# Dale Earnhardt Jr. Talks About Father's Obsession with Comet Pinball

**Source:** Knapp Arcade  
**Type:** article  
**Published:** 2023-06-28  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.knapparcade.org/dale-earnhardt-jr-talks-about-father-s-obsession-with-comet-pinball

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## Analysis

Dale Earnhardt Jr. shared a story about his father Dale Earnhardt Sr.'s obsession with a 1985 Williams Comet pinball machine, which became his primary evening entertainment at his lake house. Jr. now owns a Comet in his broadcast studio as a tribute, along with several other pinball machines including a themed Stern Dale Jr. machine from 2007.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Dale Earnhardt Sr. owned a 1985 Williams Comet pinball machine that he played every night — _Dale Jr. video cited; explicit story about Sr.'s nightly play routine_
- [HIGH] Dale Jr. acquired a Comet machine and keeps it in his broadcast studio — _Direct statement about Jr.'s current ownership and location_
- [MEDIUM] Stern produced approximately 600 units of a special Dale Jr. themed retheme of NASCAR — _Production number stated but not independently verified; plausible given retheme scarcity_
- [HIGH] Dale Jr. owns multiple pinball machines at his home — _Explicit statement in article_

### Notable Quotes

> "Once that machine made its way into the house, he would play that game every single night when he got home. It brought him tremendous joy."
> — **Article (describing Dale Sr.'s behavior)**
> _Illustrates the emotional impact and engagement value the Comet machine had for Dale Sr., establishing why Jr. sought to preserve this memory_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Dale Earnhardt Sr. | person | Legendary NASCAR driver; owned and obsessively played a 1985 Williams Comet pinball machine |
| Dale Earnhardt Jr. | person | NASCAR driver and broadcaster; owns a Comet machine in his broadcast studio and multiple pinball machines at home |
| Comet | game | 1985 Williams pinball machine; significant in Earnhardt family history |
| NASCAR | game | Stern pinball machine with Dale Jr. themed retheme produced in approximately 600 units in 2007 |
| Dale Jr. | game | 2007 Stern pinball machine; special retheme of NASCAR machine in Dale Jr.'s personal collection |
| Williams Electronics | company | Historical pinball manufacturer; produced Comet in 1985 |
| Stern Pinball | company | Manufactured NASCAR and Dale Jr. themed machines in 2007 |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Pinball in celebrity culture, Classic Williams machines (Comet)
- **Secondary:** Stern's NASCAR and themed machines, Pinball collecting and personal collections

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.85) — Warm, nostalgic tone celebrating the emotional connection between Dale Sr. and the Comet machine, and Jr.'s tribute to his father's memory

### Signals

- **[community_signal]** Celebrity ownership and use of pinball machines (Dale Jr. maintains collection and displays Comet in broadcast studio) elevates visibility of pinball in mainstream/sports entertainment context (confidence: high) — Dale Jr. explicitly owns and displays Comet in broadcast studio; multiple machines in home collection

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## Transcript

I came across an interesting YouTube video this morning in which Dale Earnhardt Jr. talks about how his legendary NASCAR driver father, Dale Earnhardt (Sr. obviously) became obsessed with the 1985 Williams pinball machine Comet.

Dale Sr. used to live in a lake house that other than a pool table was completely bereft of any entertainment. They had boats, fishing gear and stuff like that, but not much in the way of indoor activities. As a result, when he got home from a long day of work, Dale Sr. used to immediately flop down in his lounger and pass out or just go to bed. That is until the he brought in a new Williams Comet pinball machine. Once that machine made its way into the house, he would play that game every single night when he got home. It brought him tremendous joy.

To keep the memory of that old Comet pinball machine alive, Dale Jr. sought out and acquired a Comet that he keeps in his broadcast studio today. He actually even has several pinball machines at home, including one themed after himself, Stern's 2007 Dale Jr. pin. Stern made approximately 600 units of a special retheme of its NASCAR pinball machine.

Cool story!

_(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 845faf5f-618d-464c-a4fc-91a5f3cb591b*