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Episode 33 - Phil Hooper Interview 4-5-15

For Amusement Only EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast·podcast_episode·11m 8s·analyzed·Apr 13, 2015
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claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.023

TL;DR

Phil Hooper on building bingo.cdyn.com and 40+ years in pinball.

Summary

Nick Baldridge interviews Phil Hooper, creator and maintainer of bingo.cdyn.com, the primary online repository for bingo pinball schematics, manuals, and technical documentation. Hooper discusses his entry into pinball and bingos, the origins of his website, his restoration work, his favorite machines, and advice for newcomers to the hobby. The conversation covers over 40 years of pinball experience and documents the challenges of preserving bingo machine knowledge in the pre-digital era.

Key Claims

  • bingo.cdyn.com is the internet's largest and only repository for bingo schematics, manuals, photos, and technical information

    high confidence · Nick Baldridge's introduction, describing Phil Hooper's website

  • Phil Hooper acquired his first Gottlieb Gaucho machine around age 13 through a verbal contractual agreement made with the machine owner's mother

    high confidence · Phil Hooper's answer to question 2 about how long he's been playing pinball

  • Russ Jensen's Inside Your Bingo article was the only technical written material available about bingo machines when Phil started his research

    high confidence · Phil Hooper's answer to question 4 about opening the technical library

  • Phil Hooper created his website in the mid-1990s after working as the software guy behind Sun Microsystems' first website

    high confidence · Phil Hooper's answer to question 4, describing his contract work on Sun's Mosaic WebServer and first website

  • A Canadian back glass supplier that Phil Hooper worked with was later convicted of running gambling devices and had their inventory destroyed

    high confidence · Phil Hooper's answer to question 4 about sourcing parts for his machines

  • Phil Hooper's favorite bingo machine is Surf Club, which he kept until last, specifically for its ball return feature

    high confidence · Phil Hooper's answer to question 6 about his favorite bingo

  • Phil Hooper owns a Bally 929 Bingo Continental slot machine, which he describes as an odd EM slot with a bingo card on the score glass

    high confidence · Phil Hooper's answer to question 6 about machines he still owns

  • Phil Hooper's Mills horse head bonus slot machine accumulated over $2,500 in coins over the years

    high confidence · Phil Hooper's answer to question 10 about his favorite non-bingo/EM machines

Notable Quotes

  • “My hairline says somewhere in the mid-70s. But my driver's license says 51. So I'll have to go with that.”

    Phil Hooper — Humorous self-description in response to age question

  • “Our dignified, you're up and rack em, was the only sounds heard for hours. There may have been occasional shouts from above about food, presents, her son coming up and time to go, but those trivialities were ignored.”

    Phil Hooper — Vivid childhood memory of discovering pinball at age ~9

  • “I had a safecracker, which I bought new in box on closeout. I liked the board game. It reduced the boredom factor a bit.”

    Phil Hooper — Preference for machines with varied gameplay mechanics

  • “It'll take a while to get familiar with the guts of the machine. Just keep asking for clarification and eventually someone will explain things in a way that makes sense, or you'll figure it out yourself.”

    Phil Hooper — Advice for newcomers to the bingo restoration hobby

  • “My smart-ass stepson got me an AARP membership for my 50th birthday. He has since learned that I consider that a license to ramble interminably if given an open-ended question.”

    Phil Hooper — Humorous closing remark about his tendency to provide long-winded answers

Entities

Phil HooperpersonNick Baldridgepersonbingo.cdyn.comproductFor Amusement OnlyorganizationGottlieb GauchogameBallycompanyUnitedcompanyRuss JensenpersonSun MicrosystemscompanyPacific Pinball Museum

Signals

  • ?

    historical_signal: Phil Hooper has created and maintains bingo.cdyn.com as the primary online repository for bingo pinball technical documentation, addressing a historical gap where only Russ Jensen's article was available before

    high · Phil states: 'Number one, the only thing technical written was Russ Jensen's Inside Your Bingo article' before he started his documentation efforts in mid-1990s

