1970 · Bally
Bowl-O
Known for Top center lane, Center saucer, Center post and Red and blue bumpers. Flat pop-art colour fields, diagonal orange bowling lane, large lime-green circles and pale mint-blue sky-ish wash.
- Year
- 1970
- Maker
- Bally
- Type
- Electro-mechanical
- Display
- Score reels
- Players
- 1
Known for
- Lane
Top center lane
- saucer
Center saucer
- post
Center post
- Bumper
Red and blue bumpers
- Goal
Strike
On the playfield
Hole 1
- Center saucer saucer
Bumper 1
- Red and blue bumpers
Lanes 6
- Top center lane
- Wall switches switches
- Left top lane
- Right top lane
- Left out lane
- Right out lane
Post or gate 1
- Center post post
Controls 2
- Down Post rollover buttons button
- Rollover button button
On the backglass
Who and what
- man Young fair-haired man, red hawaiian shirt with yellow-green flame print, white trousers, blue pointed shoes, mouth open, both hands splayed, lunging/stumbling at upper left
- woman Pale blue bouffant hair, red-framed sunglasses, low-cut white top, leaning over the score box at top right
- woman Long lime-blonde hair, sleeveless teal top, pale blue trousers, seated on the couch in profile
- woman Orange-auburn bobbed hair, red-and-yellow striped sleeveless sweater, white trousers, large gold hoop earrings, green lipstick, hands spread wide, seated on the couch
- creature Large blue bowling ball with a bright white highlight and a red script company mark on its side, framed by a cream starburst of white and blue spikes
Setting
- Flat pop-art colour fields
- Diagonal orange bowling lane
- Large lime-green circles
- Pale mint-blue sky-ish wash
Text on it
- BOWL-O
- Bally
- BALL
- IN
- PLAY
- 0 2 1 4 0
How it plays
-
Goals 1
- Strike
Made by
- Design
- Marty Rosenthal
- Art
- Christian Marche
Reference
Playfield vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Playfield
- blue
- orange
- green
- red
Fingerprint: Strike, dark navy globe at center with white-outlined STRIKE wordmark and green orb on maroon UP POST, cream arrow banner SPOTS LIT PIN pointing inward above row of ten numbered round lamps, five-lane pin field numbered 1-10 like bowling diagram, five white pop-bumper caps with pleated starburst skirts in red-white and blue-white bunting, translucent orange ramp shell arching entire upper half
The centrepiece is a dark navy globe/planet bearing a white-outlined 'STRIKE' wordmark with a green orb above it, mounted on a maroon post labelled 'UP POST'. Directly below it a giant cream arrow banner reading 'SPOTS LIT PIN' points inward above a row of ten numbered round lamps and a five-lane pin field numbered 1 to 10 like a bowling lane diagram. Five white pop-bumper caps wear pleated circus-style starburst skirts in alternating red-and-white and blue-and-white bunting stripes. A huge translucent orange plastic ramp shell arcs across the entire upper half, over a pale blue field scattered with orange starbursts. Two green circular 'SPIN PIN 100' targets and a woman in a teal swim cap holding a ball in the lower left complete the memory hooks.
Setting
- Pale sky-blue field
- Huge translucent orange-brown plastic ramp shell
- Orange starburst decals
- Green wall panels flanking the ramp lanes
Symbols
- Bowling pin
- Ten numbered round lamps
- Five-lane pin diagram
- Green planet/globes
- Orange starbursts
- Pleated circus starburst bumper skirts
- Double-headed cream arrow
- Small red numerals scattered as lane markers
- Qr code sticker at bottom left
Notable shapes
- Giant translucent orange ramp shell dominating the upper playfield
- Five-lane green leaf/petal-shaped pin field with cream pins numbered 1-10
- Double-ended cream arrow banner over the lamp row
- Two purple pentagon plastics
- Green inverted-triangle strike logo
- Yellow lower apron with cut-out corners
Art motifs
- Airbrushed mid-century arcade illustration
- Pastel geometric plastics with amoeba blobs
- Striped bunting
- Vintage score-value numerals 100 and 1000
Themes
- Bowling
- Ten-pin
- Strike
- Amusement arcade
- Sports
Title on it
- Strike
Text on it
- STRIKE
- SPIN PIN 100
- SPIN PIN 1000
- UP POST
- SPOTS LIT PIN
- LOCK
- ADVANCE VALUE
- DOWN POST
- FLIPPER BUTTON
- MATCH BALL
- TILT ENDS BALL
- 5 BALLS
- 10 CENTS
- Bally
- MANUFACTURING COMPANY
- 5 STRIKES = 1 REPLAY
- 1ST FLIPPER SCORES 5 REPLAYS
- FOR SCORE
- 100 When Lit
- 1000
- SHOOT AGAIN FOR SPECIAL
- TILT
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Woman | Lower left, painted in flat airbrush style, shoulder-length dark hair under a teal swim cap, yellow bikini top, holding a small dark ball up near her chest, smiling, facing right |
| Man | Lower left below the woman, white singlet and dark trousers, bent forward at the waist as if bowling or picking something up |
| Other | Small yellow bowling-pin figure inside the green triangular strike logo at top centre, above three red posts |
| Other | Small white-skinned cartoon figure with dark hair peeking over the top edge of the central navy globe, arms raised |
