and so on. Of course, it's now February and we're still capturing data but we now have a better idea of what it's going to take to get Whoa Nellie Big Juicy Melons grown, ripened, hand-picked, marketed, packed, and shipped. But let's get back to the fun stuff!

Near the end of December we invited Mark Weyna out to take a look at the project and see if he could lend assistance by removing the main "bottom" board (the Brains of the game) inside the cabinet and work on getting it cleaned up and "shopped" so it would be clean and working once we put it back in the game. Mark worked with us at Williams and Midway in the late '90's in the role of assistant designer, and later Game Designer, on games like Scared Stiff, Indy 500, and others. Mark was instrumental in a small but important mechanical detail on Scared Stiff - the small flap on the ramp that accepts the ball (like butter) from the Spider Hole "up-kicker" under the playfield. He also convinced us that reprising the "Dude-O-Meter" from Dr. Dude and renaming and repurposing it to the "Stiff-O-Meter" was a good thing for the game. From L to R: Greg, Mark, Dennis, unidentified woman, Mike Boon

Mark also has a great collection of EM pinball games from the '50's and '60's and collects some really great antique coin-operated equipment like music boxes, slot machines, nickelodeons, and other unique novelty games. With all this electro-mechanical equipment in his possession he's a great resource for EM restoration and repair. He's also a motorsport enthusiast and likes to drive antique sports cars so he knows quite a bit about how to keep things running...or get them started. Mark took a look at the main board in Dennis' shop and did a quick evaluation of what it might need. He then took it back to his shop to give it the TLC that it needed. He checked for loose wire connections and bad or cold solder joints. He cleaned each part and made adjustments to leaf switches. He found the more he cleaned or moved stuff around the more he had to repair. It's been 53 years since this game first rolled off the assembly line so, just like us, things start to dry up, decay, or get a bit frazzled over a lifetime of use and abuse. The focus of a surgeon. Mark also stripped off all of the components from the board and even took the time to not only clean the original plywood panel as much as possible, without removing the original ink-stamped markings for the fuse values, but also clear coated it to add that extra bit of lustre. "I was taking a more 'conservation' approach, but now that I see it sitting in the cabinet, I may want to take it apart again and just sand the wood clean and re-coat to better match the over the top polishing Dennis has done on the rest of the interior cabinet parts." Mark also added a new line cord to bring it into this century. During that same week, Ken Walker had mentioned to us that a group of pinball enthusiasts from the Chicago area were going to meet for an end-of-year get-together at a place called Brixie's in Brookfield, Illinois. (An aside for Beer lovers: this is a great place with a huge variety of microbrews on tap.) We thought it would be a good opportunity for Mark and Ken to meet each other, since both would be working on the guts of Whoa Nellie, so we all met up and had a great time meeting new people and talking pinball. (I also played one game of CSI that was set up for Tournament Only with shorty flippers for a buck a play - rediculous!) We also set up a follow-up meeting back at the studio in mid-January to hopefully get the other two Continental Cafe games up and running.

On January 16th Mark brought the finished board back to the studio. Before this, Dennis had thought about painting the inside of the cabinet to give it that extra Whizbang quality. He asked me to find a suitable "melon" color at the Home Depot paint department since I'm the "artist". I walked into HD and in less than 30 seconds found a swatch that seemed appropriate...aptly named "Cantaloupe"...that was easy! So by the time we got together on the 16th, we had a juicy cantaloupe color painted inside the main cabinet and backbox. Of course we thought about 7 more cool things we could do with the inside of the cabinet but we thought it better to put our combined energies where most people would see it. And Mark's "shopped" bottom board looks very nice inside the painted cantaloupe cabinet. Ken asked if it would be ok to bring a friend to the studio, another pinball enthusiast, Chris Edler from the St. Louis area, who was in town for a monthly pinball players gathering in the suburbs of Chicago. Both Ken and Chris have worked as airplane mechanics so to have two skilled mechanics in one room, along with both Ken and Mark's expertise in the mechanical coin-op world, we felt that these aging Continental Cafe's were in good hands. And perhaps by the end of the day the games would not only be running, but flying as well. Mark and Ken plugged in the two CC games and started troubleshooting to find out any and all problems that might have plagued the games during the later years of operation. "When Ken and I dug into the other games it was very much the normal stuff to fix on games that have been sitting for a long time...freeing slow or stuck wiper assemblies so the games would try and reset, then look for stuck/bent switches to stop the 'coil-cooking lockup'. Once things are pretty much working it's time to look for the ONE thing that was broken/cooked, or out of adjustment that caused the operator the retire the game waaaaaay back then. Sometimes that can be quite the treasure hunt." "Usually after a little cleaning, lube, a few electrical shocks and some swearing the old EM's spring back to life pretty well." Both Mark and Ken (and anyone that collects EM games) agree that the worst thing for EM games is to sit for long periods of time without use. Once these games are playing again, they can keep going for a long time.

One of the most integral mechanical pieces on the main bottom board is the "Score Motor". Ken explained that it basically scores things in multiples of 5's or 3's and is also used in the reset process, whether for drop targets, new game or bonus count downs.
Here's a crappy low-res video just for some blog variety to show the mech in motion.

Mark and Ken got both games running in less than an hour and then we spent some time brainstorming some ideas for the playfield and the possibilities of what may or may not be possible by adding a feature to the game.
This is proving to be a more complicated process than anticipated and we are still in the process of getting a better understanding of what could work for the game and help push the former CC design into a different layout with a similar rule set or scoring configuration. We want to be able to provide a more unique game play experience from the original Continental Cafe layout, but we also want to finish this project, as promised, in 2010.

All in all it was a great day...we got a lot accomplished (we being Mark and Ken), Chris learned a bit more about EM games, Dennis stood around in amazement, I took pictures, and Ken got to see some of the brainstorming techniques that Dennis, Mark, and I haven't done together since 1996. (Ken actually got to hear me speak in tounges when I disagreed with one of Dennis' suggestions - but Dennis is used to that.)
And one more crappy low-res video for your entertainment.

Next time we'll preview the wonderful world of color.
G&D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Photos on this post provided by G.Freres, M. Weyna, and Nicholas Weyna

Whoa Nellie - There's a Plane in the Pond!

