Whoopee Game

The Whoopee Game (1932) was produced by the In and Outdoor Games Company of Chicago, Illinois as a Pure Mechanical (PM) bagatelle. It is not itself the earliest coin-operated pinball game – it is in fact a second, smaller-scale version of the company's own full-size 1931 pin table also called 'Whoopee Game', part of a wave of bagatelle-style counter games that proliferated industry-wide in the early 1930s.

As with other early bagatelles of the period, gameplay involved launching balls into scoring targets via mechanical means. Period advertising indicates the Whoopee Game came in two sizes, likely a full-size pin table for locations and a smaller counter-top version for tighter spaces. Notable for its simplicity and minimalistic design, it is representative of the bagatelle-based coin-operated games that emerged in this era.

While little is known about the specific design or art on this smaller version of the Whoopee Game, its age and rarity make it a sought-after collector's item, and its relationship to the larger 1931 original underscores how manufacturers of the era iterated quickly on successful designs.