Also known as SS
1996 · Bally
Scared Stiff
Known for Crate, Spider hole, Spider Wheel and Coffin lock ramp. Spiderweb across upper half, candlelit skull ledge along the top, orange cushioned couch/lounge across the lower half and dark night sky upper right.
- Year
- 1996
- Maker
- Bally
- Type
- Solid state
- Display
- Dot matrix
- Players
- 4
Known for
- Toy
Crate
- Hole
Spider hole
- backglass toy
Spider Wheel
- Ramp
Coffin lock ramp
- Multiball
Crate Multiball
- Multiball
Coffin Multiball
- Multiball
Monster Multiball
- Wizard mode
Spider Mania
On the playfield
- crimson red
- magenta pink
- black
- chrome silver
- 2 flippers
- 2 slingshots
Toy 1
- Crate
Ramp 1
- Coffin lock ramp
Holes 2
- Spider hole
- TV hole
Targets 3
- Leaper targets
- Cast a Spell
- Telepathetic Power target
Lanes 2
- Dead Head lanes
- Secret passage
Display 1
- Stiff-O-Meter meter
Backbox 1
- Spider Wheel backglass toy
On the backglass
Who and what
- woman One adult brunette woman, pale skin, huge teased beehive hair, heavy eye make-up, red lips, wearing a low-cut black dress and a gold bracelet; reclining on her side on orange cushions, propped on one elbow, bare legs toward the left
- creature Decaying grinning head of an undead man with sunken eyes and long dark hair, wearing a tall black top hat and black tuxedo lapels with a white shirt front, arm outstretched holding a silver revolver
- animal One black cat with bright green eyes sitting upright in the foreground centre-right
- animal A small green rodent or frog-like creature at the top left on the ledge, ears up
- animal A yellow-orange cat face peering from the top right behind the woman
- other A bald skull with a candle stub in each eye socket, lit, lower right of the woman
Setting
- Spiderweb across upper half
- Candlelit skull ledge along the top
- Orange cushioned couch/lounge across the lower half
- Dark night sky upper right
Text on it
- SCARED STIFF
- WITH YOUR HOST
- Elvira
- Mistress of the Dark
- JUST SAY!
- Bally
- BURNIE
- 8-ball
- BLACK THURSDAY EYE
How it plays
-
Modes 4
- Leaper Mania
- Boogie Man Boogie
- Beat the Crate
- Double Trouble
-
Multiballs 3
- Crate Multiball
- Coffin Multiball
- Monster Multiball
-
Goals 6
- Tales of Terror
- Eyes of the Bony Beast
- Night of the Leapers
- Return of the Dead Heads
- Monster's Lab
- Crystal balls
-
Wizard modes 1
- Spider Mania
Made by
- Design
- Dennis Nordman
- Design
- Mark Weyna
- Art
- Greg Freres
- Mechanics
- Win Schilling
- Mechanics
- Bob Brown
- Mechanics
- Joe Loveday
- Software
- Mike Boon
- Software
- Cameron Silver
- Sound
- Paul Heitsch
- Sound
- Dave Zabriskie
- Display animation
- Adam Rhine
- Display animation
- Brian Morris
Reference
Linked terms
- Spider hole also called Spin Spider
- Leaper targets also called Leapers
- Dead Head lanes also called Deadheads also called Top lanes
- Cast a Spell also called Spell
- Stiff-O-Meter also called Scared Stiff meter
- Crate Multiball also called Terror from the Crate
- Coffin Multiball also called Stiff in the Coffin
- Spider Mania also called Spider Web
- Tales of Terror also called Tales also called Tale
- Eyes of the Bony Beast also called Bony Beast also called Boney Beast
- Leaper Mania also called Frog
- Boogie Man Boogie also called Boogie man
- Beat the Crate also called Scared guy
- Crystal balls also called Telepathetic
Playfield vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Playfield
- crimson red
- magenta pink
- black
- chrome silver
Fingerprint: Scared Stiff, grinning clown in blue-orange hat on card at top-right, chrome wire ramp hooping over playfield, SIX TALES OF TERROR banner red bat-winged crest with green-glowing insert, white spider webs silkscreened in corners, green-red dripping SCARED STIFF logo, woman in black lingerie portrait at bottom-right, haunted-house horror-comedy, magenta-blue LED wash on crimson-pink-purple
The most memorable element is the grinning clown in a blue-and-orange party hat printed on a card in the top-right insert, comic relief in an otherwise gory haunted-house design. Second is the huge chrome wire ramp that loops in a big hoop over the top of the playfield and snakes back down the right side. Third, the bottom-centre SIX TALES OF TERROR banner, a red bat-winged crest with a green-glowing insert above it. Fourth, the white spider webs silkscreened into both lower corners flanking the title, with the green-and-red dripping SCARED STIFF logo and a portrait card of a woman in black lingerie at bottom right.
Setting
- Wooden boarded floor and plank walls of a haunted-house hall
- Giant spider webs drawn across both lower corners
- Stacked crates and boarded-up window frames in the upper half
- Dark crimson void surrounding the playfield apron
Symbols
- Spider webs
- Spiders
- Playing cards and card suits
- Skull motifs
- Jack-o'-lantern pumpkin face
- Bats
- Arrows
- Number rollovers
- Round jackpot targets
- Wooden direction signs
Notable shapes
- The oversized circular chrome wire ramp hoop dominating the upper right, the bat-winged six tales of terror crest, and a large arched cutout in the lower apron centre
Art motifs
- Painted wooden signage with yellow and black borders
- Torn parchment lettering
- Bat-winged banner
- Dripping green horror title lettering
Themes
- Horror comedy
- Haunted house
- Spiders
- Six tales of terror
- Gothic villainess
Title on it
- Scared stiff
Text on it
- SCARED STIFF
- SIX TALES OF TERROR
- ELVIRA
- MISTRESS OF THE DARK
- Bally
- SHOOT AGAIN
- MYSTERY
- WICKED
- MONSTER
- BALL
- 28 USE FLIPPER BUTTONS
- TO STOP SPIDERS
- FOR LANE CHANGE
- Complete all TALES OF TERROR for a chance to get...