2010-02-06T14:19:00.014-06:00

So our anonymous commenter who I'll refer to as "Steve", for lack of a better pseudonym, nearly nailed the "What is it?" by at least somewhat connecting the part to a portion of an aircraft gone awry. If this had been an actual contest, "Steve" would have scored extra points for using the term "cowling". Instead, "Steve" wins the hand-painted pork chop, signed by Dennis and I. Maybe some of my hints helped lead the rest of you to this piece of WW2 hardware.

It's the front, right-side, engine cowling from a SBD Dauntless dive bomber. However, the picture below (public domain) is unfortunately of the left side.

Ok, now it's the right side.

So how'd this thing make it to Dennis' studio?

Dennis explains:
"In the early 1940's the SBD Dauntless crashed in the lake behind my grandfather's orange grove during a practice drill shortly after take-off from the DeLand, Florida Naval Air Station, only about two miles away. Fortunately, the pilot bailed and survived. Periodically, the lake dries up and, years later when we'd visit my grandparents, we'd go exploring on the property and find smashed up pieces of aluminum in the mud. This is the only identifiable part we found. When I brought it home from Florida a few years ago, my wife looked in the truck and said, "What's that piece of sh*t?!" Women...they just don't understand!"

You'll probably be seeing more vintage aircraft references ahead because Dennis digs planes (even out of dried up ponds.) Below he proudly displays his "Contact" backglass that he dug out of his woodpile, near the "Super Rack"...a follow-up theme to "WNBJM"?

Next time we'll get back to the project and dig into the guts of Continental Cafe.

Until then, I just have one question...was the Dauntless really "Silent But Deadly"?

G&D...SBD

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

SBD Dauntless photos courtesy of the National Museum of Naval Aviation

"Contact" and "EM Close-Up" photos by G. Freres

10 "Followers" - A New Milestone!

2010-01-31T12:08:00.002-06:00

Hootie-Hoo!
We now have 10 official WhizBang blog "followers"! So what if half of them are family members, we've hit a new milestone!

Thanks to everyone that's been following from the start, even if you haven't signed-up officially. It's been fun sharing our progress with eveyone in the Blog-O-Zone and we have plenty more where that came from, so stay tuned.

Now if we only had a Blog-O-Meter to count how many people are actually reading this thing. I keep telling Dennis there's at least 10 readers, and this post proves it!

More fun to come...we're gellin'!

G&D

Side-Effect Warning: For hard-core collectors,pinball enthusiasts,art critics, or supporters of all that is politically-correct in the world, reading this blog may cause consternation and lead to the formation of opinions. If opinions persist, please share them as comments to relieve the pressure. If you have an opinion that takes more than four hours to type, seek medical attention immediately, as this may be a sign of a more serious condition.

Back to Backglass

2010-01-28T20:31:00.023-06:00

Welcome back to the Whizbang design studio, or as Dennis calls it..."my shop." After spending more time in the "studio" (since I'll be talking more about art on this post than woodworking), I started to notice some interesting decor items just hangin'. Like this thing above the entry door...

I think it will be interesting to elicit some comments on this one, eh? So what is it? Go ahead...take a guess...and leave it in the comment section below. And be creative. There are several people that know exactly what it is, so please don't give it up. We'll reveal the answer in the next post.

We also thought it would be fun to put one of the latest acquisitions next to the semi-finished Whoa Nellie cabinet just to get a preview of the major before and after customizing. Dennis chose "Pinky Continental" to further illustrate the difference.

Progress! Every few weeks we get another jolt of it and it definitely motivates us to keep pushing on.

After reviewing some playfield layout revisions with Ken Walker and Steve Charland from Team EM, Dennis had some strong possibilities for what he wanted to try and decided that eliminating one "player" from the two-player configuration of Continental Cafe might allow for more potential tweaks in the scoring department. And since the Whoa Nellie version of the game would never be on location again as a coin-operated device, we felt that a change to a one-player game wouldn't be a bad thing, in fact, it would be great for the art on the backglass.

Here's a view of the original "insert panel" that I mentioned on the last post. Two sets of scoring reels for the two-player set up.

We were amazed at the lack of what's called "general illumination" on this backglass. Only several lights were dedicated to lighting the main portion of the art, and, only a small portion of the art was "open" on the opaque screen layer. Years later, at least twenty to thirty lights were allowed in the matrix to light the backglass.

For the "newbies to pinball" reading this blog, the lights surrounded by small wood frames, or what we called "egg crates", illuminate what's called "hidden copy" or words or numbers that light up only at certain times in the game. For an example, words like "Tilt" or "Game Over" only get lit up at certain points in the game. The "egg crate" allowed for the light to focus only on what the artist allowed for by use of an "opaque" layer printed on the back surface of the backglass.

So looking at the back of the CC backglass above, the numbers across the top on the upper left were printed only on the opaque screen, or should I say left open on the opaque screen, allowing the light to pass through the art layers only when it was lit up, otherwise it was hidden from view. The egg crates also prevented ambient light from lighting any of the hidden copy until it's specific light was lit. Apologies if my explanation is as clear as mud.

Also note that there is absolutely nothing printed (clear glass) where the numbers on the score reels will show through. As opposed to our vintage glass below that lost most of it's art throughout the years but may just come in handy now to help illustrate my seminar on Backglass Art 101.

Before getting to this stage, I had started the backglass layout as a two-player layout, just like the original CC. My first rough sketch from a few months ago allowed two roughed-in areas for the score reels.

I included areas for the "hidden copy" as well and worked to a drawing that Dennis made from copying the dimensions from the original layout. Dennis asked if I wanted to move things around a bit for better composition, I could give him a copy of my next iteration and see how much he could move items, like the scoring reels, the credit window, or perhaps some of the hidden copy.

So while I started to add ideas and elements to my design, I kept these kind of changes in mind and worked closely with Dennis over the phone to make sure I wasn't designing something that couldn't be supported by the new insert panel.

After thinking about what kind of Roy Parker-esque people I wanted to add as background elements, I also made the decision to turn our hero around,(who I'll now refer to as Melanie, or Melony, due to results from an ongoing straw poll that started at Pinball Expo), so that the guy in the truck would now be reacting to her melons rather than her backside (not that there's anything wrong with her backside...trust me...I'm an artist.) Once I roughed-in the other farm hands gawking at cantaloupes, I felt good about the decision to "turn her all about."

Which reminds me of a sign I saw last summer that I really need to get for my studio just to remind myself of the important things in life...the sign read...

"What if the Hokey Pokey IS what it's all about?"

