# Pinball News in Brief

**Source:** Pinball News Website  
**Type:** article  
**Published:** 2010-04-02  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.pinballnews.com/news/nib1.html

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## Analysis

Pinball News in Brief from April 2, 2010 covers three major stories: the destruction of Happy Hampton arcade in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire by fire (losing ~12 pinball machines and the operator's home/business), the demolition of the historic former Bally MFG Corp headquarters in Bensenville, Illinois to make way for O'Hare airport expansion, and the completion of Galactic Girl, a unique homebrew EM pinball machine by Dominique Johns of silverAge silverBall in Seattle.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Happy Hampton arcade in Hampton Beach, NH was destroyed by fire on February 25, 2010, consuming the operator's business and home — _Direct reporting with photographic evidence provided by Jimmy Dunn; quote from operator Ray Blondeau_
- [HIGH] The arcade housed approximately a dozen pinball machines — _Stated in article as part of arcade inventory description_
- [HIGH] The former Bally MFG Corp building at 90 O'Leary Drive in Bensenville, Illinois is being demolished as part of a $15 billion O'Hare airport expansion project — _Documented development project with specific address and scope_
- [HIGH] John Popadiuk worked at the Bally building and witnessed production of 500 Eight Ball Deluxe machines per day on a single assembly line — _Direct quote from pinball designer John Popadiuk_
- [HIGH] Dominique Johns completed a three-year homebrew pinball project called Galactic Girl, featuring a unique 25-cent per-ball pricing system — _Documented completion and launch at Tiger Lounge in Seattle; game operational and receiving interest_

### Notable Quotes

> "I've lost it all. Everything's gone. All I got is what's on my back."
> — **Ray Blondeau**, Not specified (fire occurred Feb 25, 2010)
> _Powerful statement of total loss from arcade operator whose business and residence were destroyed_

> "I used to work there and it was an awesome place. When I started they were making 500 Eight Ball Deluxes a day on one huge assembly line! I met many of my longtime friends there, and have the best memories of making pinball with best."
> — **John Popadiuk**, Not specified
> _Nostalgic recollection from pinball designer about Bally's manufacturing scale and culture; provides historical context about the facility's importance to the industry_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Happy Hampton arcade | organization | Arcade in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire destroyed by fire on February 25, 2010; housed ~12 pinball machines; operated by Ray Blondeau |
| Ray Blondeau | person | Operator of Happy Hampton arcade who lost both business and home in the fire |
| Bally MFG Corp | company | Historic pinball manufacturer; former headquarters at 90 O'Leary Drive in Bensenville, Illinois being demolished for O'Hare airport expansion |
| John Popadiuk | person | Pinball designer who worked at Bally building early in his career; witnessed high-volume production of Eight Ball Deluxe |
| Dominique Johns | person | Homebrew pinball designer/builder at silverAge silverBall in Seattle; completed three-year Galactic Girl project |
| silverAge silverBall | organization | EM pinball specialist operation in Seattle, Washington run by Dominique Johns; operates multiple EM machines in the area |
| Galactic Girl | game | Homebrew EM pinball machine designed and built by Dominique Johns; completed after three-year development; features unique 25-cent per-ball pricing system; operational at Tiger Lounge in Georgetown, Seattle |
| Tiger Lounge | organization | Venue at 412 S. Orcas Street in Georgetown, Seattle where Galactic Girl had its launch party and is currently operational |
| O'Hare airport | organization | Chicago airport undergoing expansion that requires demolition of 500 homes and businesses between now and September; includes Bally facility site |
| Pinball News | organization | Independent pinball media outlet publishing this In Brief article featuring roundup of pinball-related news stories |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Historic arcade destruction, Bally manufacturing history and facility demolition, Homebrew/DIY pinball machine development
- **Secondary:** EM pinball operations and community, Pinball industry infrastructure and preservation

### Sentiment

**Mixed** (0.35) — Article opens with two sad stories (fire destruction, historic building demolition) but concludes on positive note with successful homebrew completion. Overall tone is neutral/journalistic with emotional weight tilted toward loss and historical significance.

### Signals

- **[event_signal]** Galactic Girl homebrew machine launched at Tiger Lounge with successful community reception and ongoing operational play (confidence: high) — Game completed after three-year project, had launch party at Tiger Lounge, currently operational and attracting interest
- **[market_signal]** Pinball industry history and preservation: loss of iconic arcade and manufacturing facility creating historical record concerns (confidence: high) — Two articles highlight loss of physical pinball industry infrastructure—Happy Hampton arcade and Bally building both destroyed

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## Transcript

Date: 2nd April 2010

Welcome to the first of our Pinball News In Brief articles where we round up a series of pinball related stories and bring them together in one place - here.

Fire Destroys Historic Arcade

We start with sad news about the destruction of an arcade by fire.  Jimmy Dunn sent us this picture of the remains of the Happy Hampton arcade in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, USA which was part of a series of businesses burned to the ground when flames - fanned by strong winds - took hold of seven adjacent businesses on the night of the 25th February.

The remains of the Happy Hampton arcade

The arcade, run by Ray Blondeau, was home to around a dozen pinball machines.  Ray lived above the arcade and so lost both his business and his home.  “I’ve lost it all. Everything's gone. All I got is what's on my back,” he said.

Amongst the other businesses consumed by the fire were the Surf Hotel - thought to be the source of the fire - the Galley Hatch restaurant and a popular candy store.

Fortunately the only injury resulting from the fire was sustained by a firefighter who suffered a burned hand fighting the flames which were intense enough to melt the siding on nearby buildings.

It is not known if any of the businesses will be rebuilt.

Former Bally Building Demolished

Another historical pinball building - the former home of Bally MFG Corp in Bensenville, Illinois - was torn down as part of a $15bn development of Chicago's O'Hare airport which will see the Bensenville site turned into a new runway.

The former home of Bally at 90 O'Leary Drive is part of 500 homes and businesses to be demolished between now and September to make way for the planned southern runway at O'Hare.

Demolition work begins in Bensenville

There is no scheduled start date for the airport expansion which requires both funding agreements with the airlines and the settling of a long-running legal wrangle over a cemetery which occupies part of the land.

Pinball Designer John Popadiuk learned about the industry at the Bally building.  He said, 'I used to work there and it was an awesome place. When I started they were making 500 Eight Ball Deluxes a day on one huge assembly line! I met many of my longtime friends there, and have the best memories of making pinball with best'.

Homemade Pinball Machine Goes To Work

On a happier note, a three-year project to develop a unique pinball design has ended with the completion of the Galactic Girl game by Dominique Johns of EM specialists silverAge silverBall in Seattle, Washington..

Galactic Girl

The game had it's launch party - and is currently set up to play - at the Tiger Lounge, 412 S. Orcas Street in Georgetown where it was well received and continues to attract plenty of interest.

The game has a unique price and scoring system where the 25c game is initially single ball play, but more balls can be purchased at 25c each before the first ball is plunged.

Score and instruction cards

SilverAge silverBall operates several EM pinball machines in the Seattle area and you can follow the development of the game on their website.

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_(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 7cc3f9a1-9d3b-480c-8f0e-f31fafc222c8*