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About two years ago on rec.games.pinball Russ Jensen posted an entry offering this article for anyone whom asked........... |
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Bally's BIKINI - IT'S "OK"
If the question
were asked, "what type of electro-mechanical pingame had the most complicated
circuitry?", the answer would most certainly be the "In-Line" or "Bingo"
pinball. And of these games the most complicated variety would be those known by
bingo pinball aficionados as the "OK Games."
Having been fascinated by
bingo pinball circuitry ever since I was a teenager (I sent for, and received
from Bally, a schematic and instruction manual for their 1953 bingo YACHT CLUB
way back then) obtaining my first "bingo", MIAMI BEACH, in the mid seventies was
a great thrill. When I replaced that game a few years later with KEY WEST, a
much more sophisticated "turning corners" game, I felt I had made another step
"up the ladder." But, ever since I learned what they were a few years back, I
have yearned for what I considered to be the "ultimate bingo pinball", an "OK
bingo".
Well, not too long ago my dream was realized when a Los Angeles
area free-lance dealer in coin games, Mr. Paul Crain, made me "an offer I could
not refuse" and supplied me with my dream, an "OK bingo pinball", Bally's BIKINI
by name. The game was in good "as-is" condition and complete, except for a few
missing relay armatures which Paul supplied. After several months (I was only
able to work on the game a few hours each week), and much study of the
additional circuitry that these games had above their earlier predecessors, I
was able to put this game into good working condition and it now holds a prime
position in my collection of classic pingames.
The backglass, by the
way, showed some signs of peeling and had a few small areas of missing paint.
After a little "touch-up" with model paints I applied Steve Young and Gordon
Hasse's new product "Cover Your Glass" and it worked great! I now have a glass
that cannot deteriorate in the future. One hint I might mention for those of you
who use this product is to make absolutely sure your touch-up paint is
completely dry before applying "Cover Your Glass", otherwise the wet paint will
be somewhat spread by the sealant.
Before talking about the features of
BIKINI, I thought it might be in order to briefly describe the "evolution" of
some of the features that make up the "OK bingo".
"Advancing Odds" (that
is, payout odds which either increase, but never decrease, or which remain the
same with insertion of additional coins) were first introduced in "bingo
pinballs" with SPOT LITE in 1951. This feature had however been used in the
"one-ball horserace" pinballs (the predecessor of the "bingo") since Bally's
CITATION in 1949.
"Three-color lines" (red, yellow, and green), with
separate odds for each color, became a standard feature beginning with Bally's
BROADWAY in 1955, although some multi-color schemes were used in a few older
games. A separate set of payout odds was displayed on the backglass for each of
the three colors, and the player could score 3, 4, or 5 in-line winners for each
color independently (ie, a winner scored on one color line would not preclude a
similar winner scoring on a different colored line.
'Magic ScreenS'
A major evolution in "bingos" came about in late 1958 with the
introduction of what was referred to as the "Magic Screen" in Bally's CARNIVAL
QUEEN. Up to this point (except for MIAMI BEACH which had a gimmick which added
extra columns to the card) all bingos, that I know of, had one or more 5 by 5
number "bingo cards" on their backglasses; some games, however, also had 3 by 3
number "super cards" in addition to the regular 5 by 5 cards. The "Magic Screen"
was also a 5 by 5 number card, but had a moveable "overlay" which changed the
scoring patterns on the card.
When a new game was first started the
"basic screen" appeared which allowed only "in-line" scoring (3 to 5 numbers in
a row on either a vertical, horizontal, or diagonal line) as was the case in
earlier games. These lines were also of three colors (red, yellow, and green)
with corresponding sets of payout odds for each color on the backglass as
previously described.
The "Magic Screen" overlay, however, also had
additional "columns" containing various "scoring patterns" which could be moved
in front of the bingo card. As each new column was exposed to the player, one of
the columns on the opposite side of the card would disappear. When five or more
new columns were exposed, the original "in-line" scoring lines would have
completely disappeared exposing an entirely new pattern.
In order for a
player to qualify to move the screen he must (from depositing extra coins a the
start of a game) light up one or more letters ('A', 'B', 'C', etc) on the
backglass. Each letter lit (and like all bingo "multiple coin features" they lit
in a "pseudo-random" fashion as extra coins were deposited) would allow the
player to move the screen an additional position, but only during the period of
play when movement of the screen was allowed. Buttons on the front rail of the
machine (labeled "Left" and "Right") allowed the player to control movement of
the screen, but only between the positions for which he had first qualified.