Something to think about. I think about it often.

So on my next pass, Melony did an about-face,I added the farm hands, and got the all important horse and rider into the background, and appropriately, just below the title.

I worked with Dennis to move the scoring reels to the left to accomodate the layout and I started feeling pretty good about the general composition. This sketch was still before we made the switch from Sweet to Big.

A few weeks later Dennis suggested that we bring this layout to Pinball Expo to help support the direction of our project but I was reluctant to show such a preliminary sketch. There was a lack of detail and Melony's face was not anywhere near the quality that I wanted it to be. I was afraid people wouldn't see it as a sketch, that it didn't represent all that I could do as an artist. But, after talking me down off the roof, Dennis finally convinced me that having this sketch as part of our initial presentation was important in the big picture. I conditionally agreed. First, the sketch would be clearly marked as a "Work In Progress", and second, I would take some time and revise Melony's face just slightly to get her closer to how she could end up looking. Deal! And Dennis was right, the combination of the partially finished cabinet along with the rough sketch for the backglass seemed to help get our idea across to most of the audience. You can also see this in the latest Pingame Journal.

Jumping ahead a couple months, we made the decision to change the final game to a one-player game and I eventually returned to the backglass for more revisions. Dennis made some final adjustments to the insert panel drawing and built it to get it into the game. After getting this pass of the layout to best match his drawing it was time to get it printed at full size to see how well it matched the real insert layout.

Finally...BIG!

Happy Artiste!

Progress! It's what we eat for dinner!

One more time leap, if you can handle it, and now I updated the sketch one more time this month, yes, January 2010, and triple-checked the insert layout from Dennis with my full-size sketch and overlayed the two files together for one final check before lift-off.

I wanted to make sure we were good to go since my next step would be to start designing a color sketch. Our goal is to get backglasses printed first and offer them for sale as soon as we can. But we have plenty of business to get situated before that happens, so stay tuned for more details!

Next time we'll start digging into the nuts and bolts, switches and relays, and bring in our friendly experts to do it right. And a paint job for the ages.

Until then, don't forget to comment on..."What is it?" and try not to get hung-up on that Hokey Pokey thing...it's just a humorous sign...or is it?

G&D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

All photos on this post by G.Freres and D. Nordman

Taking the Plunge

2010-01-18T21:35:00.020-06:00

The part of the cabinet redesign that was keeping Dennis up at night (writer embellishment) was the ball-serve mechanism and the related trough that had been originally factory-routed into the side of the cabinet. For those less familiar with earlier woodrail pinball games like Continental Cafe, once you sent your coin into the slot to play the game, you, the player, were responsible for getting the ball up to the plunger. Modern games take care of that for you by automatically feeding the ball via a push from a solenoid. But back in 1957, there was a small push-rod below the plunger that, when pushed forward, smoothly delivered the ball to its resting point in front of the plunger tip.

Once Dennis had made the decision to cut the main cabinet across the top to be parallel with the bottom (to look more like a real crate and not so much like a pinball cabinet), this created the need for an adjustment to the ball-serve routed trough and the placement of the related mechanical parts, because the original trough was truncated in the process of cutting off the top of the cabinet.

If you're still following this amazing non-truncated tale, the next step was to call Jimmy John's. After lunch, Dr. Dennis formulated a plan of action and started to rectify the situation. The first step in this surgical procedure was to painstakingly fill the original trough with a perfectly formed piece of wood, shaped somewhat like a banana...or a Kielbasa. (I can't wait to get back to talking about Melons).

Before creating the new groove, Dennis had to order a new bit for his plunge router. It set him back about $54 but there was no other way to get 'er done. The day arrived...and he took the plunge. As Dennis recounted the episode, he started with..."Everything was going really well, the new bit was doing exactly what it was designed to do."

Unfortunately, the depth adjustment wasn't locked on the router and...

...the bit changed the groove to a hole in a nanosecond. Doh!

Knowing Dennis, I'm sure he kept his cool and knew exactly what he would do next. Within a few minutes (writer's embellishment #2), Dennis had the hole plugged with wood, made sure the router depth was locked, and created the perfect finished trough.

Dennis double-checked the mechanism and the trough location and put all the parts back together to test the lift.

It all worked as planned and another angst-ridden phase of the project was completed. Dennis followed up with the Lock-down mechanism to make sure the new hand rail would seat properly.

The old metal parts were wire-brushed and clear coated to aesthetic perfection.

Somebody fetch my shades...

Did I mention the new hand-rail is made from maple and provides the needed comfort for the long hours of play this game will endure someday? (Writer embellishment #3 or just a stab at some positive PR.)

Dennis also spent some time on the front of the cabinet filling holes left by coin-mechs, coin returns, start buttons, etc. Since the game will never be used on location again, the coin mechs won't be needed. Eventually the recessed area of the front will get covered with a decal as well, including the old coin door. And also note the original serial number for the Continental Cafe game has been left intact in the center of the cabinet front...M50874CC. But soon to be known as WNBJM #1. Below is a quick study of the revised cabinet front compared to the original. (Note: The cabinet front used in this "before" picture is actually CC Game 2,thus the difference in serial numbers.)

Our next step was to spend some time thinking about the backglass layout as it relates to the backbox insert panel (the piece of wood that holds the scoring reels and all the lights to illuminate the backglass.) At this point we were thinking about changing the game to a one player game because of some playfield design changes Dennis wanted to try.

Until then, always remember...a banana shaped trough is never as easy as it looks.

G & D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

All photos on this post by G.Freres and D. Nordman

Executive Decisions by the Truckload

2010-01-08T21:00:00.031-06:00

Hopefully we're about the last to wish you a Happy New Year and here's to the future known as 2010. Really, 2010? We believe it to be the year of the melon. Mark it on your calendar...it's official.

Before we started looking into the feasibility of doing the Whoa Nellie project as a limited series we had basically jumped-the-gun and already begun to look into acquiring more "base" games for our 150 or so ideas for future projects - sometimes creativity and confidence walk together on "What-If Beach" at sunrise.

Within a very short period of time Dennis had a few winning bids on ebay (with his money), we had already picked up another game at Expo (with our combined money), and he was getting ready to pull the trigger on some more games when the term "Whoa Nellie" became a useful tool for a WhizBang reality check.

In an earlier post I mentioned that we bypassed some of the logistics involved in getting a custom pinball machine off the ground because all we wanted to do was create. So in making the jump from a one-off project to a potential limited series, one of the first problems that came to light was the ability to reproduce.

