1958–1959 · Gottlieb
Gondolier
Known for Target Value, Gobble hole and Rollunder gates. Venetian canal, pastel palazzi with domes and campanile, moored gondolas, rippling water and festoon bunting.
- Years
- 1958–1959
- Maker
- Gottlieb
- Type
- Electro-mechanical
- Display
- Score reels
- Players
- 2
Known for
- Display
Target Value
- Hole
Gobble hole
- gates
Rollunder gates
2 games under this title
-
Standard 1958 -
Serenade 1959
On the playfield
Toy 1
- Match unit unit
Hole 1
- Gobble hole
Bumpers 2
- Blue bumpers
- Green bumpers
Lane 1
- Middle side lanes
Post or gate 1
- Rollunder gates gates
Control 1
- Top rollover button button
Display 1
- Target Value
On the backglass
Who and what
- woman Right side, smiling woman in red-and-white striped one-piece swimsuit and yellow straw boater hat, standing in a red gondola and holding a long yellow-tipped oar diagonally across her body
- woman Lower centre, blonde woman with bare shoulders in a low-cut red dress, laughing, shown from the waist up in a gondola
- man Lower centre, dark-haired man in a pale blue jacket and white shirt leaning close to the blonde woman
- other Left mid-ground, small figures seated under the red-and-yellow striped canopy of a moored gondola
Setting
- Venetian canal
- Pastel palazzi with domes and campanile
- Moored gondolas
- Rippling water
- Festoon bunting
Text on it
- Gottlieb's
- TWO PLAYER
- GONDOLIER
- D. Gottlieb & Co.
- IT'S MORE FUN TO COMPETE
- AGAINST SKILL
- 1 or 2 CAN PLAY
- AT THE SAME TIME
- Amusement Pinball
- BALL IN PLAY
- 1st PLAYER
- 2nd PLAYER
- 1 PLAYERS 2
Made by
- Design
- Wayne Neyens
- Art
- Roy Parker
The cast
- Serenade
Reference
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass Standard
- blue
- cream
- red
- yellow
Fingerprint: gondolier: GONDOLIER in cream block letters, female gondolier in striped swimsuit and yellow straw hat poling red boat, Venetian palaces and domes, two red-green chevron-framed score windows with BALL IN PLAY arrow, romance couple embracing below
A full-width painted Venetian canal panorama with a female gondolier in a red-and-white striped swimsuit and yellow boater hat poling a bright red gondola on the right side. Two rounded score windows framed in red and green chevron stripes sit symmetrically at the bottom with a red 'BALL IN PLAY' arrow disc between them. The title is enormous cream block lettering with a red drop shadow spanning nearly half the width. A small white flag on the right prints 'D. Gottlieb & Co.' in red script.
Setting
- Venetian canal
- Pastel palazzi with domes and campanile
- Moored gondolas
- Rippling water
- Festoon bunting
Symbols
- Fleur-de-lis
- Striped mooring poles
- Festoon bunting
- Striped gondola canopies
- Striped pole at left edge
- Multicoloured rounded shapes along the bottom border
Lettering
- Mixed: red cursive script brand signature top left, red script on a white flag top right, very large cream condensed block capitals with red drop shadow for the title, red and green sans-serif caps on white instruction panels, white hand-lettered script for the small centre signature
Themes
- Venice
- Gondola
- Canal
- Holiday
- Two player
- Romance
Title on it
- Gondolier
Text on it
- Gottlieb's
- TWO PLAYER
- GONDOLIER
- D. Gottlieb & Co.
- IT'S MORE FUN TO COMPETE
- AGAINST SKILL
- 1 or 2 CAN PLAY
- AT THE SAME TIME
- Amusement Pinball
- BALL IN PLAY
- 1st PLAYER
- 2nd PLAYER
- 1 PLAYERS 2
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Woman | Right side, smiling woman in red-and-white striped one-piece swimsuit and yellow straw boater hat, standing in a red gondola and holding a long yellow-tipped oar diagonally across her body |
| Woman | Lower centre, blonde woman with bare shoulders in a low-cut red dress, laughing, shown from the waist up in a gondola |
| Man | Lower centre, dark-haired man in a pale blue jacket and white shirt leaning close to the blonde woman |
| Other | Left mid-ground, small figures seated under the red-and-yellow striped canopy of a moored gondola |
A wide, brightly coloured mid-century painted backglass showing a sunny Venetian canal scene. Across the top runs the title in huge cream block capitals with red drop shadow and black outline: GONDOLIER. To its left, red script reads 'Gottlieb's' above stacked red block text 'TWO PLAYER'; to its right a small white flag on a pole carries red script 'D. Gottlieb & Co.' Below the title sit two white panels: 'IT'S MORE FUN TO COMPETE' over 'AGAINST SKILL' (with AGAINST SKILL in a green-on-white block), and '1 or 2 CAN PLAY / AT THE SAME TIME' beside a red fleur-de-lis. The scene shows blue-green rippling water, moored gondolas with red-and-yellow striped canopies, pastel orange, cream and yellow Venetian palazzi with domes and a campanile, and bunting. At right a smiling woman in a red-and-white striped swimsuit and yellow straw boater hat stands in a gondola poling with a long yellow-tipped oar. Lower centre a blonde woman in a low-cut red dress embraces a dark-haired man in a pale blue suit. The bottom third carries two mechanical score windows in red and green chevron frames, a red arrow 'BALL IN PLAY' disc, and '1 PLAYERS 2'.