These new positions of the screen added columns which contained colored
"scoring sections" instead of the normal "in-line" scoring patterns of the
"basic screen". And, as was mentioned earlier, as each new column was exposed,
one of the original "in-line" columns would disappear. Besides these "sections"
being of various shapes, scoring a winner within a given colored section
required only that a certain number of card numbers be lit in that section which
need not all be adjacent in the section (as opposed to "in-line" scoring in
which the 3, 4,or 5 numbers required to score must all be adjacent in the same
line.)
The addition of "Magic Screens" to bingo machines became a very
popular feature with players as it gave them several advantages. If a player had
qualified for screen movement, he always had the opportunity of changing the
screen position up until he shot the fourth ball (and sometimes as late as after
shooting the fourth or fifth ball if he also qualified for these extra
"advantages" during "multiple coin play" at the start of the game).
This
gave the player two major advantages. First, if his initial balls did not land
in holes forming a winning "in-line" pattern, moving the screen could result in
these "losing numbers" becoming a "winning combination" In one of the additional
"colored scoring sections". Secondly, if he had a winning "in-line" pattern,
after collecting replays for that winner moving the screen could result in
additional "winners" for the balls he shot in one of the colored scoring
sections. The only restriction was that you could not score twice for the same
number of numbers (3, 4, or 5) in the same color. A final advantage was that
even if the first few balls shot did not produce either an "in-line" or
"section" winner, the screen could be positioned by the player such that the
remaining numbers to be lit to score a winner were ones which he felt were the
easiest to shoot for.
All of the colored "scoring sections" on the
screen (except for a special "Blue Section", and an "Orange Section" on "OK
games") were red, yellow and green, like the colored lines on the "basic
screen", and scored according to the corresponding color odds on the backglass.
One Yellow Section and one Red Section had stripes on them and were referred to
as "super sections". If the corresponding "super section feature" was lit on the
backglass, winners in these sections required one less number than normal (ie. 2
scored as 3, 3 as 4, and 4 as 5).
The "Blue Section", which contained
only 3 numbers, scored a large number of replays for lighting 2 or 3 numbers,
depending on which, if any, of the special "Blue Section features" were lit
during the depositing of extra coins at the start of the game. More details on
the "Blue Section" and "Orange Section" scoring will be given during the
detailed discussion of Bally BIKINI's features.
In addition to the
"Magic Screen" features, the great appeal of "OK bingos" came from their
"Futurity Features". The idea of these is that something occurring during the
play of one game affected what happened in the next game.
This idea was
used to some extent in earlier pingames, but not in such a sophisticated manner
as in the "OK bingo". "One-ball Horserace" pingames in the late Forties and
early Fifties had an "A-B-C-D feature" in which four bumpers, when hit in
sequence, would cause something special to happen (such as lighting all seven
"horse selections") in the next game when the sequence was finally completed. A
similar idea was used in the so-called "Spell-Name" feature used on some
"One-Balls" and a few amusement pins as well.
As far as "pre-OK" bingos
were concerned, an example of a "future feature" was the "Ballyhole feature" in
CYPRESS GARDENS in 1958. If the "Ballyhole panel" on the backglass was lit
during extra coin play, and the player got a ball into the "Ballyhole" (number
16), when he started his next game the letters A-B-C-D-E would automatically
light on the backglass giving him the "Turning Corners" and "Moving Line"
features of the game without having to deposit extra coins.
BIKINI
FEATURES
Now that the evolution of the primary bingo pinball features
that were used in the "OK bingos" have been described, I will give the details
of how these features were implemented in Bally's BIKINI
BIKINI has a
"Magic Screen" consisting of the "basic screen", seven additional screen
positions "A" through "G" (similar to those found in its "non-OK" predecessors),
and two additional special "OK positions" which will be described shortly.
The "A" through "G" positions contain the "colored sections" as
previously described, including red and yellow striped "Super Sections" and the
special "Blue Section". The two "Super Sections" Score as normal colored
sections unless the corresponding color "Super Section panel" is lit on the
backglass during extra coin play at the start of the game. These panels, when
lit, indicate "yellow (or red) super section with black stripes - 2 scores as 3,
3 scores as 4, and 4 scores as 5". The player must have also qualified for
screen positions "A" thru D" to use these features. Incidentally, "A" thru "D"
screen qualification occurs all at once (ie. you can't get "A" lit without "B"
through "D").
The special "Blue Section" contains only three numbers
which are shown only if the player has qualified for at least the "F" screen
position. As soon as "F" (or "G") has been lit during extra coin play, a special
panel on the backglass indicating "3 in Blue Section scores 300" lights; and if
the player succeeds in lighting all three numbers in the "Blue Section" he gets
that many replays.