To finish that sentence properly, we had reached a design crossroad, a point of departure whereby we would need to make one of our first executive decisions without an executive in the room (one of the perks of designing custom games). In one direction, IF we were to offer more than one Whoa Nellie, with all the same attributes as the first Whoa Nellie, THEN we would need to build them on more Continental Cafe games. Since CC was not produced in huge numbers compared to other games from the EM era, we started noticing that Continental Cafe games are not readily available on the used game market. The other directional sign pointed us towards abandoning Continental Cafe as a base game and moving towards a game that is more readily available because of larger production numbers from day one, making it both easier to acquire and reproduce parts for the limited series. Both of us envisioned leaving the old Continental Cafe on the side of this crossroad, playfield up, no legs...cue the tumbleweed...and vultures.

We pondered these ideas for a couple days and executively decided to stick with Continental Cafe and start cranking up the search for more of these lonely games. It was about this time Dennis started talking with Team EM about the ability to revise electro-mechanical games - also known as "hacks" or "mods". After spewing a bunch of "what-ifs" on an email thread with the EM gurus, it seemed that a new approach began to enter into the design equation. By November 2nd, we made yet another executive decision (we now travel in the Whizbang corporate jet), and Dennis was confident that we could "hack" away (with guru guidance and direction) and create a new level of "custom" by adding a feature to the playfield and changing the basic game play of the original Continental Cafe. We no longer were simply providing an aesthetic facelift to an old classic, but we could now enter into the world of... augmentation.

The purchasing department (Dennis) started to get the word out about our search for more Continental Cafe's. Since Pinball Expo was only a couple weeks behind us Dennis contacted Mike Pacak to see if he had any CC's in his collection. Mike had none but suggested that we call Rob Berk (the PT Barnum of Pinball Expo) because of his extensive collection of random games.

Bingo! Jackpot! Hootie-Hoo! Dennis spoke with Rob and he had not ONE but TWO Continental Cafes! We now had three-of-a-kind, the rule of thirds, 1-2-3, Three's Company, the Golden Triangle, a complete Triptych, and quite possibly, The Trilogy of the Melons!

Dennis negotiated with Rob for the two games and worked out the delivery of the games with Mike to the upcoming Chicagoland Antique Advertising, Slot Machine, and Juke Box Show in St. Charles, Illinois. On a typically gray November Friday (the 13th), Dennis and I headed out to the show pick up our "inventory".

I had never been to the parking lot portion of the show before and saw a lot of fun stuff...like this antique accident scene. I wanted to draw a chalk line around this banjo buddy.

I'm not sure what this guy was used for...I'm hoping he was once part of some barbershop quartet. Nevertheless, severed heads are creepy, even with woodgrain showing.

Besides the Continental Cafe games, Dennis also arranged for a pick-up of his winning bids on Ebay...like Solar City.

We were warned that one of the CC backglasses was not in very good shape. We didn't realize it was practically a window. Dennis negotiated a price adjustment and was evidently happy with the result.

We wrangled all of our games onto Dennis' pick-up...

...including yet another winning bid...Flying Carpet...

...and got the hell out of there before we spent more money that we didn't have.

With a hefty stash of games for the future (the future beyond the future known as 2010) now safely stored in the "warehouse", and a plan of action for the modified design of the playfield, it was now time to get back to the reality of Game 1 and also start planning for an eventual business future by capturing the costs involved for the first game.

Another pass on the backglass design was needed as the new design direction would affect the layout of the art. And Dennis was still looking forward to figuring out the ball delivery mechanism and using his new special router bit to get the cabinet redesign wrapped up for the upcoming holidays. We'll share all this next time inside the WhizBang studio.

G & D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Beach at sunrise photo courtesy stock.xchng

All other photos on this post by G.Freres

The Measuring Gremlin Strikes Again

2009-12-28T20:42:00.009-06:00

We hope everyone survived the holiday season so far and wish everyone a great 2010! Within the next few posts we should have the blog caught up to our current progress and be able to update you with the very latest progress inside the studio.

After Pinball Expo we spent a lot of time thinking about our future plans and about the business side of it all - or even if there would be a business side of it all. We connected with a great group of people after the show and started talking in terms of how to go about moving this idea from the original "one-off" approach to a potential limited series; much like the world of fine art. Gathering opinions from different sources started making our combined heads spin in a different direction than they are used to spinning so we made sure to get back to the task at hand and keep our combined noses to the design grindstone. (BTW - I actually had a summer job in my college days whereby I worked 9-5 at an actual grindstone but fortunately my nose never made contact - but my knuckles sure did.)

Dennis figured out the original problem with the backbox measurements and corrected them just after Expo. However, when going to the next step of attaching the backbox to the main cabinet, the measuring gremlin that haunted Dennis' shop stepped in again, and the hole that was cut to allow wires and cables to pass from backbox to cabinet was cut too large. Dennis called me to vent his frustration but inadvertantly came up with our first "notable quotable" for the project when he said (paraphrasing for a wider audience):

"Oh well, tomorrow I'll fix what I f'd-up today."

I told him we now have a great "hook" for a country song and have since trademarked the line and started writing more lyrics.

Dennis placed the new backbox on the cabinet and called me out for a milestone review. We also invited our good friend and colleague, Roger Sharpe, out to the studio for his impressions since we didn't get to talk to him much at Expo. For those readers that may not be familiar with the people of pinball, Roger is a major league pinball historian, player, designer, author, license magnet and negotiator, and we value his opinions on all subjects related to pinball.

By this point Dennis had also made progress on the front trim of the main cabinet and filled holes in both the front and coin-door area. We discussed locations for the start button and how we would decal the front of the game. The photo below also shows the maple lock-down handrail that Dennis created but still had to figure out how to make it work with the lock-down mechanism inside the main cabinet. We also discussed the best location for the flipper buttons with Roger.

We had a great conversation with Roger and he offered up some great opinions and ideas to help move our ideas forward.

Dennis next had to tackle some of the more hidden inner-workings of the cabinet including the lock-down mechanism and the re-routed ball lift channel. But in order to accomplish this he had to order a special router bit. He also further defined the insert panel inside the backbox after we made some larger decisions about the overall direction of the game.

More to come. Happy New Year!

