1973 · Bally
Fore
Known for Yards targets, Holes and Center post. Flat sky-blue field, dark inner rectangular border, wide orange outer frame edge and pale-blue and black rectangular inset panels in the lower half.
- Year
- 1973
- Maker
- Bally
- Type
- Electro-mechanical
- Display
- Score reels
- Players
- 1
Known for
- Target
Yards targets
- rollover buttons
Holes
- post
Center post
On the playfield
- green
- yellow
- pink
- orange
- 2 flippers
- 3 pop bumpers
- 2 slingshots
Targets 3
- Yards targets
- Center standup target
- Lower side standup targets
Lanes 4
- Holes rollover buttons
- Up Post rollover buttons
- Down Post rollover button
- Center top lane
Post or gate 1
- Center post post
On the backglass
Who and what
- other A large circular sun/moon medallion filling the upper right, divided into hard-edged faceted segments of red, orange, yellow, light blue and pink, with two almond cartoon eyes outlined in black near the top and a duck-like head: an orange open beak on the left half, a pink and pale-yellow bill on the right, surrounded by a halo of jagged triangular rays in orange, yellow, cream, pink and blue with heavy black outlines.
- man A cream flat-silhouette male golfer inside the red square panel at lower left, legs apart, torso twisted, both arms raised holding a golf club high above and behind his head, mid backswing.
- animal A cream-and-brown racehorse in full gallop in the pale-green panel, with a small jockey crouched on its back, running left to right past a thin flagstick on the right, against dark green bushes and a light green field.
- other A cream stick-like figure in the orange square panel at lower right, shown with both arms raised straight up and a rounded head, rendered as a flat two-tone silhouette with pale shadow shapes.
Setting
- Flat sky-blue field
- Dark inner rectangular border
- Wide orange outer frame edge
- Pale-blue and black rectangular inset panels in the lower half
Text on it
- Bally
- fore
- BALLS TO PLAY
- GAME OVER
Made by
- Design
- Jim Patla
Reference
Linked terms
- Yards targets also called upper standup targets also called Yards
- Holes also called 4 Holes
- Lower side standup targets also called side standup targets
Playfield vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Playfield
- green
- yellow
- pink
- orange
Fingerprint: Garish lime-green lower playfield giant yellow LOVE wordmark purple shadow, bubbly multicoloured FORE logo above, three striped pink-white pop-bumper caps clustered 100 upper deck, nine pink star-shaped drop targets numbered 1-9 spread centre, two blonde pin-up girls bikinis holding pool cues, bright yellow apron
The eye goes straight to the garish lime-green lower playfield carrying a giant yellow 'Love' wordmark with a purple drop shadow, topped by a bubbly multicoloured 'Fore' logo — the two words together read as the machine's headline. Second most memorable: three striped pink-and-white pop-bumper caps printed '100' clustered on the raised upper deck, flanked by a left-side wire-form ramp and pink fan plastics. Third: the spread of nine pink star-shaped drop targets individually numbered 1 to 9 across the green centre, interspersed with two full-size blonde pin-up girls in bikinis holding pool cues. Fourth: the bright yellow lower apron with a red cursive manufacturer logo and a '5 BALLS 1 PLAY 5 PLAYS 25' instruction panel. Fifth: the orange cabinet sides with oversized white stars below the playfield.
Setting
- Green pool-table-like central panel painted with concentric arcs and a heart motif
- Pink/magenta raised upper deck plastics and fan-shaped side aprons
- Yellow painted outlanes, inlanes and lower apron
- Orange cabinet sides with large white five-pointed stars
- Chrome backbox with mechanical score reels at the top of the frame
Symbols
- Hearts
- Playing-card suits (spades visible on lower playfield)
- Numbers 1 through 9 on star-shaped targets
- Pool cues
- Large white five-pointed stars on cabinet sides
- Yellow five-pointed star markers on the green panel
Notable shapes
- Fan/semicircular arrangement of the numbered pink star drop targets
- Large rounded bubble 'fore' logo with a pointing hand and heart
- Sweeping pink fan plastic across the upper deck
- Triangular slingshot plastics
- White star decorations on the orange cabinet side and on the black front rail
Art motifs
- Pool/snooker theme with cue balls scattered on green baize
- Bikini pin-up girls
- Concentric arc and heart graphic background
- Pale yellow pinball-machine metal rails and guides
- Number festooning and award-card lettering
Themes
- Billiards
- Pool
- Pool hall
- Pin-up
- Love
- Amusement arcade
Title on it
- Fore love
Text on it
- Fore
- Love
- 100
- 5000
- 6000
- HOLD
- DOUBLE BONUS PAYOFF
- SUPER VALUE
- 5 BALLS 1 PLAY 5 PLAYS 25
- END GAME BALL ENDS LANE
- FLIPPING BUTTON
- QUARTER
- Bally
- MANUFACTURING COMPANY
- CHICAGO, ILLINOIS U.S.A.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- SPELL
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Woman | Left of centre, blonde pin-up in a blue two-piece bikini, legs apart, leaning forward and holding a pool cue diagonally across her body, smiling |
| Woman | Right of centre, blonde pin-up in a red two-piece bikini, standing upright with legs together, holding a pool cue vertically |
| Woman | Fifth-figure-like painted decoration at each side: a blonde woman in a swimsuit painted on the pink left and right side aprons near the top, mirrored |
| Vehicle | Red wedge-shaped printed insert art on the two magenta slingshot plastics at the lower left and lower right, showing a large script 'fore' with a heart |
A complete electro-mechanical pinball playfield photographed in its cabinet, shot from above and slightly behind so the chrome backbox reels and the front of the orange cabinet with big white stars are both visible. The field itself is a lurid yellow-to-lime-green and pink/magenta affair: pale yellow metal rails and outlanes frame a bright green central panel with an oversized yellow-and-purple 'Love' wordmark and, above it, a rounded multicoloured 'Fore' logo with a hand/heart motif. Three round pop-bumper caps, striped pink and white with '100' on them, sit in a cluster on the raised upper deck, with a wire-form ramp rising on the left. Two pin-up women in swimsuits stand in the middle of the field: one blonde in a blue bikini holding a cue and bending to aim, the other blonde in a red two-piece holding a cue and standing upright. A large pink fan-shaped sweep of numbered star targets (1 through 9) spreads across the green centre, with yellow '5000'/'6000' inserts and 'HOLD', 'DOUBLE BONUS PAYOFF' and 'SUPER VALUE' windows on the pink side aprons. Two magenta plastic kickers/slings sit low left and low right. The lower yellow apron carries a red script manufacturer logo, 'MANUFACTURING COMPANY', 'CHICAGO, ILLINOIS U.S.A.', a black instruction card, and a yellow panel reading '5 BALLS 1 PLAY 5 PLAYS 25'.
