Slot Machines
The complete and colorful story of coin-operated chance machines from the time they first became prevalent in the early 1890's up to the coin gaming found in todays casino's. Included in the exciting history of this major industry are the pioneers, inventors, manufacturers, and operators. There is also over 400 photographs, mostly in full color, of slot machines of every imaginable genre.The slot's destiny rose and feil with the changing moods of the nation. The Roaring Twenties brought the notorious speakeasys, a logical home for the ubiquitous slots, while the Depression years of the 1930's saw record productions and the most beautiful and brilliant machines ever designed, now highly collectable. The Golden Age of slots ended in 1950 with the passing of far-reaching federal legislation confining their use. But the growth of casinos in Nevada and Atlantic City, plus recent legalization in more states, has resulted in a resurgence of the slot machine.
Slots, highly regarded collectables, are not only a good investment, but are fun to play. Every important slot manufactured during the first 100 years is carefully represented both in text and by more than 600 photographs and newspaper articles, all serving to chronicle this colorful segment of Americana
ISBN/Verlag/Autor/Preis:
0-9623852-4-7
Liberty Belle Books, Reno
Marshall Fey
1991
256 Seiten, gebunden, 361 Farbfots
Englisch
Inhaltsverzeichnis
San Francisco, Cradle of the Slot Machine
Inception - poker and wheel machines
Charlie Fey and the Liberty Bell: Birth of the Bell siot Machine
A Shaking for the Slot Industry: San Francisco Earthquake and Fire
Renaissance to Reform: Rebuilding from the fire - slots allowed
Thomas Edison of Slot Machines: Numerous machines by Charlie Fey
Hitting the Jackpot by Larceny: Mills, Caille, Watling Bell families
The Gum Age: Slots vend gum - Prohibition
The Roaring Twenties: Mints and Jackpots: Aluminum - mints - jackpots - speakeasys
The Golden Age: Opulence and Glamour: Depression - classic designs - raid
Munitions to Annihilation
Circumventing Innovations: Ruses - disguises - themes
Nevada and Atlantic City: A legal Approach: Montana, Maryland, No. Dakota, So. Dakota etc.
Adapting Slot Machines for Casino Play: New generation of machines and manufacturers
The Electronic Age Video and Stepper Slots: TV Bells - poker - electronic games - Mega-Bucks
Second Generation: Inventor and Operator: Edmund Fey: son of Charles Fey
Restoration and Collecting
Liberty Belle Collection
How the Darn Things Work
Mathematics
Chicago Factories
More Wheels
Depression Stimulators
Bibliography
Beispielseite
Persönliche Kritik
Dieses Buch hat mich tief beeindruckt. Außerordentlich sorgfältige Recherche der wirtschaftlichen und zeitgeschichtlichen Rahemenbedingungen, die zum Erfolg der US-Slotmachines geführt haben, verbunden mit sehr seltenen und persönlichen Dokumenten aus dem Nachlass von Charlie Frey, dem Grossvater des Autors, sowie detaillierte Fotos, auch von Gewinnplänen und Technik, dazu die Wirtschaftsgeschichte der Hersteller, Naturkatastrophen wie das grosse Erdbeben in San Franzisko, das alle Produktionsstätten vernichtete, Prohibition und politische Verfolgung, verleiten zum stundenlangen Schmökern, bei dem man wirklich jede Zeile verschlingt.
