# TWIP - Around The Playfield W/ Jack Danger **Source:** Dead Flip **Type:** video **Published:** 2018-02-06 **Duration:** 10m 21s **Beat:** Pinball **URL:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goFBwpLUJMM --- ## Analysis Jack Danger of Deadflip participates in a 'This Week in Pinball' questionnaire, discussing his entry into pinball through Lord of the Rings and Judge Dredd machines at his animation studio, his philosophy that any pinball machine is worth playing, memorable moments including playing with a broken arm at Metallica's launch tournament, and his vision for pinball's future incorporating more digital-physical hybrids and technological innovation. ### Key Claims - [HIGH] Jack Danger was introduced to pinball through Judge Dredd pinball machine brought to his animation studio by Brad Stark — _Direct personal anecdote about how he got into pinball; names specific machine and person involved_ - [HIGH] Jack Danger only permanently owns two pinball machines: a Cabaret Harry Williams (purchased for $200) and a Capcom Break Shot (donated by Wonko) — _Direct statement about ownership; he clarifies most machines in his collection are temporary viewer donations_ - [HIGH] Jack Danger played in Metallica launch tournament at Emporium in Wicker Park with a broken left arm in a sling — _Detailed personal anecdote; bike accident day of or before the event, confirmed arm injury during tournament_ - [MEDIUM] Jack Danger beat more than half the competitors at Metallica launch tournament, including both Sharp brothers — _Personal claim about tournament performance; no external verification mentioned_ - [MEDIUM] Pinball will see more digital-physical hybrid innovations like Multimorphic P3 in the next 5-10 years — _Jack Danger's opinion on future industry direction; prediction rather than confirmed fact_ - [MEDIUM] Virtual pinball cabinets are not commonly seen on location due to low maintenance appeal not yet being exploited — _Jack Danger's observation; stated as speculation about market gap_ - [HIGH] Zach Sharp taught Jack Danger one-handed pinball technique that improved his play — _Direct personal anecdote; Zach Sharp confirmed as significant mentor figure_ ### Notable Quotes > "When I first met Zach Sharp, and he taught me how to play pinball... It seemed like some stupid Mr Miyagi stuff like wax on wax off... But it really does transform the way you play it teaches you how to read the ball sooner trust your deadflips more." > — **Jack Danger**, ~3:15 > _Describes pivotal mentorship moment and technique innovation in his pinball development_ > "I'm standing in line and people in line are like, oh, Jack, oh, sorry to hear about your arm, man. Are you holding a spot for somebody? and my left arm's in a sling, and I'm like, no, man, I'm here to play. They're like, what? And I'm like, yeah, check this out." > — **Jack Danger**, ~4:45 > _Illustrates his determination and commitment to competitive pinball despite physical injury_ > "My favorite machine is the machine I'm currently playing. You know, because pinball is pinball, even if it's like the worst machine you've ever heard of. Pinball is still pinball." > — **Jack Danger**, ~6:30 > _Core philosophy about pinball accessibility and universal appeal_ > "My least favorite pinball machine, I don't think it's been made yet... If that is the only machine and you're stuck in the middle of nowhere, you're going to play the game, right?" > — **Jack Danger**, ~6:50 > _Reinforces his philosophy that any pinball machine has value_ > "I think for a music pin, I think the Beastie Boys would go a long way. there's a lot of iconography there great music everyone knows the freaking Beastie Boys" > — **Jack Danger**, ~7:50 > _Dream IP for future pinball game; also critiques oversaturation of music pins_ > "Bogus Journey. Doesn't matter. I'm having a brain fart. Okay." > — **Jack Danger**, ~8:20 > _Humorous moment discussing Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey as potential pinball theme_ > "I was grooving so hard. I was shaking the machine and I did not even notice that I was getting tilt warnings... You need to be aware of what's happening." > — **Jack Danger**, ~10:15 > _Self-deprecating story about tilting during competitive play; lessons learned about focus_ > "Enigmatic. That means mysterious or like hard to pinball pinballs all over the place. You know, there's great players. There's toxic people. There's awesome history. There's amazing people that it has everything." > — **Jack Danger**, ~12:15 > _Summarizes the complexity and duality of pinball hobby culture_ > "when I'm mayor of Chicago and then you know progress on to be the the ruler of the United States you know pinball is going to be enforced in every household where you have to play 15 minutes a day much like Sam Stern does now" > — **Jack Danger**, ~14:30 > _Humorous closing statement; reference to Sam Stern's daily pinball practice discipline_ > "Pinball will always be here, absolutely. And I think with advancements in technology and the prices of technology going down, we're going to see so many