Depositing extra coins at the start of a game can
also cause one of two additional panels to light indicating either "3 In Blue
Section Scores 600", or "2 in Blue Section Scores 600" respectively. The later
panel is extremely difficult to light and is considered a "prime coup" by bingo
pinball aficionados, especially if the player also gets the balls into the right
holes! As for what numbers a player must get to score in the "Blue Section"; if
he has qualified for the "F" screen position the "Blue Section" numbers are 13,
17, and 20. If he qualifies for the "g" position he has an additional choice of
13, 16, and 21. The player must, however, move the screen to one of these two
positions during the period when screen movement is allowed (but more about that
later).
As I mentioned earlier, in addition to the screen positions "A"
thru "G", all "OK bingos" have two additional positions generally referred to as
the "OK screen". In order to qualify to move the screen to these positions the
player must have first lit the panel labeled "OK" on the backglass during extra
coin play.
Within these two screen columns is a special five number
"Orange Section", which is used in scoring what are known as "Futurity Games".
Replays may also be scored for 3, 4, or 5 numbers in the "Orange Section" if the
panel on the backglass labeled "3 Or More In Orange Section Score As Green" was
lit during extra coin play. Moving the screen to these two special positions
yields either the four numbers 4, 6, 9, and 25 (in the first position), or the
five numbers 1, 6, 19, 23 and 24 (in the second position) to appear in the
"Orange Section". In addition to that special section, these screen positions
also include additional possibilities for yellow "in-line" scoring.
To
score what is known as a "Futurity Game" a player must light any two numbers in
the "Orange Section". There are two indicator areas at the top of the backglass
connected with "Futurity Games". The first I shall call the "Futurity Game Value
Indicator" and the other the "Futurity Game Tally Counter". The 'value
indicator' contains the numbers 1, 2, 3, 5, 9, and 12 and tells the player how
many "Futurity Points" he will score if he wins a "Futurity Game" during the
current game. The value which is lit in this indicator is a function of the
"Green Odds" displayed on the lower section of the backglass, although this is
not generally known except to players observant enough to notice that this
indicator only advances to a higher number at the same time as certain "Green
Odds" advance during extra coin play.
If a player has succeeded in
lighting two numbers in the Orange Section, and thus entitled to a "Futurity
Game", pressing the "R" (collect replays) button on the front rail of the game
causes whatever 'value' number is lit in the "value indicator" to be transferred
to the "Tally Counter", indicating that the player is entitled to play a
"Futurity Game" of that 'value' at any time in the future he wishes.
The
'value' of the "Futurity Game" is translated into guaranteed minimum "odds" and
"game advantages" when the "Futurity Game " is played. The "minimums" for each
value are shown on a card at the bottom of the playfield. For example, a value
of "1" entitles the player to minimum odds as follows: red -64, 144, 300 (for 3,
4, or 5 numbers, respectively); yellow - 16, 50, 96; and green - 8, 24, 96; plus
an automatic advance of the Magic Screen letters to "D". A value of "12" (the
largest value possible) on the other hand gives minimum odds of: red and yellow
- 120, 240, 450; and green - 192, 480, 600; plus the "Red Super Section"
enabled, Magic Screen letter advance to "E", and "Press Buttons After Shooting
5th Ball" enabled (more about that shortly.) futurity values between 2 and 11
give other combinations of "odds" and "advantages" in between these two
extremes, as indicated on the card at the bottom of the playfield.
It is
the right to start a game with these "minimums" (which are normally quite costly
to obtain during extra coin play) which made the "OK feature" extremely popular
with avid bingo pinball fans.
In order to play a "Futurity Game" which a
player had earned previously, he had to press a special "Orange Button" on the
front rail of the machine. At that time a new game would be automatically
initiated, and the "odds" and "advantages", corresponding to the 'value'
indicated in the "tally counter", would appear on the backglass. The player
could then, if he chose, insert additional coins to try to advance these
minimums even further before starting to play.
A player, however, had
the right to collect his "Futurity Game" (by pressing the Orange Button) at any
time he chose, and not necessarily as the next game after the one in which he
had won it. He might choose to play additional normal games and try to add
additional "value points" to his Futurity Game which he had won previously;
because if a player won a Futurity Game and already had one credited to him in
the "tally counter", the 'value' of the new Futurity Game would be added to the
value already indicated, thus increasing the total "value" of the "Futurity
Game" when he later chose to collect it.
This "hold over" feature was
not available on many "OK bingos", which automatically started the "Futurity
Game" as the next game for the player after he had won it.
