Foto Finish

Foto Finish, produced by D. Gottlieb & Company in July 1937, is an early sports-themed pinball machine from the pre-flipper era. As an electro-mechanical (EM) design, Foto Finish belongs to the first wave of pinball machines that transitioned from purely mechanical to electrically enhanced gameplay.

Foto Finish is built around a horse racing theme, and notably it is a payout machine, an award-style game from a period when many pinball machines paid out coins for winning results. Specific details of its rules and playfield layout are not well documented, but its design reflects Gottlieb's work in pinball's formative 1930s.

The artwork on Foto Finish was created by Roy Parker, a prolific artist whose long association with Gottlieb would continue for decades. Despite its age, this machine represents an interesting chapter in pinball history, offering insight into the payout games that flourished before flippers transformed the industry.