Midway

The Midway pinball machine, manufactured by United Manufacturing Company in August 1942, holds a notable place in company history: it was United's very first game. It is a flipperless conversion of Exhibit's 1940 game "Zombie," with the old playfield stripped and replaced by a new design carrying a Combat/World War II theme reflecting the period's patriotic and militaristic mood.

Gameplay features 14 passive bumpers, which were a common design element in early EM machines. Players would aim for these stationary targets to earn points, adding an element of strategy to the game's otherwise straightforward mechanics. The Midway's simplicity is part of its charm, offering a glimpse into pinball manufacturing during wartime.

Little information is available about this machine's designer or artist. Nonetheless, its origin as a wartime conversion and its status as United's debut title make the Midway an intriguing piece for collectors and historians of pinball.