G & D

Pinball Expo and Beyond

2009-12-18T20:10:00.015-06:00

Dennis was moving quickly to finalize the backbox design of the cabinet for the deadline called Pinball Expo. When I drove out to his studio to apply the new base cabinet decals, I got a preview of the backbox after Dennis had just finished putting the framework together. It was sitting on his work bench with clamps holding some newly glued pieces together when Dennis mentioned something about the box not sitting right. I was excited about the new decals and wanted to get them mounted on the cabinet so I wasn't too concerned about his comment. And even Dennis was easily distracted with the rest of the job I came there to do.

I reworked the initial comp of the title design I had started by adding more crate label influences like extra typography appropriate to our theme. At some point in early October I called Dennis and asked if we could change one word in the title - from "Sweet" to "Big". Done! That was easy.

I also worked up a composite of a group of cantaloupes to create the look of a full crate of melons viewed through the slats. I worked quickly just to get something representative on the cabinet to better "sell" the idea to the first time viewer. Eventually, I will rework the art to create a better and hopefully less repetitive illusion - this version is one "slat opening" of art.

I then repeated the strip several times and got it printed.

After cutting the strips apart I decided to flip each piece to help randomize the look. It was at this point that we noticed some measuring issues when applying the cut labels and decided to paint the wood black around the edges to make up for the slightly short decals.

But once we finished, the newly dressed-up-and-somewhere-to-go base crate gave us a new sense of accomplishment. Unfortunately these measuring issues began to haunt the studio.

The next day I got a call from Dennis. His tone was a bit off. Seems he had some measuring issues with the backbox and there was not enough time to start over and get the piece done for Expo. So we went with the show business adage, "the show must go on", and decided the half-built cabinet was enough to help bolster our Powerpoint presentation and give everyone a glimpse of our overall direction. Plus, no matter how you slice it (or cut the wood in this case), it's all still a work-in-progress.

I finished the powerpoint presentation for both of our Expo "shows" and went back to Dennis' place a couple days before the show to go over the presentation and add any last minute details. Before I left we reveiwed our visual progress out in the shop and decided to put the existing Continental Cafe backbox on top of our recently completed work of art just to help bridge our own vision by a small degree. It worked! It started looking like a pinball machine made from a bunch of crates. But we decided not to confuse the audience with this mix of style - we would only show the bottom two pieces and leave the old backbox at home.

Side note: At this point I wasn't completely sold on the 2x4 providing the angle for the game cabinet. I thought it should have more "character" built into the device. I suggested to Dennis that maybe the "guy" that put this thing together from his old crate collection was looking for the magic device to create the perfect angle - maybe something a bit more 'adjustable'. Like maybe when he finished his can of beer, and after stomping on it, it dawned on him that this was the angle adjustment he was looking for! Dennis grabbed a couple cans from the recycling bin, stomped on them, and the result is evident in the above photo. Is it a keeper idea? Well, the crushed cans didn't make it to the show.

Agreeing to show our project at Pinball Expo 2009 was probably one of the best decisions we've made so far. It gave us a real deadline to shoot for and we couldn't have been more pleased with the overall response we got from the attendees. Of course there were a few "I don't get it" style comments but most everyone seems genuinely interested in Big Juicy Melons.

The Whoa Nellie work-in-progress opened up communication with a lot of folks that we may never have had a chance to meet without the project. Dennis and I had no idea of what type of reaction we'd get from the actual presentation but it turned out well. However, just before we went up to start the presentation, Wayne Neyens, the Gottlieb game designer that actually designed "Continental Cafe" (among countless other great games) walked in and took a seat in the audience. His presence turned up the anxiety dial a few notches not knowing how he'd react to a couple of punks like us "frankensteining" his original work. Fortunately, Mr. Neyens has a great sense of humor and came up after to take a closer look. He smiled and wished us luck! (Someday we'll post a picture of this moment if we ever find the photographer - maybe it will be in the next issue of Pingame Journal??)

We spent the rest of the weekend talking,and talking,and talking - but it was all good and very productive. We went home exhausted but happy knowing that a good number of people were "on board" with this idea. We came away with new ideas, a sense of direction, and plenty of contacts for printing and other related support.

I created a poster exclusive for Expo and sold it for a modest price to help raise some capital for our, so far, out-of-pocket venture. We only printed 100 11x17 posters. We sold about 25 posters so if you already own one it's now even more collectible as we will cut off the "Expo" related portion for future sales of the remaining posters.

The remaining posters will look like this (13 x 10.75"):

If you are interested in owning an early piece of the Big Juicy Melon project with an autographed copy of this limited supply poster please email us at whizbangpin@comcast.net and we'll work out the details for shipping and payment.

Next time we'll continue with the rest of the backbox story and the continued haunting of D's studio that led to the new "notable quotable".

Oh, and one other interesting side note. In July I celebrated yet another birthday with my family at a local Chinese restaurant. When I opened the fortune cookie I read this message:

I went home and taped the fortune to my calendar and counted three months ahead...and I landed on the day we ended up debuting the Whoa Nellie project! It's all good!

We want to thank Rob and Mike again for a great 25th anniversary Pinball Expo and giving us the opportunity to preview "Project X" and leaving it on the show floor for all to see. And thanks to Jerry and Mark for all the help we received getting the project into the building under wraps for the big debut. And thanks to all the folks that chatted with us and provided the needed support to continue with our plans.

Now get back to shopping...and hurry,
G & D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

All photos in this post by G. Freres

In the meantime...Art Start

2009-12-11T20:21:00.008-06:00

Dennis could begin to see the finish line approaching as Pinball Expo was about one week away when he started to build the backbox. Even though there were other details of the cabinet that needed to be addressed we felt that with the backbox completed, we'd have a good portion of Dennis' vision for the cabinet represented at Expo.

While Dennis was cranking the summer away on the cabinet, I had spent some time working on a backglass sketch starting at the end of August and began working on the title design for the Whoa Nellie brand. Based on my research of fruit crate labels I had a good idea for the direction I would take regarding the design of the letter forms and I ended up designing a piece that was a good starting point. I sent it to Dennis to get his take on it.

Dennis was happy with this initial direction and reminded me that fruit labels were full of all sorts of lettering...along with the company name there are distributors, locations, the kind of fruit or vegetables, quality marks, packers, years in the business and other elements that fill much of the label with words. This allowed us to have some fun with these types of elements and gave me more room for creativity.

