1980 · Stern Electronics
Ali
Known for Top drop targets, Left drop targets, Collect Bonus and ALI saucers. Dark red to purple mottled starfield, scattered five-pointed stars and no discernible setting beyond abstract space-like backdrop.
- Year
- 1980
- Maker
- Stern Electronics
- Type
- Solid state
- Display
- Alphanumeric
- Players
- 4
Known for
- Drop target
Top drop targets
- Drop target
Left drop targets
- saucer
Collect Bonus
- saucers
ALI saucers
- Target
GREATEST
On the playfield
Holes 2
- Collect Bonus saucer
- ALI saucers saucers
Drop targets 2
- Top drop targets
- Left drop targets
Target 1
- GREATEST
Lanes 5
- Star rollover rollover
- U-turn lane
- Left side lane
- Center rollovers rollovers
- Return lanes
On the backglass
Who and what
- man Central enormous photorealistic close-up head and neck of a young black man, short cropped black hair, clean shaven, eyes rolled upward, chin raised, expression calm and distant
- man Top left: shirtless muscular dark-skinned boxer, red boxing gloves, torn white trunks with black side stripe and black waistband, torso twisted, one gloved fist raised near his face
- man Top right: shirtless muscular boxer in maroon/dark red gloves and white trunks with dark waistband, right arm punching forward, head thrown back and mouth open
- man Bottom left: grinning black man in a pale grey-green collared shirt, mouth open in a laugh, beside a smiling light-skinned man in black tuxedo and bow tie with a red carnation boutonniere
- man Bottom right: shirtless boxer with short black hair, teeth bared in a grimace, wearing orange-red trunks with a black waistband, muscles tensed
Setting
- Dark red to purple mottled starfield
- Scattered five-pointed stars
- No discernible setting beyond abstract space-like backdrop
Text on it
- ALI
- BY
- Stern
- GAME OVER
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- NUMBER TO MATCH
- HIGH GAME TO DATE
- CREDIT
- BALL IN PLAY
- 1 to 4 CAN PLAY
- "THE GREATEST"
- ALL COPYRIGHT RESERVED
- STERN ELECTRONICS INC
- Another
- BGR Retrofrasight
- Restoration
Made by
- Design
- Harry Williams
- Art
- Bob Timm
Reference
Linked terms
- Top drop targets also called top-left three-bank also called Bonus X bank
- Left drop targets also called Left-bank also called left three-bank
- Collect Bonus also called collect bonus saucer also called eject pocket
- ALI saucers also called L saucer
- U-turn lane also called top left horseshoe
Playfield vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Playfield
- brown
- red
- yellow
- blue
Fingerprint: Ali: Enormous alien face with bald domed head and wide toothy grin filling center, red-and-yellow angled lane guides bracketing playfield like crossed swords, crown-topped bumpers, four circular drop-target bank at top, spacecraft toy near upper right, amber-lit upper field
The single most memorable element is the huge grinning, wide-mouthed creature face filling the centre of the playfield, ringed by stars and the slogan I AM THE, with the hand-signed name Maxine Al... scrawled diagonally across it. Second, the pair of bright red-and-yellow angled lane guides stamped LEFT CROSS and RIGHT CROSS that bracket the lower playfield like crossed swords. Third, the crown-topped pop bumpers and the crown graphics flanking the apron. Fourth, the four-target circular bank at the top with 5000 and 500 values. Fifth, the toy spaceship and shuttle-drawing detail near the top-right with EXTRA BALL and REPLAY WHEN LIT text.