new innovations coming out in pinball machines" > — **Jack Danger**, ~13:45 > _Optimistic view on pinball's future despite digital trends; anticipates technological integration_ ### Entities | Name | Type | Context | |------|------|---------| | Jack Danger | person | Deadflip co-founder, pinball content creator, competitive player, and subject of interview; entered pinball through Judge Dredd machine in his animation studio | | Brad Stark | person | Original Deadflip co-founder who introduced Jack Danger to pinball by bringing Lord of the Rings and Judge Dredd machines to animation studio | | Zach Sharp | person | Pinball mentor who taught Jack Danger one-handed pinball technique; competitive player who acknowledged Jack's performance at Metallica launch tournament | | Bowen Kerins | person | Pinball community figure mentioned in anecdote about sharing donuts at Papa pinball venue | | Wonko | person | Viewer who donated Capcom Break Shot pinball machine to Jack Danger; described as permanent collection donation | | Nick | person | Deadflip friend who accompanied Jack to Metallica launch tournament and suggested using headphones to manage tournament nerves | | Sam Stern | person | Referenced as someone who practices pinball 15 minutes daily; appears to be a professional pinball player known for disciplined practice regimen | | Gavin | person | Pinball community member who accidentally exploded soundboard on Deadflip show during machine repair | | This Week in Pinball | organization | Pinball podcast/news outlet conducting questionnaire interviews with prominent pinball figures | | Deadflip | organization | Content creation platform/channel founded by Jack Danger and Brad Stark; produces pinball-related content | | Judge Dredd | game | Pinball machine that sparked Jack Danger's passion for pinball; brought to his animation studio by Brad Stark | | Lord of the Rings | game | First pinball machine brought to Jack Danger's animation studio by Brad Stark; did not initially captivate him | | Capcom Break Shot | game | Pinball machine permanently donated to Jack Danger by Wonko; one of only two machines he owns | | Cabaret (Harry Williams) | game | Early electromechanical pinball machine purchased by Jack Danger for $200; currently being rethemed; one of only two machines he owns | | Metallica | game | Stern pinball game with launch tournament at Emporium in Wicker Park; Jack Danger competed while recovering from broken arm | | The Simpsons | game | Pinball machine referenced as community meme for being 'worst machine' though Jack defends all machines as playable | | Multimorphic P3 | game | Digital-physical hybrid pinball machine cited by Jack Danger as example of future pinball innovation direction | | Chicago | organization | City where Jack Danger's animation studio was located; home to Emporium arcade in Wicker Park | | Emporium | organization | Arcade venue in Wicker Park, Chicago hosting Metallica pinball launch tournament where Jack Danger competed with broken arm | | Papa | organization | Pinball league/tournament series where Jack Danger has competed multiple times; mentioned in multiple anecdotes | ### Topics - **Primary:** Pinball entry and origin stories, Competitive pinball and tournament experiences, Pinball philosophy and personal approach to the hobby, Future technological trends in pinball (digital-physical hybrids) - **Secondary:** Mentorship and skill development in pinball, Pinball community culture and personality, Dream IP themes for future pinball games - **Mentioned:** Content creation and streaming in pinball ### Sentiment **Positive** (0.82) — Jack Danger expresses deep passion and love for pinball throughout; celebrates community figures, embraces all machines as valuable, and demonstrates optimism about the hobby's future. Light self-deprecating humor and some criticism of tournament mistakes, but overall tone is encouraging and enthusiastic. Minor acknowledgment of 'toxic people' in community tempers otherwise very positive sentiment. ### Signals - **[community_signal]** Jack Danger emphasizes love of cheering people on and helping others in pinball community, reflecting engaged content creator approach (confidence: high) — I love cheering people on I love helping people - **[sentiment_shift]** Positive reception and encouragement from sharp brothers and tournament competitors regarding Jack Danger's play despite physical injury (confidence: high) — Zach Sharp walks up to me and he's like, are you kidding me? You broke your arm? I'm like, yeah, dude. And he's like, you're going to murder everybody. - **[market_signal]** Jack Danger observes gap in virtual pinball cabinet location deployment due to low maintenance appeal, suggesting potential market opportunity (confidence: low) — I'm actually surprised you don't see like virtual cabinets on location because there's like no maintenance there - **[community_signal]** Jack Danger's mentorship under Zach Sharp involved unconventional one-handed pinball technique training approach (confidence: high) — he taught me to play one and I thought he was trolling me It