  • ?

    restoration_signal: Sourcing reproduction parts for bingo machines was challenging in 1990s; Phil traveled to Canada for back glasses, supplier was later shut down for running gambling devices

    high · Phil describes: 'I even wound up going to Canada for some back glasses. That supplier was later convicted of running gambling devices and their inventory destroyed'

  • ?

    restoration_signal: Information about bingo machines was dispersed and difficult to access before the internet; most people who knew about machines were not computer-literate

    high · Phil notes: 'there was both a manual and schematic for the game. Number three, people who knew about the machines mostly didn't use computers, so information wasn't easy to come by'

  • ?

    community_signal: Community-driven resource building: Phil's website accepts high-resolution photos and manual scans from collectors to fill gaps in bingo documentation

    high · Phil requests: 'If people are bored, I try and con them into taking high-res pics of the insides of their machines. The goal is pictures you can zoom in and read labels on units.'

  • ?

    collector_signal: Phil Hooper's collecting was driven by technical understanding and completeness rather than long-term play; he aimed to own one of every major machine type to understand how they worked

Topics

Bingo pinball machine history and mechanicsprimaryTechnical documentation and preservation of vintage machinesprimaryPhil Hooper's personal history with pinball and bingosprimaryRestoration and repair of bingo machinesprimarybingo.cdyn.com website and resource libraryprimaryPinball collection and favoritessecondaryEarly internet history and web developmentsecondaryVintage arcade locations and experiencesmentioned

Sentiment

positive(0.85)— Phil Hooper speaks fondly of his pinball journey, with nostalgic and appreciative tone toward machines and the community. He demonstrates passion for documentation and preservation. Some self-deprecating humor present. No negativity or criticism expressed toward machines or community members; interview is conversational and warm.

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.033

0:00
What's that sound? It's For Amusement Only, the EM and Bingo Pinball Podcast. Welcome back to For Amusement Only, this is Nick Baldridge.
0:15
Today's special treat is an email interview with Phil Hooper. Phil is the maintainer of bingo.cdyn.com, the internet's largest and only, really, repository for bingo schematics, manuals, photos, and technical information.
0:42
I emailed Phil on April the 5th and received his responses. Question number one I asked Phil how old he was He responded My hairline says somewhere in the mid-70s But my driver's license says 51 So I'll have to go with that Question two How long have you been playing pinball?
1:11
Christmas time always meant a visit to family friends Which for us kids at the impossible age of nine or so Meant doing the obligatory hi and escaping to the basement where a pool table and Gottlieb Gaucho machine resided. Our dignified, you're up and rack em, was the only sounds heard for hours. There may have been occasional shouts from above about food, presents, her son coming up and time to go, but those trivialities were ignored. In a moment of weakness, the owner of the pinball machine promised to hand it over when her son got married. Since he was in his twenties, in the post-free love early 1970s, We were in with the chance, and when he did announce a fall from bachelorhood, we, okay, me, shamelessly reminded his mother about her contractual obligations, and I became the owner of said gaucho around the age of 13.
2:02
venue
Bally Galaxygame
Surf Clubgame
United Caravangame
Bally 929 Bingo Continentalgame
Bikinigame
Lidogame
Safecrackergame
Mystic Linegame
Zodiacgame
Showtimegame

high · Phil states: 'I mostly enjoyed figuring out how they worked, and the easiest way to do that was to get at least one of every major type of machine running. My attention span is too short to play them for a long time'

  • ?

    design_philosophy: Phil Hooper prefers bingo machines with advanced features like Futurity, ball return, and sequence goals; mechanics that add depth and reduce monotony in gameplay

    high · Phil notes: 'Probably Futurity from Bikini slash Lido. It was the only practical way to really use the OK feature to get a game with the most features enabled and high score levels' and 'I usually spend the most time on old wood rails with sequence goals'

  • ?