Setting
- Starfield of scattered red and yellow stars
- Mottled amber/orange cloudy background
- Outlines suggesting an alien landscape and a spaceship at the top
- Apartment interior drawn in a small window with a figure inside
Symbols
- Five-pointed stars in red, yellow and white
- Three crown emblems on the pop-bumper caps
- Large gold crown in the centre starburst
- Concentric red-and-cream arc outlanes
- Lettered orange circles spelling g r e t s
- Multiplier roundels 2x 3x 4x 5x
- Striped extraball bumper sticker
Notable shapes
- Huge open-mouthed face cut into the centre of the field
- Concentric red-and-cream arc outlanes at both lower corners
- Angled red-and-yellow cross-lane guides
- Round target bank in a 2x2 arrangement at the top
Art motifs
- Airbrushed star-splattered background
- Hand-lettered white sans-serif legends
- Orange starburst lamp inserts
- Art-deco concentric arcs
Themes
- Extraterrestrial
- Sci-fi horror
- Film tie-in
- Outer space
- Space travel
Title on it
- Ali
Text on it
- POP A DOPE
- EXTRABALL
- EXTRA BALL
- REPLAY WHEN LIT
- SHOOT AGAIN
- SPECIAL
- 500
- 5000
- 10,000
- 2,000
- 20,000
- I WANT SOME SUN... 7 CHILDREN CAME FROM ANOTHER PLANET... ALI SHUFFLE
- ALI SHUFFLE
- I AM THE
- ADVANCE BONUS
- SPELL VALUE
- SCORES SLOT LETTER
- LEFT CROSS
- RIGHT CROSS
- UPERCUT
- 5X
- 4X
- 3X
- 2X
- TRIPLE CHAMP
- TRIPLE CROWN
- 5000 3 ADVANCE BONUS
- 3000 5 ADVANCE BONUS
- COLLECT ALL 6 BALLS
- FOR AMUSEMENT ONLY
- ALI
- STERN ELECTRONICS, INC.
- CHICAGO, ILL. U.S.A.
- 3 BALLS PER GAME
- 1 PLAY - QUARTER
- 5 PLAYS - DOLLAR COIN
- 800,000 LIGHTS SHOOT
- 500,000
- EXTRA BALL LITTER SHOOT
- SPECIAL LIGHT SHOOT
- Tamara Shows Ship Score
- Missing Coin Trap
- Readers With Numb Numbers
- TEN-STERN-ALI
- QUARTER
- CANCEL
- CREDIT
- COIN 1
- START 2 4 5
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Creature | One enormous grey-brown alien face filling the centre of the playfield: bald domed head, deep-set shadowed eyes, nose ridges, and a very wide open mouth with rows of teeth, grinning up at the player; a cursive signature is scrawled diagonally across the lower part of it |
| Man | Small painted male figure inside an apartment window opening on the middle-right of the field, seated/leaning at a table, in a domestic interior with a lamp |
| Vehicle | A painted spacecraft/spacecraft-shaped toy and shuttle artwork at the top-right of the playfield with lamp inserts |
Full-length pinball playfield photographed under glass in a cabinet, wood-framed, lit from within with a blue-white LED wash across the lower half. The upper third has a mottled amber/brown background sprayed with red and yellow five-pointed stars, three round pop-bumper caps with yellow crown emblems, a bank of four circular drop targets each ringed in orange and lettered 500 or 5000, and a curved metal ramp at upper left over a red-and-yellow arrow reading POP A DOPE with a striped EXTRABALL sticker beside it. The middle of the field carries a brown map-like island graphic, a long vertical instruction legend listing 'I WANT SOME SUN... 7 CHILDREN CAME FROM ANOTHER PLANET... ALI SHUFFLE' in small white text, a starburst spinner, a small doll-house window with a figure at it, and scattered orange advance-bonus lamps labelled G, R, E, T, S in round bubbles. Lower half: two pale-blue rubber flippers, two red-and-yellow angled lane guides marked LEFT CROSS and RIGHT CROSS, a central white starburst around stacked lettering SPELL VALUE / SCORES / SLOT LETTER, circular 2X 3X 4X 5X multiplier badges, an outlane of red-and-cream concentric arcs, crown graphics, and two blue-bordered instruction cards at the bottom flanking a company logo plate.