- MILLION
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Creature | Small grinning clown in a blue-and-orange striped conical party hat holding playing cards, printed on a square card insert at the top right of the playfield |
| Monster | Purple and white grinning fanged monster head with wild hair printed in the mid-right, alongside a snarling cat-like face |
| Woman | Pale bare legs in white stockings crossed at the ankle, painted just right of centre, cropped at the knees by the ramp |
| Woman | A large painted face of a dark-haired woman in shadow along the left-side lane, wearing a dark hat |
| Other | Pale female figure in a light pink dress painted at bottom centre beneath the six tales of terror banner |
| Woman | Portrait on the lower-right card insert: a pale dark-haired woman in black lace lingerie against a red background, looking over her shoulder |
A full-length electro-mechanical playfield shot lit by strong magenta and blue LED, so the printed art reads as crimson, hot pink and purple with chrome-silver plastics. The layout is a horror-comedy haunted-house scene. At top centre sits a raised housetop box with a silver ribbed dome and three round cream lamps in a row; a large chrome wire-form ramp arcs up and over the top and back down the right side. A card-sized insert at top right shows a grinning clown in a blue-and-orange conical hat holding playing cards. The left lane is guarded by a white dome and a green-lit plastic. Down the middle runs a column of round red targets and beneath them a ladder of rectangular yellow-bordered inserts, flanked by wooden-looking signs reading SHOOT AGAIN, MYSTERY and WICKED. A grinning purple monster head and a pair of pale women's legs occupy the mid-right. At bottom centre a green-bordered panel reads SIX TALES OF TERROR over a red bat-winged banner. White spider webs are silkscreened in both lower corners beside yellow arrow instructions, and the apron below shows a large SCARED STIFF title and a portrait card of a black-lace-clad dark-haired woman.
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass
- orange
- yellow
- green
- black
Fingerprint: SCARED STIFF in dripping acid-green and orange letters with blue splash, reclining brunette in plunging black dress on orange cushions, grinning corpse in top hat with revolver, black cat with green eyes, enormous spiderweb with two green glassy eyes filling upper half, candlelit altar with gold skull medallions and burning head, yellow JUST SAY sign, lurid 1970s airbrushed horror-comedy, orange-yellow-black palette.
The single most memorable element is a reclining brunette hostess in a plunging black dress sprawled across orange cushions, with a grinning corpse in a black top hat and a black cat among spilled gold coins. Behind everything looms an enormous spiderweb with two bulging green eyes at its centre, strung across the whole upper half of the glass. The other eye-catcher is the giant dripping SCARED STIFF logo in acid green and orange at the upper left.
Setting
- Spiderweb across upper half
- Candlelit skull ledge along the top
- Orange cushioned couch/lounge across the lower half
- Dark night sky upper right
Symbols
- Skulls
- Two gold skull medallions on the top ledge
- Burning human head
- Green pillar candle
- Playing-card ornaments with faces
- 8-ball bottle decal
- Money bag
- Bottle with cork and paper label
- Playing cards pinned to the web
- Black revolver
- Potted cactus at far left
- Record label box with a stylus
- Scattered gold coins
Lettering
- Dripping horror-show display type for the logo in acid green with orange block letters below, outlined in black with a jagged blue splash; mixed red and black brush script and slab capitals for the small print; a cursive signature in red at lower right
Themes
- Horror
- Occult
- Camp
- Hostess
- Spiderweb
- Skulls
- Candles
- Retro-horror-movie
Title on it
- Scared stiff
Text on it
- SCARED STIFF
- WITH YOUR HOST
- Elvira
- Mistress of the Dark
- JUST SAY!
- Bally
- BURNIE
- 8-ball
- BLACK THURSDAY EYE
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Woman | One adult brunette woman, pale skin, huge teased beehive hair, heavy eye make-up, red lips, wearing a low-cut black dress and a gold bracelet; reclining on her side on orange cushions, propped on one elbow, bare legs toward the left |
| Creature | Decaying grinning head of an undead man with sunken eyes and long dark hair, wearing a tall black top hat and black tuxedo lapels with a white shirt front, arm outstretched holding a silver revolver |
| Animal | One black cat with bright green eyes sitting upright in the foreground centre-right |
| Animal | A small green rodent or frog-like creature at the top left on the ledge, ears up |
| Animal | A yellow-orange cat face peering from the top right behind the woman |
| Other | A bald skull with a candle stub in each eye socket, lit, lower right of the woman |
| Monster | A large spider with a pale body and red-tipped legs at the exact centre of the web, eyes rendered as two large green glassy orbs |
A backlit backglass with a lurid 1970s airbrushed horror-comedy scene. The upper left carries a huge logo reading SCARED STIFF, in dripping acid-green and orange horror-show lettering with a blue icy splash behind it. Across the top runs a candlelit altar ledge holding two gold skull medallions, a burning head, a green candle and a yellow sign reading JUST SAY! with a red arrow. The whole upper half is a huge spiderweb with two green glassy eyes and a spider at its centre. The lower half shows a reclining brunette woman in a black low-cut dress with towering teased hair, lounging on orange cushions with a black cat, a skull, a money bag, a candle and playing-card ornaments around her. To her left a grinning decaying head in a tall black top hat and tuxedo lapels reaches for a revolver. A white board reads WITH YOUR HOST Elvira Mistress of the Dark. Dominant colours are orange, yellow-green, black and purple.