Cover Girl

Cover Girl, produced by D. Gottlieb & Company in April 1945, is an early electro-mechanical (EM), single-player, flipperless pinball machine themed around Hollywood actresses. The game references three real actresses of the day - Joan Blondell, Ginger Rogers, and Eve Arden - though only Arden actually appeared in the 1944 film 'Cover Girl' that likely inspired the title.

Gameplay on Cover Girl centers on 15 scoring bumpers, a substantial number for its time, with players aiming to accumulate points as the ball interacts with them. As a flipperless machine, the ball's path is determined largely by the pins and bumpers rather than player-directed shots, consistent with pinball design before the 1947 introduction of flippers. The cabinet measures 50 inches long, 23 inches wide, and 65 inches high on its legs.

Cover Girl's Hollywood-actress theme reflects the glamour-focused design trends of mid-1940s pinball, tying the game to contemporary popular culture. As one of Gottlieb's mid-1940s EM releases, it remains a notable piece of pinball history for collectors interested in the pre-flipper era.