We have now
discussed the "Magic Screen" and its many features in detail, but only alluded
to the fact that "screen movement" (even though a player had earned that right
by extra coin play) was allowed only during certain periods during play of the
game.
Normally, that period was from the time the first ball was shot
until the fourth ball was shot. This was indicated by a lighted panel near the
center of the right side of the backglass which read "Press Buttons Before
Shooting 4th Ball". A "warning" was also provided to the player after he shot
the third ball by a flashing lighted panel which read "PRESS BUTTONS NOW".
Screen movement was not always limited to the first three balls however.
It was possible by extra coin play (sometimes combined with skillful ball
manipulation) to earn the right to press the screen movement buttons up until
the fifth ball was shot, or even after it was shot.
On the backglass,
directly above the "Press Buttons Before 4th Ball" panel, were four additional
panels labeled "Yellow Rollover Lit", "Red Rollover Lit", "Press Buttons Before
Shooting 5th Ball", and "Press Buttons After Shooting 5th Ball". As extra coins
were deposited these panels could be lit in that same sequence, but in a "pseudo
random" manner as with all "extra coin advantages" on most bingo pinballs.
If the "Yellow Rollover" was lit, and a ball rolled over that rollover
button (located near the bottom left of the playfield), the "Before 5th Ball"
panel would light at that time. Similarly, if the "Red Rollover" was lit, a ball
rolling over that rollover button (located near the lower right of the
playfield) would light the "After 5th Ball" panel. These two panels might, of
course, be lit without requiring the use of the rollovers, during extra coin
play before the first ball was shot.
None of these panels actually lit
until the player had at least qualified for the "A-D" or "OK" screens. However,
during extra coin play, small arrows to the right of these panels would light,
indicating which panel would light as soon as one of the "special screens" was
enabled.
We have now talked about all the special features of BIKINI
except for one; the special buttons used in connection with extra coin play.
Most older bingos had two coloRed Buttons (red and yellow) on the front of the
machine used during insertion of additional coins (or playing off replay
credits, if available). The "Red Button" was used, in place of depositing coins,
to play for "extra coin advantages" when replays were available to the player.
For actual coin play it was used during "extra ball play" to tell the machine
that the next coin deposited would be to start a new game, rather than to try
for "extra balls".
The "Yellow Button" was used during replay play in
place of depositing coins to try for the right to play up to three extra balls
during a game. If coins were being deposited to try for extra balls, this button
would be pressed once by the player to tell the machine that the following coins
to be deposited were to try for extra balls (until the "Red Button" was pressed
to begin a new game). BIKINI, incidentally, had the "extra ball features" found
on most bingo pinballs.
In addition to the red and Yellow Buttons,
BIKINI (and all of the "OK bingos", I believe) had two additional coloRed
Buttons (Blue and Green) on the front of the machine also used during "extra
coin play". If the "Blue Button" were pressed the chances of increasing the red,
yellow and green "odds" during "extra coin play" was increased, but the
possibility of obtaining other "game advantages" was eliminated. If the "Green
Button" were pressed instead, the chance of increasing the "odds" was
eliminated, but the chance of getting other "game advantages" (screen movement,
"super sections", increased period when screen could be moved, etc) was
increased.
Thus, during "extra coin play", the player could alternate
between these buttons (and the "Red Button", which gave a chance of both
advancing the "odds" and lighting the other "advantages") as he wished, giving
him greater flexibility in the use of his "extra coins" (or replays) at the
start of a game.
Incidentally, this idea of "button play" was not only
found on later model bingos. Bally's SPOT-LITE of 1951, one of their first
"bingos", used a similar feature. But even before that, similar features were
used on some of the later model Bally "One-Ball Horserace games" such as TURF
KING and FUTURITY.
Well, there you have it, a description of the very
popular "OK bingo pinballs" of the early 60's, including some historical insight
into some of the features these games possessed.
To close (in case some
of your are now "chomping at the bit" to get your own "OK") I will include what
I hope is a complete list of the Bally "OK bingos" in case you are lucky enough
to come across one. To me the "OK is the ultimate in bingo pinball play and
certainly the most complicated circuitry-wise of all the electro-mechanical
games produced in the "pinball format".
CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF "OK" BINGO
PINBALLS
game date
--------------------------------------------
COUNTY FAIR Feb. 1960
LAGUNA BEACH Feb. 1960
ROLLER DERBY May 1960
CIRCUS QUEEN Dec. 1960
BIKINI May 1961
LIDO Oct. 1961
GOLDEN
GATE May 1962
SILVER SAILS Sep. 1962
BOUNTY Aug. 1963
MALIBU BEACH
Late 1970's
Dear Santa..........
This page was last updated on 11/24/2001
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