Doughboy

The Doughboy pinball machine, manufactured by Baker Novelty and Manufacturing Company in April 1940, is an example of pre-flipper electro-mechanical (EM) pinball design. Baker Novelty operated only from 1939 to 1941, making its games an interesting footnote in the industry's early history.

Doughboy is a flipperless, single-player game featuring a combination of twelve spring bumpers and five mushroom bumpers, totaling seventeen points of contact on the playfield. This layout is characteristic of early EM designs, which relied on bumper scoring rather than player-controlled flippers: the player launches the ball and watches it work its way down through the bumper field to accumulate points.

Little is known about Doughboy's design, art, or theme beyond its 1940 production date and Baker Novelty's short manufacturing history. Enthusiasts can appreciate this machine for its place in pinball's early development, offering a glimpse into the work of smaller manufacturers during the late 1930s and early 1940s.