# Confirmation that Stern Pinball Has Jaws, but Not All the Assets? **Source:** Knapp Arcade **Type:** article **Published:** 2022-07-17 **Beat:** Pinball **URL:** https://www.knapparcade.org/confirmation-that-stern-pinball-has-jaws-but-not-all-the-assets --- ## Analysis Jack Guarnieri's interview on The Super Awesome Pinball Show reveals that he pursued a Jaws pinball license for two years but abandoned it when learning he would only receive a movie poster, after which Stern Pinball acquired the license. The article interprets this as confirmation that Stern has Jaws but likely lacks actor likeness rights (Richard Dreyfuss, Roy Scheider), suggesting a game with original story similar to Jurassic Park. ### Key Claims - [HIGH] Jack Guarnieri pursued a Jaws pinball license for two years — _Direct statement from Jack Guarnieri on The Super Awesome Pinball Show_ - [HIGH] Guarnieri abandoned the Jaws license pursuit when told he would only receive a movie poster — _Jack Guarnieri quote paraphrased in article: 'when he found out that all he was going to get was a movie poster he abandoned ship'_ - [HIGH] Stern Pinball acquired the Jaws license after Guarnieri abandoned it — _Article states 'Stern Pinball scooped it up' following Guarnieri's withdrawal_ - [MEDIUM] Stern likely does not have rights to actors from Jaws (Richard Dreyfuss, Roy Scheider) — _Article interpretation of Guarnieri's statement about limited asset access; inferred from 'only a movie poster' comment_ - [MEDIUM] Stern Jaws would likely have an original story independent from the movie, similar to Jurassic Park — _Article speculation based on licensing limitation implications_ ### Notable Quotes > "when he found out that all he was going to get was a movie poster he abandoned ship" > — **Jack Guarnieri (paraphrased by article author)**, The Super Awesome Pinball Show interview > _Direct evidence of licensing limitations that caused Guarnieri to abandon Jaws pursuit before Stern acquired it_ ### Entities | Name | Type | Context | |------|------|---------| | Jack Guarnieri | person | Pinball industry figure who pursued Jaws license for two years; presumably a manufacturer or licensing agent | | Stern Pinball | company | Pinball manufacturer confirmed to have acquired Jaws license | | Jaws | game | Steven Spielberg film adapted into pinball machine by Stern; licensing involves limited asset rights | | Keith Elwin | person | Legendary pinball designer; article speculates he may be designer of Stern Jaws based on his work with Jurassic Park | | The Super Awesome Pinball Show | organization | Pinball podcast that conducted interview with Jack Guarnieri revealing Jaws licensing details | | Richard Dreyfuss | person | Actor from Jaws film; likely not included in Stern's licensing rights | | Roy Scheider | person | Actor from Jaws film; likely not included in Stern's licensing rights | | Jurassic Park | game | Stern pinball game with original story independent from movie; referenced as model for likely Stern Jaws approach | ### Topics - **Primary:** Jaws pinball license and asset rights, IP licensing constraints in pinball game design, Stern Pinball game announcements and confirmations - **Secondary:** Keith Elwin designer speculation, Story-original vs. licensed content in pinball games ### Sentiment **Neutral** (0.5) — Article presents factual reporting of an interview revelation with speculative interpretation. No strong positive or negative sentiment expressed; author is analyzing a business transaction. ### Signals - **[leak_detection]** Unofficial confirmation of Stern Jaws project through industry figure interview on podcast, prior to official announcement (confidence: high) — Jack Guarnieri's interview on The Super Awesome Pinball Show revealing licensing details through implicit statements about his own failed pursuit - **[licensing_signal]** Jaws licensing limited to shark/concept intellectual property, excluding actor likeness rights (Richard Dreyfuss, Roy Scheider). Implications similar to Jurassic Park model with original story (confidence: medium) — Guarnieri's comment about receiving only 'a movie poster' interpreted as evidence of limited asset scope - **[announcement]** Confirmation that Stern Pinball has acquired Jaws license, with unofficial details about scope of intellectual property rights limiting actor likenesses (confidence: high) — Jack Guarnieri's statement about abandoning license pursuit when learning of limited assets, followed by Stern acquiring license --- ## Transcript So I’m sitting here in the parking lot of a Bagel shop, about to pick up breakfast for my family and a pinball brunch that we’re hosting and I just heard another interesting relevation from The Super Awesome Pinball Show’s interview with Jack Guarnieri. Jack talked about how he pursued a license for a pinball machine, which they strongly implied was Jaws, for two years but “when he found out that all he was going to get was a movie poster he abandoned ship” and Stern Pinball scooped it up. Let’s dissect this. In one small statement, Jack essentially confirmed the rumor that Stern Pinball is making a Jaws pin AND that they likely do not have the rights to the actors from the movie, like Richard Richard Dreyfuss or Roy Scheider, just the shark and the concept. This lends credence to the talk that a Stern Jaws pin would be similar to Stern Jurassic Park, with its own story that is independent from the movies. None of this was said flat out, but the hints were very clear. I wonder if this means that Keith Elwin would be the designer or Jaws, like he was with the similar custom story pin, Jurassic Park. Here’s a link to the Super Awesome Pinball Show’s latest episode for those of you who want to check it out: https://superawesomepinballshow.libsyn.com _(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_ --- *Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 74396a7a-1a81-421d-a72d-66005c1b2ed6*