Tall portrait-format electro-mechanical playfield with a pale sky-blue background and a huge translucent orange-brown plastic ramp shell arching across the whole upper half. Five white pop-bumper caps with pleated starburst skirts (two upper with red-and-blue bunting stripes, two mid-level, one at left) sit on orange starburst decals, surrounded by two green circular 'SPIN PIN 100' target rings and scattered small red numbers 2-10. At top centre a green inverted-triangle 'STRIKE' logo with a yellow bowling-pin graphic and three upright red posts, flanked by two large purple/navy pentagon plastics patterned with orange amoeba-like blobs and teal lattice. Centre of the field is a dark navy globe carrying a white-outlined 'STRIKE' wordmark and a small green planet, mounted on a maroon post, with 'UP POST' lettering above it. Below, a cream arrow banner reading 'SPOTS LIT PIN' points inward over a row of ten numbered round lamps, sitting above a five-lane green-and-cream pin field numbered 7 8 9 10 / 4 5 6 / 2 3 / 1, with 'DOWN POST' and '10' round white buttons either side. Lower left shows a woman in a teal swim cap and yellow bikini top holding a ball, and a man in a white singlet bending over; lower right a green 'ADVANCE VALUE' panel. Yellow apron carries red-script 'Bally' logo, '5 BALLS 10 CENTS' plate, a white instruction card headed '5 STRIKES = 1 REPLAY', and a black 'FLIPPER BUTTON' arrow.
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass
- orange
- turquoise blue
- lime green
- cream
Fingerprint: BOWL-O title huge red slab-serif capitals giant blue bowling ball doubling letter O spiky cream starburst bottom, fair-haired man loud red Hawaiian shirt caught mid-stumble lunging forward hands splayed, three fashionably dressed women blue white bright yellow lounging couch angled black score box, late-1960s pop-art airbrushed flat look heavy black outlines, bold orange turquoise pale mint-blue palette
A giant blue bowling ball doubling as the letter O of the title, sitting inside a spiky cream starburst at the bottom of the artwork. A fair-haired man in a loud red Hawaiian shirt is caught mid-stumble, lunging forward with hands splayed. Three fashionably dressed women in blue, white and bright yellow lounge around a couch beside an angled black score box showing reels.
Setting
- Flat pop-art colour fields
- Diagonal orange bowling lane
- Large lime-green circles
- Pale mint-blue sky-ish wash
Symbols
- Bowling ball
- Starburst splash
- Falling tumbling human silhouettes
- Angled black score box with reel windows
- Small white instruction box
Lettering
- Huge red slab-serif capitals with white keyline and dark shadow for the title; red cursive script inside the bowling ball for the company mark; small black sans-serif capitals on a cream panel for the instruction text
Themes
- Bowling
- Mid-century pop art
- Fashion illustration
- Retro lounge
Title on it
- Bowl-o
Text on it
- BOWL-O
- Bally
- BALL
- IN
- PLAY
- 0 2 1 4 0
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Man | Young fair-haired man, red hawaiian shirt with yellow-green flame print, white trousers, blue pointed shoes, mouth open, both hands splayed, lunging/stumbling at upper left |
| Woman | Pale blue bouffant hair, red-framed sunglasses, low-cut white top, leaning over the score box at top right |
| Woman | Long lime-blonde hair, sleeveless teal top, pale blue trousers, seated on the couch in profile |
| Woman | Orange-auburn bobbed hair, red-and-yellow striped sleeveless sweater, white trousers, large gold hoop earrings, green lipstick, hands spread wide, seated on the couch |
| Creature | Large blue bowling ball with a bright white highlight and a red script company mark on its side, framed by a cream starburst of white and blue spikes |
Vertically oriented late-1960s-style painted pinball backglass with a flat, pop-art airbrushed look and heavy black outlines. Background is a bold orange lane running diagonally, against turquoise and pale mint-blue fields with large lime-green circles. At upper left a fair-haired young man in a red Hawaiian shirt covered in yellow-and-green flame/leaf print, white trousers and blue pointed shoes lunges forward with mouth open and both hands splayed, his leg raised as if stumbling. Small dark blue silhouetted figures tumble in mid-air around him. Upper right sits a woman with pale blue bouffant hair, red-framed sunglasses and a low-cut white top, leaning over a black angled score box holding reels reading 0 2 1 4 0. Below her, two women lounge on a couch: one with long lime-blonde hair in a sleeveless teal top and pale blue trousers, and one in a red-and-yellow striped sleeveless sweater and white trousers with big gold hoop earrings, hands spread wide. Across the lower third a giant blue bowling ball with a red script manufacturer mark sits in a cream-coloured starburst of white and blue spikes, over which sits the title in huge red slab-serif capitals with white and dark outlines reading BOWL-O, the O being the ball. A small cream box at lower left reads BALL over IN over PLAY. A tiny white square sticker sits near centre.