Whizz
About This Machine
The Whizz is a compact electro-mechanical (EM) table-top pinball machine produced by Genco Manufacturing Company beginning August 16, 1946, with 1,719 units confirmed produced. It is a single-player game designed to be played standing on a 38-inch pedestal, bringing its total height to 62 inches; the cabinet itself could also be detached from the pedestal and used on its own as a counter game.
Notable features on the playfield include the instruction "To Make SKILL SCORE Line Up Balls in Rotation From LEFT to RIGHT," guiding players in how to score. The coin slide, which accepted two cents per play, references U.S. patents 1908752 and 1908380.
Little else is documented about Whizz's designer or theme. Interestingly, IPDB notes that a set of "Whizz" operator instructions was found stapled to the back of the playfield of a Genco 1946 "Pee-Wee" game, even though the text doesn't apply to that machine's electromechanical parts -- a quirk that highlights how intertwined (and sometimes messy) Genco's paperwork from this era could be.
Images (30)
Technical Details
- Notable Features:
- The bottom of the playfield reads "To Make SKILL SCORE Line Up Balls in Rotation From LEFT to RIGHT". The coin slide reads "2˘" and states "U.S. Pat N OS, 1908752 & 1908380". The game cabinet was advertised as 24 inches high, 18 inches wide, and 12 inches deep. The Pedestal is 38 inches high, making the total height 62 inches. The game can be detached from the pedestal to use as a counter game.