Victorious 1944
About This Machine
The Victorious 1944 is a single-player electro-mechanical (EM) pinball machine from Westerhaus Amusement Company of Cheviot, Ohio, produced in February 1944 as a World War II-era conversion of Stoner's 1936 'Turf Champs.' Wartime material shortages led many manufacturers to rework and re-release existing games under new names, and Victorious 1944 is a notable example of that practice.
According to a manufacturer advertisement from February 1944, this revamped version featured a completely remodeled and refinished cabinet with 'patriotic design' and an overhauled mechanism. Interestingly, contemporary photos show that while the backglass displayed the new "Victorious" name, the playfield itself still read "Turf Champs," a small but telling detail of the wartime conversion process.
Specific gameplay mechanics and artwork details for the Victorious 1944 are not well documented. As one of the few surviving Westerhaus Amusement Company creations from this era, it offers a glimpse into how the pinball industry adapted to wartime constraints by repurposing existing games rather than designing new ones from scratch.