1963 · Williams
Merry Widow
Teal-green ballroom with a polished dance floor, yellow fluted columns and draped curtains at the left and right edges, two lit candelabra flanking the side scenes, scattered black and blue music notes floating in the air and peach-pink floor area in the lower half behind the score panels.
- Year
- 1963
- Maker
- Williams
- Type
- Electro-mechanical
- Display
- Score reels
- Players
- 4
Made by
- Design
- Steve Kordek
- Art
- George Molentin
Vision analysis
On the backglass
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass
- red
- green
- cream
- blue
Fingerprint: MERRY WIDOW in bulb-studded orange marquee letters on pale blue cloud at bottom, huge laughing red-haired woman in white feather boa and headscarf dominating top centre, four crimson arrow-shaped score panels with numbered 1-4 discs and 1ST/2ND/3RD/4TH PLAYER banners arranged symmetrically, small 1950s dancing couples in evening gowns along edges beside candelabra, blue oval reading 4 PLAYER, teal-green ballroom floor.
A huge laughing red-haired woman in a white feather boa and headscarf grins down over the whole centre of the backglass, her head bigger than any other element. Below her a blue oval states 4 PLAYER, and the bottom is dominated by MERRY WIDOW in bulb-studded orange marquee letters on a pale blue cloud. Four separate crimson arrow-shaped score panels with their own numbered 1-4 discs and 1ST/2ND/3RD/4TH PLAYER banners make it an unusual four-player layout. Small 1950s dancing couples in evening gowns line the left and right edges beside candelabra.
Setting
- Teal-green ballroom with a polished dance floor
- Yellow fluted columns and draped curtains at the left and right edges
- Two lit candelabra flanking the side scenes
- Scattered black and blue music notes floating in the air
- Peach-pink floor area in the lower half behind the score panels
Symbols
- Candelabra with lit candles
- Black and blue musical notes
- Rows of small light bulbs inside the title letters
- Arrow-shaped red score panels
- Numbered discs 1 to 4
- Yellow star-like sparkles on the curtains
- Gold spiral motifs on the green curtain valances
- Paint drips down the pink lower background
Lettering
- Marquee display: merry widow in tall orange-red serif capitals with black outline, white shadow and rows of yellow light bulbs, on a pale blue cloud. player banners use dark red serif capitals on cream plaques. can play in black capitals on a red arrow. 4 player in red on a blue oval under a white cursive williams script. ball in play and over in small black capitals at the bottom corners.
Themes
- Four-player
- Party
- Ballroom dancing
- Mid-century fashion
- Comedy
- Match-three
Title on it
- Merry widow
Text on it
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 1ST PLAYER
- 2ND PLAYER
- 3RD PLAYER
- 4TH PLAYER
- 1 2 3 4
- CAN PLAY
- INVITE COMPETITION
- IT'S MORE FUN TO COMPETE
- Williams
- 4 PLAYER
- MERRY WIDOW
- BALL IN PLAY
- OVER
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Woman | Large central portrait, head and shoulders, adult woman with wavy bright red/auburn hair swept up, a pale blue and white striped headscarf, blue eyes, heavy blue eyeliner, red lipstick, smiling with teeth showing, gold hoop earring, wrapped in a thick white feather boa |
| Woman | Left edge, blonde woman in a strapless yellow gown with white fur trim, dancing with arms raised |
| Man | Left edge, dark-haired man in a blue dinner jacket facing the blonde woman, back mostly to viewer |
| Man | Left-centre background, man in a blue tuxedo with a red bow tie dancing |
| Woman | Left-centre background, woman in a red strapless dress dancing with the tuxedoed man |
| Woman | Right-centre background, woman in a green and yellow dress dancing |
| Man | Right-centre background, man in a blue jacket with a red bow tie, arms out, dancing |
| Man | Right edge, dark-haired man in a blue dinner jacket seen from behind, facing a blonde woman |
| Woman | Right edge, blonde woman in a strapless red gown with a full red skirt, dancing |
A four-player pinball backglass in a bright mid-century cartoon style. A large painted portrait of a smiling red-haired woman in a white feathered boa and pale blue headscarf dominates the top centre, her head and shoulders filling the upper third. Four crimson-red, arrow-topped score panels are arranged symmetrically, two upper left and right and two lower left and right, each with three white reel windows and a numbered disc: 1 (upper left, reels reading 266), 2 (upper right, reels reading 000), 3 (lower left, 000), 4 (lower right, 000). Each panel carries a cream banner with dark red serif text reading 1ST PLAYER, 2ND PLAYER, 3RD PLAYER, 4TH PLAYER. In the middle sits a red arrow badge with four white circles reading 1 2 3 4 above the words CAN PLAY, and below it a yellow box with black text: INVITE COMPETITION IT'S MORE FUN TO COMPETE. Below that a blue oval with white script Williams above 4 PLAYER in red, and at the bottom a light-blue cloud cartouche carrying MERRY WIDOW in large orange-red letters studded with yellow light bulbs. Side panels show small dancing couples in 1950s party clothes on a teal-green ballroom floor, with candelabra, music notes, curtains and columns. Dominant colours: crimson red, teal green, cream, sky blue.