1961 · Gottlieb
Flipper Fair
Known for Top 1-2-3-4 lanes, Center target, Green track and Yellow track. Cream-yellow sky with small stars, fairground midway scene, red-and-white striped carnival tent, ring-toss stall, bunting-flag tower, ferris wheel clipped by the right edge and large rainbow arc on a black band.
- Year
- 1961
- Maker
- Gottlieb
- Type
- Electro-mechanical
- Display
- Score reels
- Players
- 1
Known for
- Lane
Top 1-2-3-4 lanes
- Target
Center target
- Lights
Green track
- Lights
Yellow track
On the playfield
Bumper 1
- Green and yellow bumpers
Targets 2
- Center target
- Upper standup targets
Lanes 2
- Top 1-2-3-4 lanes
- Upper side lanes
Post or gate 1
- Rollunder gates gates
Lights 2
- Green track
- Yellow track
On the backglass
Who and what
- other Central clown: white face, big grinning open mouth, small red nose, yellow hat/hair, blue jacket, red-and-white striped sleeves, huge white ruffled collar, arms flung wide, right hand holds a bright yellow ball, left hand an open white glove
- woman Blonde behind the rainbow at centre-left, yellow skirt and green bodice, facing forward
- woman Pink-haired figure just left of the blonde, in a pink dress
- woman Another pink-clad woman partly hidden behind the clown's right shoulder
- other Pink-haired carnival clown at far left in a yellow costume with red trim and white gloves
- animal Red parrot perched at the right edge beside the bunting tower
Setting
- Cream-yellow sky with small stars
- Fairground midway scene
- Red-and-white striped carnival tent
- Ring-toss stall
- Bunting-flag tower
- Ferris wheel clipped by the right edge
- Large rainbow arc on a black band
Text on it
- FLIPPER
- FAIR
- MATCH
- FEATURE
- SCORE
- MATCHED FEATURE SCORE
- 1
- 8
- 3
- GAME
- OVER
- 0
- 2
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 9
- BALLS
- PLAY
How it plays
-
Goals 1
- Matched center shot
Made by
- Design
- Wayne Neyens
- Art
- Roy Parker
Reference
Linked terms
- Top 1-2-3-4 lanes also called Number lanes
- Center target also called Matched-lamp target
- Matched center shot also called Matched center collect
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass
- purple
- yellow
- red
- white
Fingerprint: FLIPPER FAIR with rainbow arc, central clown arms flung wide holding yellow ball, fairground tent and Ferris wheel, four white score reels, bright flat cartoon.
The clown at the centre with both arms flung wide, one hand brandishing a big yellow ball, framed by a fat rainbow arc that spans the whole backglass. Only the first four score reels are fitted, showing 1 8 3 1, which leaves the window short and wide. The title is split into two arched words on either side of a tiny MATCH / FEATURE / SCORE box rather than being set on one line. A full 0-9 row of white numerals on a red-and-yellow starburst runs along the bottom between GAME OVER and BALLS PLAY. Background is a fairground: striped tent, ring-toss stall, bunting tower, a Ferris wheel clipped by the right edge and a red parrot.
Setting
- Cream-yellow sky with small stars
- Fairground midway scene
- Red-and-white striped carnival tent
- Ring-toss stall
- Bunting-flag tower
- Ferris wheel clipped by the right edge
- Large rainbow arc on a black band
Symbols
- Multi-colour rainbow
- Five-pointed stars
- Striped circus tent
- Ferris wheel
- Bunting flags
- Red parrot
- Ring-toss game
- Yellow ball
- Sunburst rays
- Score reels
Lettering
- Large purple-blue slab serif capitals with white inner outline and yellow drop shadow, arched over the top of the artwork; small white lettering on solid red panels at the bottom corners
Themes
- Carnival
- Fairground
- Clown
- Rainbow
- Circus
- Toy prizes
Title on it
- Flipper o fair
Text on it
- FLIPPER
- FAIR
- MATCH
- FEATURE
- SCORE
- MATCHED FEATURE SCORE
- 1
- 8
- 3
- GAME
- OVER
- 0
- 2
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 9
- BALLS
- PLAY
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Other | Central clown: white face, big grinning open mouth, small red nose, yellow hat/hair, blue jacket, red-and-white striped sleeves, huge white ruffled collar, arms flung wide, right hand holds a bright yellow ball, left hand an open white glove |
| Woman | Blonde behind the rainbow at centre-left, yellow skirt and green bodice, facing forward |
| Woman | Pink-haired figure just left of the blonde, in a pink dress |
| Woman | Another pink-clad woman partly hidden behind the clown's right shoulder |
| Other | Pink-haired carnival clown at far left in a yellow costume with red trim and white gloves |
| Animal | Red parrot perched at the right edge beside the bunting tower |
| Vehicle | Ferris wheel with small gondolas and riders, partly cut off by the right border |
| Creature | Small figures riding or standing at the top-left of the fairground skyline |
A photographed pinball backglass with a wide royal-blue painted border framing a carnival/fairground scene on cream-yellow sky. Across the top the title arches in large purple-blue slab serif capitals with a white inner outline and a yellow drop shadow, reading FLIPPER, then a small yellow box reading MATCH / FEATURE / SCORE, then FAIR, the two words arched either side of a rainbow. A fat seven-colour rainbow on a black band sweeps from lower left up and over to the lower right, with five-pointed stars set along it. Centre stage is a grinning white-faced clown in a blue jacket with red-and-white striped sleeve and a big white ruffled collar, small red nose, yellow hat/hair, arms thrown wide: his right hand holds a bright yellow ball and his left is an open white glove. Behind the rainbow stand three women: a blonde in a yellow dress with a green bodice, one in pink, and another partly hidden. Left of centre sits a red-and-white striped carnival tent, a pink-haired clown in a yellow-and-red costume, and a ring-toss booth; the right edge has part of a Ferris wheel with tiny riders, a bunting-flag tower and a red parrot. Four white score reels reading 1 8 3 1 sit below the clown between two white-gloved hands, and a MATCHED FEATURE SCORE panel is at lower left. The bottom is a red-and-yellow sunburst carrying white numerals 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9, flanked by GAME OVER on the left and BALLS PLAY on the right, all in white lettering on red panels. Bright, flat cartoon colouring in purple, yellow, red and white.