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass
- red
- purple
- yellow
- black
Fingerprint: ALI in three giant tilted yellow slab-serif block letters with black outline across enormous photorealistic close-up of young black man's face with eyes rolled upward, yellow-and-orange halo of concentric arcs, four separately painted bare-chested boxers in gloves orbiting the head in corners, four grey-framed red LED score windows
The single most memorable element is the enormous photorealistic close-up of a young Black man's face filling the upper centre, chin raised and eyes rolled upward, ringed by a yellow halo of concentric arcs against a red-purple starfield. Second, the title ALI appears as three giant tilted yellow slab-serif block letters with a black outline, slanting up across the man's chin. Four separately painted bare-chested boxers in gloves orbit the head in the four corners, and four grey-framed red LED score windows with big white numerals 1-2-3-4 sit at left, right and both bottom corners. Bottom centre carries a small gold eagle-and-laurel emblem above BALL IN PLAY.
Setting
- Dark red to purple mottled starfield
- Scattered five-pointed stars
- No discernible setting beyond abstract space-like backdrop
Symbols
- Boxing gloves
- Five-pointed stars in yellow, white, pink and pale blue
- Halo arcs of concentric yellow/orange rings
- Gold laurel leaves
- Gold spread-winged eagle
- Gold domed space-station on a yellow star
- Red carnation
- Tuxedo bow tie
- Red led seven-segment score displays
Lettering
- Main title in very large chunky italicised yellow slab-serif capitals with black outline and slight upward slant; brand mark in flowing yellow cursive script preceded by a small yellow 'by'; instruction text in small condensed white capitals inside gold and red five-pointed star shapes; slogans in heavy black capitals on a pale grey star burst; corner labels in black handwritten script
Themes
- Boxing
- Sports
- Martial arts
- Fighting
- Championship
- Title-fighter portraiture
- Airbrushed arcade illustration
Title on it
- Ali
Text on it
- ALI
- BY
- Stern
- GAME OVER
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- NUMBER TO MATCH
- HIGH GAME TO DATE
- CREDIT
- BALL IN PLAY
- 1 to 4 CAN PLAY
- "THE GREATEST"
- ALL COPYRIGHT RESERVED
- STERN ELECTRONICS INC
- Another
- BGR Retrofrasight
- Restoration
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Man | Central enormous photorealistic close-up head and neck of a young black man, short cropped black hair, clean shaven, eyes rolled upward, chin raised, expression calm and distant |
| Man | Top left: shirtless muscular dark-skinned boxer, red boxing gloves, torn white trunks with black side stripe and black waistband, torso twisted, one gloved fist raised near his face |
| Man | Top right: shirtless muscular boxer in maroon/dark red gloves and white trunks with dark waistband, right arm punching forward, head thrown back and mouth open |
| Man | Bottom left: grinning black man in a pale grey-green collared shirt, mouth open in a laugh, beside a smiling light-skinned man in black tuxedo and bow tie with a red carnation boutonniere |
| Man | Bottom right: shirtless boxer with short black hair, teeth bared in a grimace, wearing orange-red trunks with a black waistband, muscles tensed |
A portrait-format backglass with a dark red-to-purple mottled background scattered with yellow, white, pink and pale blue five-pointed stars. Centre-dominant is an enormous painted close-up of a young Black man's face, three-quarter view, head tilted back, eyes looking upward, with a yellow-and-orange halo of concentric arcs behind his head. Below and overlapping the chin is the main title, three huge chunky slab-serif capital letters in bright yellow with a darker outline, angled slightly upward, spelling ALI. Four painted boxer figures surround him: top left a shirtless dark-skinned boxer in red gloves and torn white trunks with a black side stripe, muscles flexed, fist raised; top right a shirtless boxer in maroon gloves punching toward the viewer, head thrown back; bottom left a grinning Black man in a pale collared shirt beside a smiling man in a tuxedo with black bow tie and a red carnation; bottom right a grimacing shirtless boxer in orange-red trunks with a black band. Four grey-framed rectangular score windows sit around the centre, each above a large white player numeral 1, 2, 3, 4. Small white and red stars, gold laurel leaves, a rising gold eagle and a gold space-station dome cluster at the bottom centre. Art style is airbrushed and photographic-realist illustration.