Jolly

Jolly, produced by the Chicago Coin Machine Manufacturing Company in March 1940, is an intriguing piece of prewar pinball history. This single-player electro-mechanical game was built in a confirmed run of 2,209 units, and like all pin games of its day it is flipperless, predating the invention of the flipper by seven years.

Gameplay is charmingly simple by modern standards: the machine offered five balls for five cents, with players launching balls into a field of thirteen spring bumpers and relying on plunger skill and luck rather than flipper control. This bumper-focused layout was typical of the flipperless games that dominated the industry around 1940.

As a relic of the era just before America's entry into World War II halted game production, Jolly offers a glimpse into pinball's formative years. Though little further information is available about this specific machine, its age makes it a fascinating piece for collectors and historians who appreciate the industry's pre-flipper roots.