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass
- blue
- orange
- yellow
- red
Fingerprint: fore in yellow lowercase letters, sun-moon face split into faceted segments with duck's bill and jagged rays, golfer silhouette in red square, racehorse beside flagstick in pale-green panel, island shape in black panel, red cursive logo, sports montage collage, sky-blue field with orange border
The single most memorable element is a huge geometric sun/moon face whose lower half is transformed into a rubbery duck's head, made of flat faceted red, orange, yellow and blue segments ringed with jagged multicoloured rays. A second strong cue is the title 'fore' in big yellow lower-case letters, a pun sitting directly under a red cursive logo. The lower third is an eclectic sports montage - a cream golfer silhouette on red, a galloping racehorse with jockey beside a flagstick, and a black panel with a lime-green island shape - all in a flat mid-century screen-print style that looks deliberately retro rather than genuinely period.
Setting
- Flat sky-blue field
- Dark inner rectangular border
- Wide orange outer frame edge
- Pale-blue and black rectangular inset panels in the lower half
Symbols
- Stylised sun with jagged rays
- Crescent-moon motif merged into the sun face
- White golf ball with blue dimple-like markings
- Lime-green island or landmass with blue amoeba-shaped pools
- Green circular dots scattered on the black panel
- Five mechanical score reels
- Flagstick on a golf green
- Red 'balls to play' sign
- Small square window showing a single digit
Lettering
- Red flowing cursive script logo at top left above a large bold yellow lower-case sans-serif title with thick black outline and glossy highlight; small white condensed block capitals for 'game over'; narrow stacked capitals on a red sign
Themes
- Sports montage
- Golf
- Horse racing
- Sun and moon
- Duck-billed bird
- Abstract collage
- Retro screen-print
Title on it
- Fore
Text on it
- Bally
- fore
- BALLS TO PLAY
- GAME OVER
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Other | A large circular sun/moon medallion filling the upper right, divided into hard-edged faceted segments of red, orange, yellow, light blue and pink, with two almond cartoon eyes outlined in black near the top and a duck-like head: an orange open beak on the left half, a pink and pale-yellow bill on the right, surrounded by a halo of jagged triangular rays in orange, yellow, cream, pink and blue with heavy black outlines. |
| Man | A cream flat-silhouette male golfer inside the red square panel at lower left, legs apart, torso twisted, both arms raised holding a golf club high above and behind his head, mid backswing. |
| Animal | A cream-and-brown racehorse in full gallop in the pale-green panel, with a small jockey crouched on its back, running left to right past a thin flagstick on the right, against dark green bushes and a light green field. |
| Other | A cream stick-like figure in the orange square panel at lower right, shown with both arms raised straight up and a rounded head, rendered as a flat two-tone silhouette with pale shadow shapes. |
A flat retro-modern backglass on a sky-blue field, framed by a dark inner border and a wide orange outer edge. Upper left carries a red cursive script logo, with the title 'fore' below it in large chunky yellow lower-case letters with a black outline and a white/glossy highlight. Upper right is dominated by a huge stylised sun-and-moon medallion: a circle split into faceted segments of red, orange, yellow, blue and pink, with two cartoon eyes at the top and a wide duck-billed duck/goose head and beak in orange, pink and pale yellow, ringed by jagged black-outlined rays in orange, yellow, pink, blue and cream. Lower half is a collage of separate rectangular panels: a vertical yellow bar with a red 'BALLS TO PLAY' sign at its top; a black panel showing a lime-green island or landmass with blue amoeba-like pools and green dots; a red square containing a cream silhouette of a male golfer mid-swing with a club; an orange square containing a cream silhouette of a figure with arms raised; and a light-green panel showing a cream racehorse with a jockey galloping beside a flagstick, with a five-reel score window above it. 'GAME OVER' appears in small white block letters at the lower right. Reflections of the room are visible in the glass.