# Episode 61 - The First Bingo - United's ABC **Source:** For Amusement Only EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast **Type:** podcast_episode **Published:** 2015-05-11 **Duration:** 7m 35s **Beat:** Pinball **URL:** https://foramusementonly.libsyn.com/episode-61-the-first-bingo-uniteds-abc --- ## Analysis Nick Baldridge analyzes United's ABC, the first bingo pinball game released in March 1951, preceding Bally's Bright Lights by one month. ABC features a unique circular playfield layout with 25 numbers arranged in a roulette-wheel style, a central pop bumper, three bingo cards on the backglass, and highly randomized gameplay with an average game time of 40 seconds for five balls. The episode discusses the game's design philosophy, cabinet construction, art style, payout structure, and limited skill elements, while acknowledging the speaker has never personally played one. ### Key Claims - [HIGH] United's ABC was released in March 1951, making it the first bingo pinball game ever manufactured — _Nick Baldridge, host, stated directly in episode opening; historical fact about product release_ - [HIGH] Bally's Bright Lights was released in April 1951, one month after ABC, as Bally's first bingo game — _Nick Baldridge, stated as direct comparison and chronological fact_ - [HIGH] ABC was a three-card bingo game with coins required to activate each card (three coins needed for all three cards) — _Nick Baldridge, detailed description of game mechanics_ - [HIGH] ABC featured a circular arrangement of 25 numbers on the playfield with a single pop bumper in the center — _Nick Baldridge, detailed playfield description; this format only lasted for two machines total_ - [HIGH] ABC had an average game time of 40 seconds for five balls according to manufacturer flyer — _Nick Baldridge, citing original flyer documentation_ - [MEDIUM] ABC's maximum payout was 200 replays, well below typical Bally machines' max payouts — _Nick Baldridge; comparative claim about payout structure_ - [MEDIUM] ABC's cabinet construction resembled a modified Bally bingo with an added payout hopper — _Nick Baldridge, visual observation and comparative analysis_ - [MEDIUM] The circular roulette-wheel gameplay format only lasted for two machines in the United lineup — _Nick Baldridge, statement about format duration/production run_ ### Notable Quotes > "ABC was the first bingo that was made, and it's unique in a few different ways." > — **Nick Baldridge**, ~0:45 > _Sets up the historical significance of the game being analyzed_ > "The playfield layout, which I really haven gone into in any of my previous episodes... The default Bally style bingo game is not present at all. So you have these three bingo cards with an arrangement of 25 numbers on the playfield but they're arranged in a circle." > — **Nick Baldridge**, ~1:30 > _Describes the unique design innovation of ABC's circular playfield layout, distinguishing it from standard bingo pinball conventions_ > "This is a very random looking game." > — **Nick Baldridge**, ~2:15 > _Core assessment of gameplay philosophy; defines ABC's mechanical randomness as primary characteristic_ > "A 40 second bingo game means that you not putting any thought into what you doing. Because in this one it pretty much random chance." > — **Nick Baldridge**, ~3:00 > _Analysis of player agency and skill involvement in ABC's gameplay_ > "I don't know if it's one that I'd want to have personally, because it is so random." > — **Nick Baldridge**, ~5:15 > _Personal collector/operator perspective on the game's appeal despite historical importance_ ### Entities | Name | Type | Context | |------|------|---------| | Nick Baldridge | person | Host of For Amusement Only EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast; enthusiast and homebrewer (creator of Multi-Bingo); expert on early bingo pinball games | | United Manufacturing | company | Historical bingo pinball manufacturer; produced ABC in March 1951, the first bingo pinball game | | Bally | company | Historical bingo pinball manufacturer; released Bright Lights in April 1951, their first bingo game, one month after United's ABC | | ABC | game | United Manufacturing's bingo pinball game released March 1951; first bingo pinball game ever made; features circular 25-number playfield with central pop bumper, three bingo cards, 40-second average game time | | Bright Lights | game | Bally's first bingo pinball game released April 1951, one month after United's ABC | | Multi-Bingo | game | Homebrew game created by Nick Baldridge; mentioned as comparison point for six-card bingo layout (ABC is three-card) | | Big Wheel | game | Referenced bingo pinball game with circular number arrangement on backglass; comparison point for ABC's circular playfield design | | Magic Ring | game | Referenced bingo pinball game with circular number arrangement on backglass; comparison point for ABC's design approach | | For Amusement Only | organization | Podcast series focused on EM and bingo pinball; hosted by Nick Baldridge; contact: 4amusementonlypodcast@gmail.com | ### Topics - **Primary:** Bingo pinball history and origins, United Manufacturing as early bingo innovator, Game design and mechanical innovation in 1951, Playfield layout and roulette-wheel mechanics - **Secondary:** Skill vs. randomness in bingo pinball gameplay, Cabinet design and artwork styling (early 1950s), Comparison between United and Bally bingo approaches - **Mentioned:** Collector/operator perspectives on playability ### Sentiment **Positive** (0.72) — Nick Baldridge expresses fascination with ABC's historical importance and unique design features, though tempered by skepticism about its practical playability due to high randomness. Respectful, curious tone toward the game despite personal reservations about collecting one. ### Signals - **[historical_signal]** ABC (United, March 1951) confirmed as first bingo pinball game ever manufactured, predating Bally's Bright Lights by one month (confidence: high) — Nick Baldridge explicitly states 'ABC was the first bingo that was made' and provides April 1951 date for Bright Lights - **[design_innovation]** ABC introduced circular roulette-wheel playfield arrangement with central pop bumper and 25 numbers; this design format lasted only two machines (confidence: high) — Detailed description of circular 25-number layout, central pop bumper mechanics, and statement 'this format only lasted for two machines' - **[gameplay_signal]** ABC prioritizes mechanical randomness over player skill, with 40-second average game time and minimal control opportunities beyond plunger force (confidence: high) — Quote: 'A 40 second bingo game means that you not putting any thought into what you doing. Because in this one