Hawaii

United Manufacturing Company's 1947 "Hawaii" comes from the final months of the flipperless era, released in September 1947 — just before flippers swept through the industry. It is a single-player electro-mechanical game, and it was also offered as a rolldown game housed in a console cabinet, reflecting the variety of formats manufacturers experimented with in the late 1940s.

The game offered the standard 5 balls for 5 cents, with players relying on the plunger and nudging as the ball works its way among 12 passive bumpers and 4 kick-out holes. Without flippers, scoring depended on launch skill and a bit of luck, the classic formula of pre-flipper pinball.

The Hawaii theme evokes the exotic allure of the islands in the post-war era, when American fascination with the Pacific was at a high. For those who encounter it today, "Hawaii" offers a glimpse into pinball just before the flipper revolution transformed the game.