Backglass Serenade
- blue
- red
- yellow
- black
Fingerprint: SERENADE arched cream block capitals with red accents above two tall profile letters, gondoliera in green off-shoulder blouse and blue shorts standing in orange-red gondola holding pole, striped score panels marked 1 and 2, four central figures including couple in formal dress, orange palazzi on blue water, scalloped balloon border bottom
The single most memorable feature is a tall dark-haired gondoliera in a green off-shoulder blouse and blue shorts standing full-height in an orange-red gondola at the right, one arm up holding a long pole. A second, memorable element is the pair of separate numbered score windows in different colour schemes - a red-and-white striped panel marked 1 on the left and a green-and-white striped panel marked 2 on the right. The huge arched cream-and-red SERENADE title with its red accent marks above the two E's dominates the top third. Bottom-edge scalloped balloon shapes in five colours and the red BALL IN PLAY disc between the two score panels complete the distinctive look.
Setting
- Venetian canal of deep blue water with horizontal ripple highlights and mirror reflections of the buildings
- Row of orange, ochre and terracotta multi-storey palazzi with green shutters and arched windows along the far bank
- Pale blue sky with white clouds and radiating blue-and-white speed lines behind the title
- Black gondola with a curved red-and-cream striped bow
- Black-and-red diagonally striped mooring poles at both left and right edges
- Cloud-like scalloped balloon border in green, yellow, orange, red and blue along the bottom edge
Symbols
- Gondola and oar
- Mooring poles
- Small red-and-blue diamond-and-rod divider emblem between the slogan panels
- Scalloped balloon shapes
- Arrows pointing left and right beside the player score panels
- Single number 1 in a red disc and 2 in a green disc
- Red ball in play disc
- Striped panel borders
Lettering
- Large arched cream block capitals with red inline shading and black drop shadow for the title; plain yellow sans-serif capitals for two player; heavy black condensed sans-serif capitals on white panels for the slogans; white serif capitals on red and green ribbon banners for the player labels
Themes
- Venice
- Gondola
- Romance
- Serenade
- Two player
- Canal
- Italian palazzi
Title on it
- Serenade
Text on it
- TWO
- PLAYER
- SERENADE
- IT'S MORE FUN TO COMPETE A GAME OF SKILL
- 1 or 2 CAN PLAY AT THE SAME TIME
- 1st PLAYER
- 2nd PLAYER
- BALL IN PLAY
- 1
- 2
- 5
- 6
- 0
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Woman | Seated in the black gondola at mid-left, white low-cut blouse and pink skirt, brown hair pulled back, holding a single oar, knees drawn up, rowing |
| Woman | Centre standing, brunette with short curled hair, low-cut red dress with white floral decoration and a bright green shawl wrapped round the hips, smiling |
| Man | Centre standing beside her, blond slicked-back hair, white dinner jacket, white shirt and black bow tie, arm around her shoulder, smiling |
| Woman | Tall figure at the right standing in the orange-red gondola, long dark wavy hair with red flowers, green off-shoulder tied top, blue shorts, black sash at the waist, one arm raised holding a long pole, other on hip, laughing open-mouthed expression |
Venice-canal scene under a huge arched title reading SERENADE in cream block capitals with red inline shading and a black drop shadow. To its left, yellow capitals read TWO / PLAYER, and a cut-off cursive word runs down the far left edge. Two white panels below the title carry black condensed slogans: IT'S MORE FUN TO COMPETE A GAME OF SKILL and 1 or 2 CAN PLAY AT THE SAME TIME, split by a small red-and-blue diamond emblem. Deep blue rippling canal water reflects a long row of orange and ochre palazzi with shuttered windows; black-and-red striped mooring poles stand at both edges. Four figures: a woman in a white blouse and pink skirt rowing a black gondola at mid-left; a brunette in a low-cut red dress with a green shawl beside a blond man in a white dinner jacket and black bow tie at centre; and a tall dark-haired woman in a green off-shoulder top and blue shorts leaning on a pole in an orange-red gondola at right. Two separate mechanical score windows sit low left (red-and-white striped, marked 1) and low right (green-and-white striped, marked 2), with a red BALL IN PLAY disc between them and multicoloured balloon scallops along the bottom border.