War Admiral
About This Machine
The War Admiral pinball machine holds a unique place in the history of electro-mechanical (EM) games. Produced by the Sullivan-Nolan Advertising Company in January 1943, during World War II, it was a wartime conversion of several earlier Bally one-ball payout machines: Grandstand (1938), Pace Maker (1938/1939), and Grand National (1939). Wartime material shortages led many operators to convert existing cabinets into new titles rather than manufacture entirely new machines, and War Admiral is one of these WWII-era conversions.
As a one-ball payout machine, War Admiral's gameplay followed the conventions of its source games, with players shooting a single ball and scoring based on where it landed, rather than the flipper-based skill play that would not arrive in pinball until 1947. Machines from this era relied on gravity, pins, and simple mechanical scoring rather than active player control.
Little else is documented about War Admiral's specific design or artwork, but its status as a wartime conversion of established Bally titles makes it a notable curiosity for collectors interested in how the pinball industry adapted to WWII material shortages.