    technology_signal: Phil Hooper's work on Sun Microsystems' first website and Mosaic WebServer in mid-1990s directly enabled his ability to create bingo.cdyn.com

    high · Phil describes: 'a couple years later I did a contract job for Sun Microsystems building a trade show giveaway CD of the new graphical web browser Mosaic WebServer, etc., and was the software guy behind Sun's first website. Having the infrastructure part figured out, it was just one small step to cranking up my own website'

  • ?

    historical_signal: Arcade coin pusher and bingo machines were common entertainment at 1970s-80s seaside arcades; bingo games paid out credits to winners via coin booth attendants

    high · Phil recalls Myrtle Beach arcade: 'I recall watching people go from happy to sad at a coin pusher machine, and besides the usual array of skee-ball and pinballs, there were four bingos... someone would go from happy to really happy as the coin booth guy paid them off for their credits'

    • With no coin door key, I had to learn how to break into it myself, and eventually fix the problems it had. I also removed all the pins from the lock so a screwdriver could open it, Which was a bit unfortunate when a co-worker of my father with a big ring of keys thought he'd take a shot at getting into the game and discovered the coin door area as a useful place for kids to store stuff they aren't supposed to have.
    2:24
    Question 3. How did you first get involved with bingos and in what state? Did you ever play them on location? Ever get kicked out of a location for playing and winning too much? My family took annual vacations in the summer months and one time we wound up in Myrtle Beach South Carolina for a week or two Golden sand warm water sunsets and serenity aplenty Probably I was in the arcade as much as possible I recall watching people go from happy to sad at a coin pusher machine, and besides the usual array of skee-ball and pinballs, there were four bingos. At least two of which were Mystic Line machines. One was probably Zodiac. I spent a lot of time watching people play the bingos, and occasionally someone would go from happy to really happy as the coin booth guy paid them off for their credits. I even gave it a try myself, though I played until the credits were gone, and I still recall not understanding what a red letter game was and not collecting the win.
    3:21
    That's the last I saw of bingos for at least 12 years. Question 4. What made you decide to open the Nets foremost? Okay, only technical library for bingo information. In ancient times, before graphical web browsers, there was and is NetNews. One day at work, I posted on rec.games.pinball, describing a pinball machine with no flippers and just a bunch of holes in the playfield, and you were trying to light up adjacent numbers. I asked if anyone had info on the games and got a few replies that they were bingos. Bally made a lot of them, hard to work on, etc. One response was, I have one for sale a couple hours north of you. So I rented a pickup truck and played fetch. It was a nightclub, sorta. Apparently the game had sat on damp ground and the wood rotted, so the guy had transplanted the head guts and playfield into the hidden cabinet from a Showtime. Of course, the cabinet wasn't exactly compatible with the nightclub head, but the guy gave me either a manual or schematic for one game or the other and said it shouldn't be too hard to figure out. Ha!
    4:25
    Along the way, I found that... Number one, the only thing technical written was Russ Jensen's Inside Your Bingo article. Number two, there was both a manual and schematic for the game. Number three, people who knew about the machines mostly didn't use computers, so information wasn't easy to come by. And number four, when an amusement company in a nearby city is aware of a company of the same name 150 miles away because they, quote, accidentally get their mail occasionally, and thinks maybe that company has some bingo machines, but they aren't sure because they exited the bingo business years ago when the court ordered them to destroy their machines, don't be surprised when you make the 150-mile trip and find machines with the local city tax stamp on them.
    5:12
    Getting the nightclub to work meant learning how to use the manual and schematic, how to deal with cloth wires that mostly look the same shade of grime, and where to find parts.
    5:22