I really didn't want to go to expo without representing the art "department" so I continued to refine what started as a title design into something that could be used for the front label of the base crate.

At the same time I had some initial ideas for the backglass going. Knowing all of the above direction from Dennis would play into the backglass design as well I started by looking at the key elements of the art - the title (all of it), the pin-up girl (I call her Nellie), and the cool stake bed truck. I still wanted to capture the feel of a retro-backglass but based on the design principles of crate labels.

At this point I paid some amount of attention to the Continental Cafe layout, especially for the locations of the hidden copy on the original backglass, but more as a placeholder for future reference. I used rectangles to represent an approximate location for the score reels. My first pass of Nellie was just that, a first pass. I wasn't at all happy with her face but you gotta start somewhere. She needed to be...sweeter. But I was happy with the initial sketches for the stake bed truck and started to give it some personality of its own. And the driver was the beginning of my take on Roy Parker's cast of happy background characters.

As you can see this initial sketch added a new energy to our overall direction and the excitement of working on pinball started to sink in once again. I set the backglass aside and went back to keeping up with other design work in my new freelance career.

With a backglass sketch started, Dennis began to look into the backbox and specifically the insert panel (the piece of wood that holds the score reels and the lights to illuminate the backglass). He called to let me know that it would be possible to move some elements around slightly if needed to achieve a better layout for the art. To a pinball artist these words are similar to..."Son, here's your brand new pony."

Ok, so I exaggerate once in a while. BUT, back in the day, when the backglass was still based on score reels or digital displays scattered throughout the backglass layout, causing shadow areas that we had to design around and create an "opaque screen" to help hide these shadows, and there was no talk about moving things because these were 'standard' locations for production, then you can begin to see how a designer telling me that I could move stuff around to suit my aesthetic needs...damn near a new pony in my book! It's the little things in life...right?

So we got off-track slightly to give you some insight to the start of art, but next time we'll continue with getting the cabinet ready for Expo and share our first "Notable Quotable" from the project.

Stay warm.

G & D

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Sweet Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

Pony Photo courtesy stock.xchng

"Driver 1" (funny picture) by A. Freres

Reconstructive Surgery - The First Step

2009-12-06T11:39:00.027-06:00

After Dennis finished the sketch for the new "stack-o-crates" configuration, he thought about doing a small scale mock-up that we could take to the Pinball Expo in mid-October and unveil our idea to the "world". I called Rob Berk, organizer of the Expo, and asked if there were any time slots available for a short presentation regarding a project we wanted to share with the attendees. We had already agreed to do a presentation on our combined projects from our days at Bally and Williams, something that Rob titled "Evolution of the Party Animals", so we weren't sure if people would show up to a separate talk by the same two guys. Rob graciously agreed and gave us a spot on Friday evening and decided to title it, "The Unveiling of Project X". We now had a deadline and Dennis immediately upped the ante by deciding to get the reconstructed cabinet completed for the show!

Dennis describes the the steps he took in his own words:

When I did the cabinet sketch, I eliminated the standard legs and made a crate for the base. The idea was to give the cabinet a look of stacked up fruit crates and I felt that eliminating the legs was the perfect way to create the beginning of a really unique profile.

At first, the base cabinet had solid walls but Greg suggested adding slats with openings so he could add melon art to make the crate look like it was full of melons - a great idea!

I built the base cabinet using ¾ inch plywood to provide stability and mounted the original leg levelers to the bottom. I added a frame and slats on the sides to give it that crate look. We used actual crate labels for mock-up purposes only until Greg could provide his own version of labels for the Whoa Nellie Brand.

I distressed this crate the same way I did the main cabinet (See below). We wanted this crate to look different from the main cabinet for aesthetic variety. Instead of staining, I gave it a wash of light and medium grey latex paint. When that was dry, I gave it a wash of black latex paint and immediately rubbed it off with a towel. This "wipe" process highlighted all the cracks and crevices adding to the weathered look I wanted to achieve.

The main cabinet of the Continental Cafe game is slanted on the top, from back to front (like all pingames). But I wanted the cabinet to be ‘square’ like most crates. With the cabinet flat on top, there were two ways to provide the proper angle for the playfield. One was to drop the front of the playfield 3.5 degrees into the cabinet. The other way was to keep the playfield parallel with the top of the cabinet, and raise the back of the cabinet from underneath to obtain the 3.5 degrees. I decided I liked the look of the back of the cabinet being propped up by an old 2x4 - it adds an element of 'local authenticity' - like somebody built a pinball machine from a pile of fruit crates.

My first step was to pull everything out of the cabinet and take lots of pictures so I could get it all back together again. I also pulled out the rear glass support and playfield stop cross-piece. After I cut off the angled part of the cabinet I’d have to re-position this cross-piece later in the process.

(Note: The above photo represents the reconstructed cross-piece.)
I took a lot of measurements and decided I could make the main cabinet a little thinner for better visual proportions. I clamped some guide boards for the saw to the cabinet parallel to the bottom and cut off the top angled portion of the cabinet. Then I hand chiseled new grooves in the cabinet to remount the glass and playfield stop cross- piece. When I got done, I thought the cabinet looked pretty good.

It was then that I realized that I had paid no attention to the ball serve channel routed into the side of the cabinet. (For the unfamiliar, when these games were made, the ball serve mechanism was not automated - the player pushed a rod forward that would lift the ball to the top of the playfield in front of the plunger.) I had cut off the top quarter of the channel meaning I’d have to re-position and re-rout a new channel.

At this point it was time to remove the paint from the outside of the cabinet. (Although now I think this step was not necessary.) I could strip it or I could sand it. I’ve stripped lots of furniture and it’s a pretty messy process. It was a nice day so I decided to sand it outdoors in my driveway. There was a slight breeze so all the sawdust would blow into my neighbor’s yard. Perfect conditions! I plugged in my random-orbital sander and got to work.

After that was done, I started cutting the frame work for the crate. The 1.5 by .75 boards were cut from some cedar lumber I had saved from an old deck. After the pieces were cut to the proper length I started to distress them to look like an old crate. There is a gravel area near my shop and I placed the boards on the ground and jumped, stomped, and kicked them around to create random dents and scratches.

(Note: We apologize for not documenting the above, possibly very entertaining part of the process.)

I then used a propane torch to lightly burn the wood strips to help add to the illusion of aged wood and then scrubbed the strips with a wire brush to leave raised grain. This gives the appearance of a nice worn and weathered look.