seemed like some stupid Mr Miyagi stuff like wax on wax off - **[technology_signal]** Jack Danger predicts increase in digital-physical hybrid pinball machines like Multimorphic P3 and more fully digital pinball within 5-10 years (confidence: medium) — I think with advancements in technology and the prices of technology going down, we're going to see so many new innovations coming out in pinball machines... I think we're going to start seeing a lot more of that type of thing happening --- ## Transcript Hey This Week in Pinball fans! My name is Jack Danger of Deadflip and the fine folks at This Week in Pinball have asked me to partake in a little questionnaire that they're passing around to certain pinball celebrities and I'm happy to oblige. So we're just gonna kick it off if that's cool with you. So the first question is, how did you first get into pinball? That's a great question and a story I've told a couple of times, so I don't want to bore anybody, but when I was the owner of an animation studio in the West Loop of Chicago, I was building out this space, and my buddy Brad Zac Stark, one of the original Deadflip guys with me, he bought a Lord of the Rings pinball machine and had nowhere to put it. So I was like, yeah, we got room, bring it on by, drop it off. It is what it is. We plugged it in, played it for a little bit, wasn't really sold on pinball, it was still just like electronic furniture to me. So, you know, like a week passes, Brad hollers at me again. He's like, hey, I bought another pinball machine. I'm like, all right, dude, you know, these are big and I don't have room for this stuff. But, you know, we did have room. So it was a Judge Dredd pinball machine that we brought in. And from the moment we lifted the head on that thing, plugged it in, turned it on, I was sold on that game. Pinball was like, I need to know everything. The animations on that game were great. The art was awesome. The shots were fun. And I needed to know how to beat pinball. Come to find out you can't, but that is how I got into it. So there it is. Brad Zac Stark, this is your fault, buddy. All right. Second question is, what was the first pinball machine you ever bought? Now, I've had a lot of pinball machines in my collection. All of them have been donated by viewers temporarily. The only permanent donation we've received is the Capcom Break Shot over there from my boy Wonko. Love you, bud. But the only machine I ever purchased was a cabaret Williams cabaret that's over there in the corner. And I bought it for $200. And we're re theming it right now. Great EM if you haven't played one, go check it out. But yeah, I mean, I really only own two pinball machines. All right, what is your best pinball achievement or favorite pinball moment? Oh, there's too many to count, like way too many to count. Just off the top of my head, things I can think of. When I first met Zach Sharp, and he taught me how to play pinball he taught me to play one and I thought he was trolling me It seemed like some stupid Mr Miyagi stuff like wax on wax off You only going to play with one hand close your eyes you know that kind of thing But it really does transform the way you play it teaches you how to read the ball sooner trust your deadflips more. And there was the Metallica launch party that I was going to go to, I was out with my buddy Nick, another deadflip guy, we're having a good time, blah blah blah, and on my way home, I was on my bike, some van flung open their door and I ran into it and caught myself on both my arms and I broke my left elbow. I'd never broken a bone before in my life. So I'm like, frick, you know, never broken something before. And I really wanted to go to this launch tournament. So I go to the launch event for Metallica at Emporium in Wicker Park. And I'm standing in line and people in line are like, oh, Jack, oh, sorry to hear about your arm, man. Are you holding a spot for somebody? and my left arm's in a sling, and I'm like, no, man, I'm here to play. They're like, what? And I'm like, yeah, check this out. And I was like three people away in line to go play, and Zach walks up to me and he's like, are you kidding me? You broke your arm? I'm like, yeah, dude. And he's like, you're going to murder everybody. And in that tournament, I beat more than half of the people, including both Sharp brothers. So, you know, that was a great moment. There's been plenty. There's been plenty. One time before I knew Bowen, he gave me half of his donut at Papa. That was fun. Whatever. Let's see. What is your favorite and least favorite pinball machine? I'm sure you're going to get this a lot from everybody, but I don't think there's an answer to favorite pinball machine. I like to say my favorite machine is the machine I'm currently playing. You know, because pinball is pinball, even if it's like the worst machine you've ever heard of. Pinball is still pinball. I don't know. My least favorite pinball machine, I don't think it's been made yet. You know, because really, at the end of the day, you're on a desert island. And if there's a, you know, we have a