In 1974 I was the editor of the school yearbook, but just down the hall from the yearbook office was the school bowling alley; A temping diversion. I liked bowling, but what I loved was pinball. When I got stuck on some element of the yearbook, I'd go play a game or two, or three or four or... I was good enough that I could play for an hour on a dollar or less, and often left a machine with multiple free games still on it.

Here I am playing a pinball machine at the school bowling alley.

One day I saw a flyer for a Pinball Tournament and signed up. Any bar or business with a pinball machine would hold a contest to find their best 2 players and send them to a state playoff. The winner would go on to play against other Midwest state's pinball players in Omaha, Nebraska later that summer. Needless to say I won the local tournament. The other local winners and I went to the state tournament in St. Joseph, MO.

There were 10 pinball machines lined up. You played one game on each and then the total of your scores was your final score. (There were several extra machines in case one of the 10 brokedown.)

Yes, this fellow won something. (I can't read the amount on the check, it's not sharp enough.) However, I couldn't take the photo of the other winner because it was me.

I went on to Omaha and came in second, winning $150.00. The winner, (whom I would have beaten if I hadn't tilted one of my plays and lost 300,000 bonus points.) got a trophy filled with $300 in quarters. Hopefully we will find photos from the Omaha tournament. It was in the Hilton, and we played in a gilded ballroom under chandeliers.

Here's my trophy.