Made by
- Art
- Michele "Mike" Martinelli
Vision analysis
On the playfield
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Playfield
- blue
- red
- yellow
- brown
Fingerprint: Diagonal bank of nine white playing cards each stamped with red letter, fan of five red-and-yellow flame-shaped lanes lit in sequence, sea wedge filling lower half with yellow-and-blue scalloped wave pattern tiny boat black shark fin and brown sand island, cream apron reads buttons on side or corner in red box with blue arrow
The most memorable feature is the diagonal bank of nine white playing cards, each stamped with a red letter, sitting above a fan of five red-and-yellow flame-shaped lanes lit in sequence. Second is the sea wedge filling the lower half of the field: a yellow-and-blue scalloped wave pattern with a tiny boat, a black shark fin and a brown sand island point. Third, the cream bottom apron carries BUTTONS / ON SIDE OR CORNER in a red box with a blue arrow, flanked by round white AMI spa medallions. Fourth, the whole playfield is unusually long and slim with an arched, keyhole-shaped top and wooden-looking outer rails.
Setting
- Flat sky-blue painted field with lighter blue cloud blobs
- Yellow-and-blue scalloped wave pattern representing sea in the lower third
- Cream painted apron strip at the bottom
- Bare or faded wood-toned outer rails framing the playfield
Symbols
- Nine playing-card faces with red letters
- Round white ball-guide rails
- Five tapered flame or arrow shapes in red and yellow
- Red-ringed circular targets on both sides
- Round white ami spa medallion
- Blue arrow pointing left on the apron
- Shark fin
- Sailboat
- Stars and blue circles scattered on the upper blue field
Notable shapes
- Long slim keyhole silhouette with a domed arched top
- Five tall tapered flame-shaped lanes fanned diagonally across the centre
- A triangular painted sea wedge tapering to a brown sand point at bottom centre
- Two long blue rocket-shaped side inserts with white spots
- Red rubber rings encircling round target holes down both edges
Art motifs
- Flat airbrushed blue field
- Repeating scalloped wave pattern
- Bold black-outlined yellow instruction cards
- Comic-strip lettering in red and yellow block capitals
Themes
- Sea
- Shooting gallery
- Playing cards
- Clowns
- Circus
- Lanes
- Single-player
Title on it
- Double wow / wide wow
Text on it
- 1000 OR 5000 WHEN LIT
- ADVANCE WHEN LIT
- 1000
- AMI
- SHOOT AGAIN FOR 5000 WHEN LIT
- 1000 OR MORE
- ALL THREE LANES ADVANCE
- WOW AND RESET 10,000
- ALL 5 LANES LIT
- AMI spa
- SHOOT AGAIN FOR 5000 OR 20000 FOR 5000 WHEN LIT
- SHOOT RIGHT OR LEFT FOR 10000
- DOUBLE WOW
- WIDE WOW
- BUTTONS
- ON SIDE OR CORNER
- AMI s.p.a.
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Other | A small brown cartoon boat with a red sail and a seated figure, floating on the painted yellow-and-blue sea |
| Creature | A black shark fin breaking the painted surface just above the boat |
| Man | A tiny cartoon boy in a blue outfit with a white cap standing on a blue rocket-shaped side panel at lower right |
| Woman | A cartoon figure with dark hair and a pale face peeking over the top right end of the playing-card bank |
| Other | Small cartoon faces and hands in white circular bumpers along the left and right upper rails, drawn as jolly grinning heads |
A long, narrow, arched-top electro-mechanical playfield dominated by saturated sky-blue and mid-blue paint with bright red, yellow and white lettering. At the top, three vertical white ball-guide rails sit in a red trapezoid below a yellow arrow reading 1000 OR 5000 WHEN LIT / ADVANCE WHEN LIT. Below that runs a diagonal bank of nine white playing-card faces, each printed with a red letter, bordered by a pink-red rail with small round white lamps. Under the cards, five tall red-and-yellow tapered 'lane' shapes (yellow flames with red interiors) rise diagonally, each capped by a round lamp and labelled 1000 OR MORE / ADVANCE WHEN LIT, with a green tee reading ALL THREE LANES ADVANCE. Yellow rectangular instruction cards with black text are scattered left, centre and right: SHOOT AGAIN FOR 5000 WHEN LIT, WOW AND RESET 10,000, ALL 5 LANES LIT, SHOOT RIGHT OR LEFT FOR 10000, and paired SHOOT AGAIN FOR 5000 OR 20000 FOR 5000 WHEN LIT. A round white medallion reading AMI spa sits right of centre. The lower half is a large wedge of yellow-and-blue wavy sea containing a small brown boat, a dark shark-fin shape and a brown island/sand wedge at the tip. Blue rocket-shaped side panels carry tiny cartoon figures, red-ringed round targets line both lanes, and the cream apron at the bottom reads BUTTONS / ON SIDE OR CORNER in a red-orange box with a blue arrow, flanked by more AMI spa discs and a small red and blue AMI logo.
On the backglass
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass
- blue
- orange
- yellow
- red
Fingerprint: the shark title in heavy block capitals with red fill and yellow-gold shading; gigantic blue-grey shark lunging from upper left corner with gaping red mouth dominating top portion; second pale shark flying through water; four orange-skinned female divers in flippers and brassieres positioned mid-water across centre; sunken grey stone temple wall and open treasure chest piled with gold coins
A gigantic blue-grey shark bursting in from the upper left with a gaping red mouth, dominating the top-left corner. A second airborne shark flies past the instruction text 'BALLS TO PLAY' with a black '5' on its body, so the shark appears in mid-air rather than swimming. Four orange-skinned mermaid-like divers in flippers and brassieres posed mid-water across the centre, one in a brass diving helmet. A sunken stone temple wall and an open treasure chest of gold coins on the seabed.