little bit of a meme in my chat that Daddy E. Simpsons is the worst pinball machine, but there's definitely worse out there. If that is the only machine and you're stuck in the middle of nowhere, you're going to play the game, right? Calm down. It's fine. It's fine. What is your dream theme or a game that you'd like to see made into a pinball machine? I think for a music pin, I think the Beastie Boys would go a long way. there's a lot of iconography there great music everyone knows the freaking Beastie Boys I think I think the world needs a little bit of a break on music pins but I think the Beastie Boys would go a long way maybe Pee Wee Herman No What that movie with Keanu Reeves and that dude from Lost Boys Wild Stallions Anyway bogus journey. Doesn't matter. I'm having a brain fart. Okay. What is the dumbest mistake you've made in pinball? Messing up, fixing a machine, blah, blah, blah. Oh, man. I know this. Gavin exploded the soundboard on this live on my show. That was pretty cool. But I'd say my most embarrassing moment, um, was I was competing in Papa, uh, five, four or five years ago. God, I can't remember. And I, the, my nerves were starting to get, you know, ahold of me and I was like, crap, I don't know what to do. And my buddy Nick, who's with me at the time, uh, pulls out some headphones and he's like, try listening to music. Like some people play better when they listen to music. And I was like, cool. So I put the headphones in for the life of me. I can't remember the song, but I was grooving so fricking hard, you know, crank the volume up and I'm killing it, killing this game. I think I was playing high speed or something, just murdering this machine. And, you know, I'm doing it and I'm like doing flourishes and like, woo, you know, cause I was just, I was in the zone. And then in the middle of my ball, my flippers die and I look up and I tilted and I turn around and I look at a sea of people just going, Oh, because you can't, you can't vocalize. You can't coach when you're playing. Um, but everyone was just like, Jack, calm the frick down. I was grooving so hard. I was shaking the machine and I did not even notice that I was getting tilt warnings. Uh, that's the last time I've played with music going on in my head. It's just, yeah, you need to be aware of what's happening. I don't know. Uh, what is your, uh, shoe size? Okay. And it's 13. Uh, describe the pinball hobby in one word. Oh man. Uh, that's tough. Uh, like mysterious enigmatic, right? I guess that means mysterious or like hard to pinball pinballs all over the place. You know, there's great players. There's toxic people. There's awesome history. There's amazing people that it has everything. It has everything And if we didn have everything it wouldn be this hobby you know And I love everything about it Yeah I I love cheering people on I love helping people Uh I I don know Enigmatic. Let me get closer to the microphone. Enigmatic. Spell it. E and then enigmatic after it. I don't know. Okay. All right. The final question here, folks, are you ready? Drum roll. I'm going to add that in. Oh, also do a lower third here at the bottom. saying I'm an international pinball sensation. Star wipe. Where do you see the pinball hobby in the next five to ten years? That also is a tough one, because pinball is a physical, tangible game, and things have been moving away from that for a long time and continue to get even more and more digital as things go on. Pinball will always be here, absolutely. And I think with advancements in technology and the prices of technology going down, we're going to see so many new innovations coming out in pinball machines where, you know, like P3, you know, it's like half digital, half physical. I think we're going to start seeing a lot more of that type of thing happening. More magnets. I don't think pinball is going to go away. I do think we're going to see a much larger surge of the fully digital stuff. I'm actually surprised you don't see like virtual cabinets on location because there's like no maintenance there, you know. also you know dead flip when I'm when I'm mayor of Chicago and then you know progress on to be the the ruler of the United States you know pinball is going to be enforced in every household where you have to play 15 minutes a day much like Stern does now it's going to be great you know all hail Jack Danger I love you guys have a wonderful wonderful time thank you so much to This Week in Pinball for thinking about me and introducing me to a whole new news outlet. You know, they're killing it. So many podcasts and like streams and stuff like that. Look to This Week in Pinball for the legwork that they're putting in. And we can't thank you enough for your contribution to this hobby. And yeah, again, thank you so much. And I love you. And you're great. And go play pinball. And yeah, I love you. Goodbye. How do I turn this off? Mom? Hello? Stop. _(Acquisition: youtube_groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_ --- *Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 4d1137e9-2c54-41e9-af5c-9446b0552a32*