1966 · Bally
Gold Rush
Known for White mushroom bumper, Mushroom bumpers and Bagatelle game. Deep blue night sky with small stars, magenta and purple rock face, ochre desert plain, green rolling hills, white-capped blue mountains and distant ox-drawn covered-wagon train.
- Year
- 1966
- Maker
- Bally
- Type
- Electro-mechanical
- Display
- Score reels
- Players
- 1
Known for
- Bumper
White mushroom bumper
- Bumper
Mushroom bumpers
- Toy
Bagatelle game
On the playfield
Toy 1
- Bagatelle game
Bumpers 2
- White mushroom bumper
- Mushroom bumpers
Lanes 3
- Middle side lanes
- Star rollovers rollover
- Left out lane
Posts and gates 2
- Gate gate
- Large round rubber rubber
On the backglass
Who and what
- man Small cowboy in a magenta hat riding a rearing tan horse on the upper-left ridge
- man Cowboy beside the mine headframe in magenta hat, striped shirt, purple waistcoat, blue trousers and neckerchief, holding a lantern in one hand and a rifle in the other, grinning
- woman Blonde cowgirl in pink hat and pink spotted blouse with blue jeans, leaning on a long-handled shovel
- woman Redhead cowgirl in blue hat and blue shirt with a yellow neckerchief
- woman Blonde cowgirl in blue shirt, pink trousers and pink hat, holding a pickaxe over one shoulder
- man Prospector in a magenta hat, white shirt and red waistcoat at centre
Setting
- Deep blue night sky with small stars
- Magenta and purple rock face
- Ochre desert plain
- Green rolling hills
- White-capped blue mountains
- Distant ox-drawn covered-wagon train
Text on it
- Bally
- GOLD RUSH
- BALL IN PLAY
- BONUS MINE
- MYSTERY BONUS
- 10
- 100
- PLAY SKILL GAMES FOR FUN AND RECREATION
- GAME OVER
- 0
- 9
- 7
- 6
Made by
- Design
- Ted Zale
Reference
Linked terms
- Middle side lanes also called Side lanes
- Star rollovers also called Blue star rollover also called Red star rollover
- Bagatelle game also called Mini-ball
Playfield vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Playfield
- orange
- red
- yellow
- pale blue
Fingerprint: Chi-Chi's Place electro-mechanical, cluster round pop-bumper caps reading special and ten points, wide red central bonus lane with cream lettering, four-figure cartoon group in wide-brimmed hats, pale blue apron with red arrow banner, candy-colored starburst design throughout
A cluster of round pop-bumper caps whose faces read SPECIAL WHEN LIT and 10 POINTS, ringed by red starbursts. A wide red central BONUS lane running from mid-playfield to the drain with cream block letters and stacked value discs down its length. A four-figure cartoon group in wide-brimmed hats and blue trousers painted into the middle of the playfield, split either side of the BONUS lane. A pale blue apron carrying a red arrow banner that reads FLIPPER BUTTONS ON SIDES OF CABINET, plus a Bally script logo and a PENALTY TILT / TILT ENDS GAME nameplate on the right. A 5 BALLS 10c coin-op instruction block in the lower right.
Setting
- Tan rock canyon and desert bluff scenery
- Western telegraph-office interior suggested behind the painted figures
- Cream and pale blue apron field with red and blue scrollwork
- Plain black background around the cabinet
Symbols
- Five-pointed star outlines
- Red arrow banner
- Sunburst star shapes
- Circular numbered inserts
- Coin slot and lock on cabinet front
Notable shapes
- Wide red bonus lane running the full height of the centre with cream block lettering
- Cluster of four round starburst pop-bumper caps
- Curved inlane and outlane sweeps on both shoulders
- Triangular slingshot paddles
- Arched yellow starburst behind the top value plate
Art motifs
- Comic-strip line art with flat colour fills
- Red and blue ribbon scrollwork on the apron
- Starburst motifs behind value readouts
- Outlined cartoon figures in period dress
Themes
- Western
- Cowboy
- Telegraph
- Novelty bar theme
- Electromechanical
Title on it
- Chi-chi's place
Text on it
- 100
- WHEN LIT
- SPECIAL
- 10 POINTS
- 200
- 50
- FREE BALL GATE OPEN WHEN LIT
- SPECIAL WHEN LIT
- BONUS
- FLIPPER
- FLIPPER BUTTONS ON SIDES OF CABINET
- 5 BALLS
- 10¢
- TILT
- ENDS GAME
- Bellows
- 100 POINTS
- when lit
- Added Ball for each score of 3000
- Added Ball for each score of 4000
- Added Ball for each score of 5000
- Added Ball for each score of 7000
- CHI-CHI'S PLACE
- CHICAGO, ILLINOIS
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Man | Painted cartoon man in a wide-brimmed hat, pale shirt and blue trousers, standing left of the red bonus lane |
| Man | Painted cartoon man in a yellow shirt and blue trousers, standing in the centre group |
| Man | Painted cartoon man in a dark hat and blue clothing, right of the centre group |
| Man | Further painted male figure in a hat at the right of the group, partly hidden by hardware |
Photograph of a full electro-mechanical playfield with wooden-looking side rails and a metal ball-return apron, photographed in a black cabinet with the front cabinet door and coin door visible below. Art is flat comic-strip cartoon line art in orange, red, yellow, cream and pale blue. The upper third is dominated by a cluster of round pop-bumper caps with white starburst faces and red rays, each ringed with metal posts and small cylindrical plastic bumpers in red, yellow and clear. A yellow starburst reads '100 WHEN LIT'. Down the centre runs a wide red vertical lane labelled BONUS in big cream letters, carrying stacked round value discs. Flanking it are four painted human figures in mid-playfield, in flat comic style, wearing wide-brimmed hats, shirts and blue trousers, posed against tan rock/canyon scenery. Left and right edges carry curved inlanes and outlanes with round plastic lane guides. The lower apron is pale blue-grey with red-and-blue swoosh scrollwork, five-pointed star outlines and a red arrow banner reading 'FLIPPER BUTTONS ON SIDES OF CABINET'. Two white flippers with FLIPPER printed on them sit above a black ball drain.