Setting
- Underwater sea scene
- Yellow searchlight beams
- Bubbles
- Sunken stone temple wall with steps
- Teal sandy seabed
Symbols
- Sharks
- Bubbles
- Searchlight beams
- Treasure chest of gold coins
- Amphora jars
- Stone temple blocks
- Harpoon hook
- Three round insert lamps
Lettering
- Heavy red block capitals with yellow-gold inline shading for the title; yellow italic outlined capitals on a blue band for the instruction text
Themes
- Sharks
- Underwater
- Sunken treasure
- Divers
- Swim team pinball
Title on it
- The shark
Text on it
- THE
- SHARK
- BALLS TO PLAY
- 5
- AMI
- Copyright by
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Creature | Huge blue-grey shark at upper left, black dorsal fin, open jaws with red interior and sharp white teeth |
| Creature | Pale shark at right flying through the water, black numeral 5 printed on its body |
| Creature | Black and blue shark silhouette on the white margin beneath the playfield art |
| Woman | Orange-skinned blonde in striped top and briefs, reaching one arm up, streaming dark hair |
| Woman | Orange-skinned diver with snorkel mask and yellow flippers, mid-water above centre |
| Woman | Orange-skinned woman with brown hair in a spotted bikini and yellow fins, leaning back and grasping a rope |
| Woman | Orange-skinned diver in a brass diving helmet with round window, kneeling on the seabed among coins |
| Other | Grey stone statue head and arm rising from the seabed near centre |
A painted, comic-book style backglass set inside a rounded-rectangle blue border on a white outer cabinet panel. Background is a deep blue underwater scene with pale bubbles, three yellow-green searchlight beams slanting down from the top, and a lighter teal seabed along the bottom. At upper left a huge blue-grey shark with a black dorsal fin and open red-lined jaws lunges in from the edge; at right a second pale shark flies through the air behind the words 'BALLS TO PLAY', and a third shark is silhouetted in black and blue on the white margin below the artwork. Across the top sits a long pale-blue, black-outlined score window with comma separators and three round orange-red insert lamps above it. The title 'THE SHARK' is in heavy block capitals, red fill with yellow-gold shading, stacked and low on the left-centre. Four orange-skinned women in brassiere, briefs and flippers swim, dive and snorkel through the centre: one blonde in a striped top reaching upwards, one with a snorkel mask and fins, one dark-haired in a spotted bikini and mask reaching towards a treasure chest, and one partly submerged in a diving helmet. A pale grey-blue stone temple wall with steps fills the right background.
Backglass
- blue
- teal
- yellow
- red
Fingerprint: Enormous shark head bursting from top left with red throat and rows of triangular teeth dwarfing everything, second big shark lunging from right edge framing diving scene, four female divers in swimwear carrying long spears over pale green seabed with kelp, deep blue purple water fading to teal floor, THE SHARK title in red block capitals on left
The most memorable feature is the enormous shark head bursting in from the top left corner, mouth wide open with a red throat and rows of triangular teeth, dwarfing everything else. A second big shark lunges in from the right edge so the two animals frame the diving scene from opposite corners. Beside them, four female divers in flesh-toned swimwear and a red, green and turquoise colour scheme carry long spears over a pale green seabed with kelp. The stacked two-line title in heavy red block capitals with white keyline on the left, set against the blue water, is the other strong memory hook.
Setting
- Underwater reef
- Open sea with bubbles
- Sandy sea floor
- Kelp fronds
- Ivory backglass frame
Symbols
- Sharks
- Spears
- Snorkel tubes
- Air bubbles
- Kelp
- Swim fins
- Three red indicator lamps
- Mechanical score reels
Lettering
- Stacked two-line title in heavy red sans-serif block capitals with thick white keyline and black drop shadow, the smaller and tucked above shark
Themes
- Shark attack
- Scuba diving
- Underwater
- Sea
- Danger
- Spearfishing
Title on it
- The shark
Text on it
- THE
- SHARK
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Animal | Huge grey shark head entering from upper left, white belly, gaping red mouth with two rows of triangular teeth, round black eye |
| Animal | Second large shark on the right side angled leftward, grey back, white underside, black eye, open jaw of triangular teeth |
| Animal | Smaller dark shark silhouette low in the water at centre-left |
| Woman | Top centre, blonde hair, swimming horizontally, one arm extended, flesh-toned body, red swim trunks |
| Woman | Mid left, angled head-down, short hair, green swimsuit, diving pose |
| Woman | Lower centre, standing upright on the sea floor in a turquoise two-piece, holding a long spear vertical |
| Woman | Lower right, red swimsuit, long fins, holding a long spear diagonally across the panel |
Tall portrait backglass on a cream/ivory plastic frame, art panel roughly square. Underwater scene painted in flat cartoon colours: deep blue and purple water at the top fading to pale teal-green sea floor and sand at the bottom, with pale round bubbles scattered upper area and tall yellow-green kelp fronds rising behind the figures. A huge grey shark head with white belly and gaping red-lined mouth full of triangular teeth bursts in from the upper left corner, and a second large shark with a white underside, black eye and open toothed jaw lunges in from the right side. Four snorkelling/scuba divers in flesh-coloured skin swim and pose through the centre: a blonde woman at top centre swimming horizontally with one arm stretched forward and red swim trunks, a second diver at mid-left angled downwards in a green swimsuit, a woman at lower centre standing upright on the seabed in a turquoise two-piece holding a long spear upright, and a fourth diver at lower right in a red swimsuit and fins holding a long spear diagonally across the panel. The stacked title THE SHARK sits on the left in chunky red block capitals with heavy white and black outlines. A grey rounded rectangular score window with eight cream digit reels and three red lights above it runs across the top.