The final step was to wipe on a walnut stain to darken the wood. I glued and nailed the strips to the cabinet and it began to take shape. I also had to cut a channel in the two pieces that go on the top of the cabinet to create a channel for the glass to slide in.

I asked Greg to get full-size prints made of the label art that we borrowed for mock-up purposes only, and we had a label day at my shop. The vision I had from my original sketch began to live in the real world and we started to get really excited about the future of this project.

(Note: The above base cabinet is before Dennis added the slats to the sides. Also note the all-important angle-providing 2x4.)

Unfortunately, I began to run out of time to get the entire cabinet completed for Pinball Expo 2009. While Greg worked on a backglass layout, title design, and label art for the base cabinet, I continued to make as much progress on the rest of the cabinet as I could. I still had to figure out how to rework the lockdown bar at the front of the cabinet to work with the rest of the design aesthetic, design and build the backbox and get the insert panel updated so Greg could work on backglass layout progress, and figure out how to finish the front of the playfield cabinet and coin door area.

Next: Prepping for Pinball Expo and further cabinet progress.

Photos by G. Freres and D. Nordman
Continental Cafe flyer courtesy of IPDB.com
Fruit crate labels (used for presentation mock-up only), Western Hoe and Best Point, found on various websites.

A Trip to the Game Doctor

2009-11-29T11:11:00.018-06:00

Now that we had the theme of "Whoa Nellie!" firmly established we began to think in terms of getting the Continental Cafe game checked out by a local electro-mechanical (EM) expert to make sure the plans we had for the game made sense. We didn't want to get too far ahead of ourselves and find out that using this game was going to be problematic in any way.

As we mentioned previously, Dennis bought the game in 2006 after seeing it at the art museum show in downstate Mt. Vernon, Illinois from local collectors Marvin and Jeff Giesting. Cosmetically the game was in great shape, including the backglass, but the game needed some work to get it back in playable condition. Unfortunately, when the game was delivered to Dennis, a mishap occurred in transit and the near mint condition backglass arrived broken into two pieces. Both Marvin and Jeff felt horrible about the glass and offered Dennis a discounted price for the game - a great example of the type of folks involved in the hobby of collecting pinball games. Dennis appreciated the generous offer and hoped he could find another backglass of similar quality. But who would have guessed that a few years later, the original backglass would no longer be needed.

After having stored the game since 2006, and never having spent any time with electro-mechanical games previous to this purchase, Dennis contacted Team EM, a group of pinball enthusiasts that specialize in EM games for some serious help. The closest team member geographically was Ken Walker so Dennis gave him a call to find out if he was interested in helping us look into the viability of the game. Ken agreed and we made a trip to his house with the CC game in the back of Dennis' pick-up.

Ken spent a good two hours with the game on a beautiful late summer afternoon on the patio in his backyard. After a brief overview of the game to help familiarize himself with the general condition, the game refused to start after we plugged it in so Ken started to diagnose the system to find the problem. As he moved through the game Ken explained to us the finer points of how an EM game works as he poked and prodded at different parts of the aging inner workings.

Dennis and I absorbed what we could from Ken's session, like a couple of dogs listening to human speech we were only understanding every fifth word or so, and soon realized that in the long run this step in the process was best left to the experts. I had never felt more comfortable or useful in my role as dedicated photographer.

One of the most interesting things we learned about these old games was the unusual method for turning them off. We found this label inside the cabinet and asked Ken to explain. Instead of an "off" switch all you have to do is kick the underside of the game and it will turn off. Apparently the fiction of the way Arthur Fonzarelli turned on or off the jukebox on Happy Days was based on some fact.

In a short period of time, Ken found the first suspect switch, adjusted it, and the game came to life for the first time since 2006. The lights were on, the flippers clacked and the bells dinged. He continued to inspect all apects of the game and in no time we were able to start playing.

I'm always amazed by mechanical aptitude because I believe I have a genetic flaw that prevents me from understanding how things work. Many people say, when it comes to art, they can't even draw a stick figure but put me in front of anything mechanical or electrical and what good is my stick figure? "Hey Stick, my car won't start...got any ideas?" I've spent many years around pinball machines but unfortunately I still have to call someone for almost any repairs.

After Ken finished his work, we packed the game back in the truck, thanked him for his guidance and expertise, and asked if he'd be available for future repair or diagnostics on an as-needed basis. Again he agreed to help us with any and all aspects of our project (he must have seen the lost look on our face during his diagnostic session). To show Ken the respect he deserves, here's a stick figure version of a new character I call..."Dr. Ken Walker, E-MD." Thanks again Ken!

In the next episode, Dennis begins the deconstruction and reconstruction process of Continental Cafe - the first step toward its new life as "Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons".

All Photos on this post by G.Freres
Continental Cafe - Artwork by Roy Parker, Game Design by Wayne Neyens

Crates, Cantaloupes, and Cool Old Trucks

2009-11-22T22:22:00.014-06:00

When the idea blender finished, Dennis poured it on the table and said, "It's going to be 'Ripe Juicy Melons' and I'm completely changing the cabinet to look like a stack of old beat-up fruit crates!" Needless to say we sat down and started brainstorming further ideas to enhance the theme. In under an hour we had a list of visual ideas for me to go back home and start working up some sketches.

Some of the "must haves" from the idea list were: A pin-up style girl (holding her award winning cantaloupes) as the focal point of the scene that would resemble a Fruit Crate Label and yet carry the tone of the Roy Parker style of pinball art. All around her are the farm workers completely distracted by her melons but still enjoying their work. A cool old truck. Some fruit crates. A dog. And a guy getting thrown from his horse because even the horse is distracted. Whoa! Hang on a minute.

At this point we started discussing the name a bit further and thought "Sweet" seemed to be the right word choice over Ripe. So for a while it was "Sweet Juicy Melons". (We'd eventually revise that all important first word to "Big" because in cantaloupe sales, size probably matters). But it was when the horse came up in the brainstorm session that I immediately suggested, "These melons, this label needs a company name. All fruit crate labels have some kind of catchy or not-so-catchy name to go with the produce they ship. So with this guy getting thrown from his horse, the new name of this melon company is 'Whoa Nellie!'" And Dennis chimed in with "Whoa Nellie Brand...Sweet Juicy Melons!"