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass
- red
- blue
- yellow
- orange
Fingerprint: gold rush, gigantic glowing gold nugget inside timber mine headframe lit from behind, yellow BONUS MINE arrow banner above it, eight brightly dressed cartoon prospectors and cowgirls crowded around rock face, wooden MYSTERY BONUS sign with red arrows, comic-style Western palette of gold and earth tones
A gigantic glowing gold nugget set inside a timber mine headframe, lit from behind like a lamp, is the single most memorable element, framed by a yellow 'BONUS MINE' arrow banner above it. A bank of four mechanical reel windows in a wooden frame sits high on the right. The right half is packed with eight brightly dressed cartoon prospectors and cowgirls in pink, blue and red hats crowded around a rock face, one blonde woman planting a shovel. A wooden 'MYSTERY BONUS' sign with three upward red arrows over circled values 10, 100, 10 sits low centre-left, and a white plaque reading 'PLAY SKILL GAMES FOR FUN AND RECREATION' fills the bottom-left corner.
Setting
- Deep blue night sky with small stars
- Magenta and purple rock face
- Ochre desert plain
- Green rolling hills
- White-capped blue mountains
- Distant ox-drawn covered-wagon train
Symbols
- Gold nugget
- Mine headframe timbers
- Lantern
- Rifle
- Shovel
- Pickaxe
- Covered wagon
- Stars
- Wooden signposts
- Upward arrows
Lettering
- Large red slab-serif block capitals with gold inline and pale sparkle highlights for the title; yellow sans-serif capitals on red and yellow sign boards; white capitals for the lamp legend; red capitals on a white plaque
Themes
- Gold rush
- Western
- Mining
- Cowboys
- Prospectors
- Canyon
Title on it
- Gold rush
Text on it
- Bally
- GOLD RUSH
- BALL IN PLAY
- BONUS MINE
- MYSTERY BONUS
- 10
- 100
- PLAY SKILL GAMES FOR FUN AND RECREATION
- GAME OVER
- 0
- 9
- 7
- 6
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Man | Small cowboy in a magenta hat riding a rearing tan horse on the upper-left ridge |
| Man | Cowboy beside the mine headframe in magenta hat, striped shirt, purple waistcoat, blue trousers and neckerchief, holding a lantern in one hand and a rifle in the other, grinning |
| Woman | Blonde cowgirl in pink hat and pink spotted blouse with blue jeans, leaning on a long-handled shovel |
| Woman | Redhead cowgirl in blue hat and blue shirt with a yellow neckerchief |
| Woman | Blonde cowgirl in blue shirt, pink trousers and pink hat, holding a pickaxe over one shoulder |
| Man | Prospector in a magenta hat, white shirt and red waistcoat at centre |
| Woman | Dark-haired woman in a pink top standing among the prospectors at centre |
| Man | Prospector in a pink hat, striped shirt and blue neckerchief |
| Man | Prospector in a pink hat and white shirt bending over the rock |
| Man | Grinning cowboy at bottom right in a bright pink hat, blue shirt, olive-green spotted waistcoat and red neckerchief |
A painted comic-style Western backglass set into a cream crackle-glaze cabinet surround with a red arrow wedge along the bottom. Upper half is a deep blue sky with small white stars; the right side is a magenta and purple rock face. Across the top, 'Bally' in red cursive script sits above the huge title 'GOLD RUSH' in tall red block letters with gold outlines and pale bulb sparkles inside each letter. At upper left, white caps read 'BALL IN PLAY' above a small cowboy on a rearing tan horse on a brown ridge. Left of centre, a yellow arrow banner with forked tail reads 'BONUS MINE' in red, mounted on a timber mine headframe framing an enormous backlit golden nugget with three blue drips at its base; a smiling cowboy in a magenta hat, striped shirt, purple waistcoat, blue trousers and neckerchief stands beside it holding a lantern and a rifle. Right of centre is a wooden-framed bank of four yellow reel windows reading 0 9 7 6. Below, eight prospectors and cowgirls crowd around a rock: three women in bright hats with a shovel and a pickaxe, four men in waistcoats and neckerchiefs, and a grinning cowboy in a pink hat and green vest at bottom right beside 'GAME OVER'. Ochre ground, green hills, white-capped blue mountains and a distant ox-drawn covered-wagon train fill the background.