it pretty much random chance' - **[product_strategy]** ABC offered configurable coin shoots at distributor level: 5-cent (default) or 25-cent denominations, unusual for 1951 (confidence: high) — Nick Baldridge states: 'from the distributor, you could swap out the default 5-cent coin shoot for a 25 cent shoot. That's quite the jump' - **[community_signal]** Nick Baldridge explicitly states he has never played a United bingo machine, indicating limited hands-on collector experience with that manufacturer's games (confidence: high) — Direct statement: 'I've never played a United, if I haven't said it already earlier in the podcast' - **[collector_signal]** Despite historical significance, ABC is not considered desirable for personal collection due to perceived excessive randomness hurting playability (confidence: medium) — Nick Baldridge: 'I don't know if it's one that I'd want to have personally, because it is so random' - **[content_signal]** Nick Baldridge signals future episode on United vs. Bally bingo service differences and ABC playfield layout deep-dive (confidence: medium) — Statement: 'I'll get into some of the differences between United and Ballybingos as far as service in a later episode' and 'I really haven gone into in any of my previous episodes so I be sure to do that here soon' - **[historical_signal]** ABC cabinet resembles modified Bally bingo design with added payout hopper, suggesting convergent design practices or possible manufacturing/design influence between manufacturers (confidence: medium) — Nick Baldridge observes: 'the cabinet itself is what's really interesting it uh it looks just like uh a bally bingo that's been modified with a payout hopper' --- ## Transcript what's that sound it's for amusement only the em and bingo pinball podcast welcome back to for amusement only this is Nicholas Baldridge today is mother's day so i wanted to say happy mother's day to any mothers out there who might be listening either intentionally or unintentionally today I wanted to talk about the first bingo game and United and Bally were both bingo manufacturers United made a game called ABC in March of 1951 and Bally made their first bingo Bright Lights in April of 1951 um, ABC was the first bingo that was made, and it's unique in a few different ways. Um, first of all, in 1951, from the distributor, you could swap out the default 5-cent coin shoot for a 25 cent shoot. That's quite the jump. ABC was a three card bingo, so much like my ticker tape is a six card bingo, ABC only has three cards on the back glass. Each card is activated by a subsequent coin drop, so you have to put in three coins in order to light all three cards. Now, here's where things get interesting. The playfield layout, which I really haven gone into in any of my previous episodes so I be sure to do that here soon for the default Bally style bingo game is not present at all So you have these three bingo cards with an arrangement of 25 numbers on the playfield but they're arranged in a circle. So I had mentioned in my last episode about Big Wheel and Magic Ring and how they have their numbers arranged on the back glass in a circle. Well, these are arranged on the playfield in a circle, and there's a single pop bumper in the center of the playfield. Now you shoot your ball and it kind of goes down roulette style into that playfield. And if it hits a bumper, it'll jam it into a hole that's nearby. This is a very random looking game. Now, it must be said that I've never played a United, if I haven't said it already earlier in the podcast. So, these are all very unique and interesting looking to me because I've never seen one. But this one in particular looks really interesting. From a controls perspective, you don't have a whole lot here. I mean, you can nudge the table, but nudging is only going to get you so far when you have a mechanically activated device in the center of the playfield shooting the ball at rocket speeds away. So, this format only lasted for two machines, but ABC was the first. from the flyer, it says the average game time is 40 seconds, and that's for five balls. That pretty crazy A 40 bingo game means that you not putting any thought into what you doing Because in this one it pretty much random chance Now there is some skill in how you fire the plunger, but that's about it. I mean, if you only draw it back partially, it's not going to hit that pop bumper with a lot of force. The max payout for ABC was 200 replays, which is well below what most ballet machines' max payout is. the playfield and back glass art is what I would call of a typical style of the early 50's coming out of World War II there were remnants of art deco so you have very geometric patterns and so forth on the back glass the play field though on on abc is uh almost like a blank uh there there's not a whole lot on it there are a few um little curvy touches at the top um and then the letters abc like blocks uh up above that the roulette wheel arrangement itself is uh of course the big draw the big eye catcher with a red pop bumper in the center and then green numbers fanning out from that to the actual holes. It very attractive that roulette wheel inset The rest of the play field I could take or leave I do like all of the exposed wood Again, it's very similar to a game from the decade before. Now, the cabinet artwork is reds and greens, which is a bit of an unusual pairing for earlier games. the cabinet itself is what's really interesting it uh it looks just like uh a bally bingo that's been modified with a payout hopper so it's got a front that extends all the way to the floor pretty much and a back that extends all the way to the floor uh really odd looking. And I'll get into some of the differences between United and Ballybingos as far as service in a later episode. But it looks like a fun game to play. I don't know if it's one that I'd want to have personally, because it is so random. Getting my hands on one and playing one might show me something different, but from what I've read and what I can see, It sure looks like playability would be hurt by just having a pop bumper firing it in a random direction. So that's my take on it. And again, if anyone has played one of these, I'd love to talk to you. Let me know. You can reach me at 4amusementonlypodcast at gmail.com. And you can find us online at 4amusementonly.libsyn.com. You can listen to us on iTunes, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, via RSS. and on Facebook, and directly on our website. Thanks again for listening, and I'll talk to you next time. _(Acquisition: groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_ --- *Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 3dd34473-711d-4eb9-83b4-62810e3dc93e*