Suddenly it felt like no time had passed since Dennis and I worked together back at Bally and Williams. The time and place were different but the feeling was exactly the same. We knew we arrived at the right starting point for this project and that it was a great theme that fit our combined sense of direction and warped sense of humor.

Dennis emailed me within a couple days with his first "concept" sketch of his cabinet idea, and it was stunning. The cabinet has a completely unique profile without the standard legs attached. He used old fruit crate art for the mock-up to help sell the idea better. The sketch further solidified our direction and we were on a roll.

As a footnote, it's a bit ironic to think that one of the biggest features on the pinball game Scared Stiff was "The Crate". Even the cabinet art looked like the crate. I guess Dennis just can't get away from designing cool crates. As Dennis might say, "He's a crate guy."

Below is what is left of the original mock-up crate for Scared Stiff, made from styrene, and behind it the vacuum-formed production version. Note that on the original mock-up, the "UP" pointers for the crate are pointing in all directions but on the production version we felt the need to be clear for assembly reasons.

Below, "The Crate" on the Scared Stiff playfield.

Next time we'll start showing some of the progress of the now named "Whoa Nellie" project.

All art, sketches, or photos related directly to "Whizbang Pinball" or "Whoa Nellie (Brand) Big Juicy Melons" are TM and Copyright 2009 WhizBang Pinball, Greg Freres, and Dennis Nordman.

All other photos credit the photographer or source whenever possible.

"Red '56 Stakebed" photo by G. Freres (Courtesy of Mike E. in Delavan)
Scared Stiff Crate and Playfield Photos by G. Freres

Inspiration and The Idea Blender

2009-11-21T17:41:00.013-06:00

After sifting through all the possibilities of what could be the theme of our first project, the idea blender started its thing and I got a call from Dennis inviting me to come out to his place to unveil a seed for the project.

Our first goal was to find a theme that best fit the vintage of the Continental Cafe game. Since we are industry guys first, we looked at this as an opportunity to make a game with a theme that we could never do in a commercial environment (even though some would say that some of our themes that we developed in-house we're a bit obtuse for the general public). We also wanted the theme to visually fit with a game from 1957. Of all the artists working in pinball back in the early years, Roy Parker is a big favorite among collectors and was an amazingly prolific artist. As Dennis points out, all of the people on Parker's backglasses are having as much fun as the person playing the game. So the mood of our project was definitely inspired by Mr. Parker's vast portfolio of happy people enjoying life in some decidedly American way.

Our second point of inspiration came from Dennis' appreciation for the lost art of Fruit Crate Labels. We actually worked together on a side project in the early '80's when Dennis thought we could tie into the Cabbage Patch Kid phenom by creating hand-built Fruit Crates that act as cribs for for the dolls. I did label art and Dennis built some prototypes...and I think we ended up giving them away to friends and family. But the point is Fruit Crate art is a unique and forgotten part of our culture that makes for good eye-candy.

And thirdly, we felt that you can't go wrong with Pin-Up art. The history of Pinball art has always been influenced by the great Pin-Up masters with many machines using the female form as a way to lure the customer over to the machine in the tavern or arcade. And again, since the base game of our project is from 1957, it makes sense to work in some influence from the haydays of pin-up art. And obviously, Fruit Crate art was also inspired by Pin-Up art. As a sidebar thought for the blender, we have also had success as a design team by employing the use of the double-entendre, so we thought it would be a great starting point to return to what's worked for us before on our first custom game.

So those are the broad influences that we used to get started. Then we hit the drawing board.

G & D

Credits: Daisy May Backglass by Roy Parker (photo courtesy of IPDB), source of "Foot High" crate label unknown, "Smoke Screen", 1958 by Gil Elvgren.

The Project - Not Just a Facelift

2009-11-18T20:17:00.011-06:00

After we brainstormed over 100 ideas on the plane trip home from Seattle it took about a week to think it all through to come up with what could be our first Project. We basically skimmed over the logistics of not only re-skinning a classic game from the glory days of pinball, but taking it one-step-beyond a simple facelift. In hindsight, we could have chosen a better playing "classic" game to build our custom work upon but sometimes things happen for a reason.
Rewind briefly, previous to the Seattle show, back in 2006 Dennis and I were part of an exhibit at the Cedarhurst Museum in downstate Mt. Vernon, Illinois called "Tilt: The Art of Pinball". At that show Dennis had seen an old Gottlieb woodrail game from 1957 called "Continental Cafe", found out is was for sale, and ended up purchasing it because he liked the retro look and feel of the old electro-mechanical games from the '50's and '60's. He had no previous experience collecting, playing, or fiddling with EM games before this purchase. Merely a casual admirerer.

So here we are, using the Continental Cafe game that Dennis bought for no other reason than to enjoy its vintage-ness, and using it as our first "platform" for the wild-hair idea that was born in the Land of Hendrix. Eventually we'll get our posts caught up with where we are at today, but for now we'll continue with some catch-up posts to show the steps we've taken so far.

Blame It On Seattle

2009-11-17T21:57:00.000-06:00

Welcome to Whizbang Pinball. We are a two-man tag-team of art and design with years of pinball industry experience. Our "inside" work has produced over 30 Pinball and arcade games, seven of which we collaborated together. If you're not familiar with our combined work a few highlights would include Elvira and the Party Monsters, Dr. Dude, and Scared Stiff. Check out the Internet Pinball Database for more information on our games and even more about Pinball in general. It's a great resource.

After both of us experienced a personal brush with the "biggest economic downturn since the Great Depression" at the end of 2008, we had a bit of a reunion in June of this year when we were both asked to speak about our experience in the pinball industry at the Northwest Pinball and Gameroom Show in Seattle Washington. We had not worked together since a bleak Thursday in 1996 and we had only really seen each other a few times at pinball collector events.

So call it fate, the alignment of the stars, or simply a random act of randomness, but by the end of the Seattle weekend we headed back to Chicago with a bunch of ideas that could hopefully re-ignite our design skills in Pinball and combine our vision for more unique and entertaining games. We are in the very early stages of our first design and thought we'd share this new design experience with friends and fans, players and collectors, artists and designers, or anyone else that might stumble upon this blog with a vague interest in something unusual.

Stop by often for updates as we attempt to keep you posted on our progress. We want this to feel like you're walking into our studio to see what's been happening (without the ability to offer a cup-a-coffee, sody-pop, or an adult beverage). And feel free to throw us an opinion - it's just part of the process.

Thanks for stoppin' by!

G & D