The Rumored Story Behind the Mysterious Harry Potter Pinball Picture - UPDATED with New Info

Knapp Arcade·article·analyzed·May 17, 2023

Analysis

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TL;DR

Stern's Harry Potter pinball bid failed; JJP won license after Stern missed deadline.

Summary

An analysis of how Jersey Jack Pinball secured the Harry Potter pinball license after Stern Pinball apparent failed attempt. The article cites insider testimony from Christopher Franchi podcast co-host about a Stern mockup used to pitch the game to J.K. Rowling, who allegedly had concerns about pinball's association with gambling and bars. An update suggests Joe Kaminkow laid groundwork at Stern but someone failed to submit a timely bid, allowing Jack Guarnieri to leverage his Warner Brothers relationship to win the license.

Key Claims

Christopher Franchi created artwork for a Stern Pinball mockup of Harry Potter intended to pitch the game to WB
medium confidence · Christian Line citing Franchi's work on Super Awesome Pinball Show podcast; described as firsthand knowledge from co-host relationship
J.K. Rowling has been 'totally anti-pinball' because she views it as a gambling device associated with bars and places of ill repute
low confidence · Christian Line reporting rumor on LoserKid Pinball Podcast; explicitly framed as rumor, not confirmed fact
Joe Kaminkow laid groundwork for Harry Potter pinball at Stern but someone at Stern failed to submit a bid in time
low confidence · Knapp Arcade reports hearing 'through the grapevine'; explicitly states uncertainty ('I have no way of knowing for sure')
Jack Guarnieri used his good relationship with Warner Brothers to secure the license after Stern missed the deadline
low confidence · Knapp Arcade reporting unverified update; described as plausible speculation based on known facts
The Facebook post picture of Harry Potter pinball was a Stern machine prototype mockup
medium confidence · Christian Line confirming mockup was Franchi's art and Stern prototype; from LoserKid podcast ~30 minute mark

Notable Quotes

“I can confirm that the mockup that was posted on that Factbook post was indeed Christopher Franchi's art and that was a Stern machine prototype that he was going to hopefully use to sell this game to WB as a machine that could be made.”
Christian Line (Dr. Pin) @ ~30 minute mark, LoserKid Pinball Podcast Ep 109 — Primary insider testimony confirming the mockup's origin and intent; based on his co-host relationship with Franchi
“the rumor is that she has been totally anti-pinball because she thinks that it's a gambling device and associates it with bars and places of ill-repute”
Christian Line @ LoserKid Pinball Podcast Ep 109 — Key explanation for licensing difficulty; explicitly framed as rumor, not confirmed
“How it got from Stern to Jack Guarnieri, there's the mystery and I don't know that anyone fully knows why.”
Christian Line @ LoserKid Pinball Podcast Ep 109 — Acknowledges the central unknown: how the license moved from Stern to Jersey Jack
“Kaminkow laid all of the groundwork for a Harry Potter pinball machine, but someone at Stern dropped the ball didn't get their bid in in time.”
Knapp Arcade (reporting unverified rumor) @ Article update — Speculative explanation for Stern's loss of the license; plausibility acknowledged but unconfirmed

Entities

Jersey Jack PinballcompanyStern PinballcompanyChristopher Franchiperson Joe Kaminkowperson Jack Guarnieriperson J.K. Rowlingperson Warner Brotherscompany

Signals

?
business_signal: Stern's licensing bidding process failure; someone internally did not submit a timely bid for Harry Potter
low · Knapp Arcade: 'Kaminkow laid all of the groundwork for a Harry Potter pinball machine, but someone at Stern dropped the ball didn't get their bid in in time'
?
competitive_signal: Stern Pinball created a mockup to pitch Harry Potter but lost the license to Jersey Jack, possibly due to failed bid timing
medium · Knapp Arcade update reporting that Stern missed deadline and JJP's Guarnieri leveraged WB relationship to 'swoop in and snatch the Harry Potter license'
?
leak_detection: The Facebook mockup image by Joe Kaminkow revealing the existence of a Stern Harry Potter prototype
medium · Christian Line confirmed 'the mockup that was posted on that Factbook post was indeed Christopher Franchi's art and that was a Stern machine prototype'
?
licensing_signal: J.K. Rowling allegedly has anti-pinball bias due to gambling/disreputable venue associations, creating licensing difficulty that required specific strategy to overcome
low · Christian Line on LoserKid podcast: 'rumor is that she has been totally anti-pinball because she thinks that it's a gambling device and associates it with bars and places of ill-repute'
?
personnel_signal: Christopher Franchi's involvement in Stern's Harry Potter pitch effort; later known to transition to Spooky Pinball
medium · Franchi created artwork for Stern mockup; Christian Line's insider knowledge via co-host relationship on Super Awesome Pinball Show

Transcript

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Ever since Sunday's Facebook by Joe Kaminkow stating that Jersey Jack Pinball has secured the license for a Harry Potter pinball machine the industry has been completely abuzz. I've listened to a number of podcasts on the subject since the news broke. The most recent of which - the LoserKid Pinball Podcast - had by far the most insider take on the situation. LoserKid had Christian and Sarah Line aka Dr. and Mrs. Pin on as guests for their most latest episode. Christian had unique insight about the Harry Potter situation because he is friends with and was co-host with well-known pinball artist Christopher Franchi on the Super Awesome Pinball Show podcast. In the episode, Christian said the following, which leads me to believe that the picture of a Harry Potter pinball machine that Joe Kaminkow shared in his post was an actual mockup of a potential Stern Pinball Harry Potter game that was used to attempt to secure the license: "I can confirm that the mockup that was posted on that Factbook post was indeed Christopher Franchi's art and that was a Stern machine prototype that he was going to hopefully use to sell this game to WB as a machine that could be made. Beyond that a lot of this is speculation. I know for sure that because that image was made that it was brought to WB and to J.K. Rowling and they were trying to get that past past by her because the rumor is that she has been totally anti-pinball because she thinks that it's a gambling device and associates it with bars and places of ill-repute. And so I think that they probably though that and through Kaminkow's actions got them to lighten up a little bit and to loosen up with the chance to make this a pinball machine. From there, it gets murky... How it got from Stern to Jack Guarnieri, there's the mystery and I don't know that anyone fully knows why." So this is what a Stern Pinball Harry Potter game may have looked like had they gotten the license. Very interesting stuff. I wish that I had saved a clearer picture of it :). Below is a link to the episode of the LoserKid Pinball Podcast that I referenced. The quote that I shared is from about the 30 minute mark: Ep 109: Jersey Jack has Harry Potter?! LoserKid Pinball Podcast https://soundcloud.com/loserkidpinballpodcast/ep-109-jersey-jack-has-harry-potter?fbclid=IwAR03760kD7VMsprXoygKKIdyCNM5jgPGrS5mMeOGaX0R8SCkxX7EYKyPMU8 UPDATE: I heard through the grapevine that Kaminkow laid all of the groundwork for a Harry Potter pinball machine, but someone at Stern dropped the ball didn’t get their bid in in time. So Jack used his good relationship with Warner Brothers to swoop in and snatch the Harry Potter license out from under them. Is this true? I wasn't there, so I have no way of knowing for sure, but it certainly sounds plausible to me given the facts that we know. To read this story from the start, make sure to check out my original article on the subject: Joe Kaminkow States that Jersey Jack Pinball has the Harry Potter License https://www.knapparcade.org/post/joe-kaminkow-states-that-jersey-jack-pinball-has-the-happy-potter-license