# Silverball Museum - Asbury Park, NJ (November 2019)

**Source:** Knapp Arcade  
**Type:** article  
**Published:** 2019-11-01  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.knapparcade.org/silverball-museum-asbury-park-nj-november-2019

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## Analysis

A collector visits Silverball Museum in Asbury Park, NJ and plays Gottlieb's rare 1979 wedgehead pinball machine TKO, one of only ~100 units ever produced. The author praises the game's art and gameplay mechanics, particularly the dual-function left-side holes, and notes TKO was Gottlieb's last wedgehead and among their final single-player machines.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Gottlieb's TKO (1979) is considered the 'Holy Grail' of wedgehead pinball machines by collectors — _Author states 'many collectors consider to be the Holy Grail of wedgehead pinball machines'_
- [MEDIUM] Only a little over 100 units of TKO were produced, with many being prototypes or shipped overseas — _Author reports production numbers based on collector knowledge, but does not cite a primary source for this claim_
- [MEDIUM] TKO was the last wedgehead and one of the last single-player games Gottlieb made — _Author states this as historical context but without explicit sourcing_
- [HIGH] TKO's dual-function left-side holes can settle the ball on soft hits or allow it to pass through on harder hits — _Author describes firsthand gameplay experience: 'If you hit them softly the ball settles in them. If you hit the ball harder you can blast it right past them through a tunnel.'_

### Notable Quotes

> "Only a little over 100 units of this pin were produced and many of those were prototypes or were shipped overseas."
> — **Author (Knapp Arcade)**
> _Establishes extreme rarity of TKO as a factor in its collector status_

> "It was the last wedgehead and one of the last single player games that Gottlieb ever made."
> — **Author (Knapp Arcade)**
> _Historical context positioning TKO at the end of a pinball manufacturing era_

> "I love the two holes on the left side of the playfield. If you hit them softly the ball settles in them. If you hit the ball harder you can blast it right past them through a tunnel."
> — **Author (Knapp Arcade)**
> _Describes a signature game mechanic that the author finds compelling_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Silverball Museum | organization | Pinball museum in Asbury Park, NJ where author played TKO |
| Gottlieb | company | Historical pinball manufacturer; produced TKO in 1979 |
| TKO | game | 1979 Gottlieb wedgehead pinball machine, rare with ~100 units produced, considered 'Holy Grail' by collectors |
| Asbury Park, NJ | event | Location of Silverball Museum visit |
| Pindigo | product | Pinball scoring/tracking service where author logs game scores |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Rare/collectible pinball machines, Gottlieb pinball history, Wedgehead era pinball design
- **Secondary:** Pinball museum experience, Game mechanics and playfield design

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.85) — Author expresses enthusiasm about the rare machine, praises its art and gameplay, and conveys gratitude for the experience of playing a collectible piece of pinball history.

### Signals

- **[community_signal]** Collector visiting museum and playing rare machines, logging scores in community tracking system (Pindigo) (confidence: high) — Author visits Silverball Museum, plays TKO, adds score to Pindigo list

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## Transcript

When my son and I went to the Silverball Museum in Asbury Park, NJ last weekend we got to play what many collectors consider to be the Holy Grail of wedgehead pinball machines Gottlieb’s 1979 game “TKO.” This particular game is one of only a handful that exist in the United States. Only a little over 100 units of this pin were produced and many of those were prototypes or were shipped overseas.

It’s surprising that this game never made it into full production, but the timing of it just wasn’t right. It was the last wedgehead and one of the last single player games that Gottlieb ever made.

The art is fantastic and the gameplay is great. I love the two holes on the left side of the playfield. If you hit them softly the ball settles in them. If you hit the ball harder you can blast it right past them through a tunnel.

My son and I were fortunate to get to play this pin... and add it to my Pindigo list, where I now have the second best score on it (ok there’s only 3 scores total but that’s not my fault lol).

_(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 55f82c73-dec1-48a6-ac28-a63e983229f7*