Where pinball lives on
Tim Arnold, 52, has about 800 pinball machines stored in his backyard hangar in Las Vegas. About 200 more machines reside in his Pinball Hall of Fame, where anyone with quarters can play them. What’s the use of having cool games, he figured, if you play them alone? (Sara Tramiel / For the Times)
Among Arnold’s collection is Pinball Pool, a game released in June 1979 from his favorite manufacturer, D. Gottlieb & Co. Back home in Michigan, Arnold and his brother operated seven pinball arcades. They opened the first in 1976, and Arnold retired in 1990 with $1 million. He was 35. (Sara Tramiel / For the Times)
Arnold’s collection includes D. Gottlieb & Co.’s first pinball machine, Baffle Ball, made in 1931. (Sara Tramiel / For the Times)
Gary Breyfogle, 51, leans into his game at the Pinball Hall of Fame. The arcade is a throwback, with vintage posters and Mike and Ike candy machines. Arnold doesnt charge admission, and proceeds from the machines go to charity. (Sara Tramiel / For the Times)
Arnold opened the nonprofit Pinball Hall of Fame in 2006, in a strip mall on Tropicana Avenue and Pecos Road. One day he’d like to move to a bigger space with room for 600 to 800 games. The hall of fame’s website is www.pinballmuseum.org. (Sara Tramiel / For the Times)