    I even wound up going to Canada for some back glasses. That supplier was later convicted of running gambling devices and their inventory destroyed A couple years later I did a contract job for Sun Microsystems building a trade show giveaway CD of the new graphical web browser Mosaic WebServer, etc., and was the software guy behind Sun's first website. Having the infrastructure part figured out, it was just one small step to cranking up my own website and start dumping onto it everything I'd learned about bingos and how to fix them. Dumping may be too nice a way of phrasing the resulting mess. Question five. Is there anything you still need for any machine that perhaps my listeners might be able to send? If I was less lazy, there'd be a big button or link that says stuff needed on the site. There's more or less a summary page here, bingo.cdyn.com slash paper slash paperlist.html. That has various table cells with a yellow background. That means one of, number one, need a better quality manual or schematic to scan, number two, need scans or high-res pictures of the score instruction cards, or number three, need the manual and or schematic. In addition, I'd like to fill in the missing United manuals, schematics, or score and instruction cards. I need to borrow the manuals or schematics so I can scan, and ideally the score instruction cards, but those are a hassle to remove, so a high-res pic is good enough to make repros from. Of course, if anyone has a real manual for Bally Galaxy, I'd love to scan it. If people are bored, I try and con them into taking high-res pics of the insides of their machines. The goal is pictures you can zoom in and read labels on units. It makes it easier when people have problems to be more specific about where certain things are that they need to look at. Question number six. What is your favorite bingo?
    7:19
    The one I kept until last was Surf Club. I liked the ball return feature. United Caravan would have been in the running, but someone wanted that a few years earlier, and I sold it before I got bored with it. Possibly the only one I regretted selling. When I was going to sell the house and go walkabout, I sold all the bingos, and eventually the parts and most paperwork. All I have left is some obscure paperwork I haven't scanned yet and a Bally 929 Bingo Continental slot machine. You want to see an odd EM slot. Google for that thing. I have googled it, and I will say that that is quite odd.
    7:57
    There's a bingo card on the score glass, and what amounts to a very in-depth score and instruction card as the glass on that slot machine Below it there are five different reels each with different numbers and the letters B across Very interesting Hadn seen that before Question number seven This may be answered above but what is your favorite bingo feature? Probably Futurity from Bikini slash Lido. It was the only practical way to really use the OK feature to get a game with the most features enabled and high score levels. A golden gate with futurity and ball return would be ideal for me.
    8:48
    Question 8. What is the most fun that you have had as an owner of machines, repairing, documenting, or playing?
    8:56
    I mostly enjoyed figuring out how they worked, and the easiest way to do that was to get at least one of every major type of machine running.
    9:05
    My attention span is too short to play them for a long time, unless there is a bit of a wager writing on it.
    9:12
    Question number nine. Do you prefer wood rail or metal rail bingos in general? No great preference, but when I pop into a show or the Pacific Pinball Museum, I usually spend the most time on old wood rails with sequence goals, needing to hit numbered bumpers slash targets in order. I also like drop target games.
    9:31
    Question ten. What is your favorite non-bingo pinball or EM machine? I had a safecracker, which I bought new in box on closeout. I liked the board game. It reduced the boredom factor a bit. Also had an Acme roulette, a Bally target practice bat game, and a Mills horse head bonus slot, which I kept for years, mostly as piggy banks. When I finally wheeled a sack of coins to a casino, those machines had accumulated over $2,500, not including the cut I gave to the coin cage guy for a down payment on his hernia surgery.
    10:01
    Question 11. Is there anything you'd like to tell folks that are new to the bingo hobby? It'll take a while to get familiar with the guts of the machine. Just keep asking for clarification and eventually someone will explain things in a way that makes sense, or you'll figure it out yourself.
    10:17
    Question 12. Any final thoughts on bingos or EMs? My smart-ass stepson got me an AARP membership for my 50th birthday. He has since learned that I consider that a license to ramble interminably if given an open-ended question. Proceed at your own risk. I'd like to thank Phil Hooper for his gracious answering of my endless questions thank you for listening this has been for amusement only my name again is Nick Baldridge you can find us online at for amusement only dot libsyn.com or you can email me at for amusement only podcast at gmail.com you can listen to us on iTunes Stitcher Pocket Casts via RSS or even on Facebook. Thank you for listening, and I'll talk to you next time.