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episode 27,another rainy night.

The Spinner Is Lit Pinball Podcast·podcast_episode·17m 30s·analyzed·Dec 5, 2019
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Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.024

TL;DR

Spooky announces Rick and Morty pinball; Deep Root shows Razza prototype; Gene Cunningham obituary.

Summary

Spencer Klingin hosts a solo episode of the Special When Lit Pinball Podcast (episode 27) recorded on December 4, 2019, announcing Spooky Pinball's Rick and Morty pinball game designed by Scott Danesi with 750-unit production run, covering Deep Root Pinball's prototype Retro Atomic Zombie Adventureland reveal at Houston Arcade Pinball Expo, and paying tribute to longtime pinball collector and parts innovator Gene Cunningham who recently passed away.

Key Claims

  • Rick and Morty is Matt Scott Danesi's second title as head designer after Total Nuclear Annihilation and Barnyard

    high confidence · Spencer Klingin directly states Scott Danesi designed TNA and Barnyard before Rick and Morty

  • Rick and Morty will have 750 units production run, the largest Spooky has done to date

    high confidence · Spencer explicitly confirms '750 units, which...will be their largest production run to date of any game, the previous being 550 units of Total Nuclear Annihilation'

  • Production on Rick and Morty scheduled to start around Christmas or early January

    medium confidence · Spencer speculates 'they're scheduled to start producing very soon. I'm guessing right around Christmas, uh maybe a little after, maybe right the first of the year'

  • Rick and Morty will feature voice callouts from the actual cast of the show

    high confidence · Spencer states 'they're gonna have voice callouts from the actual cast of the show'

  • Deep Root Pinball's Retro Atomic Zombie Adventureland has been in development for 6-7 years

    medium confidence · Spencer notes John Popadiuk 'had in the works in one iteration or variation or another for about 6-7 years now'

  • Gene Cunningham assembled and sold approximately 180-183 Capcom Big Ben pinball machines after Capcom folded

    medium confidence · Spencer recounts 'he bought the rights to their stuff...and he assembled all these...and he built them and sold them with numbered plaques...I think one actually ended up on location...And he built 180—I want to say like 183. I could be wrong on that number'

  • Gene Cunningham was a pioneer in making reproduction pinball playfields and aftermarket parts starting around 1999-2000

    high confidence · Spencer credits Gene: 'He started making reproduction playfields, I think, before anyone else, and making other parts, playfield plastics and, you know, other metal and plastic parts'

  • Deep Root Pinball will do a full reveal of Retro Atomic Zombie Adventureland at Texas Pinball Festival in March

Notable Quotes

  • “Rick and Morty—it's here, you guys. Been asking for it. You've been asking for it for a while and they're gonna deliver.”

    Spencer Klingin @ ~2:30 — Opening announcement of Rick and Morty pinball game reveal

  • “Spooky Pinball just dropped the budget. That's right, the big one. Game over, man. Game over for the competitors.”

    Spencer Klingin @ ~1:15 — Dramatic framing of Rick and Morty announcement as major industry move

  • “I'm Papa Duke confident this is going to be a really neat game.”

    Spencer Klingin @ ~5:00 — Expresses high confidence in Rick and Morty quality using pinball community reference

  • “Nothing that made me go, 'Oh my God, wow, I must play that and have it.' Um, again, it's an unfinished prototype, so we'll see what happens.”

    Spencer Klingin @ ~8:45 — Lukewarm initial impression of Retro Atomic Zombie Adventureland prototype

  • “Gene was a larger-than-life character in our crazy little hobby and sport...he was a pioneer in the field of aftermarket replacement parts to keep our games up and running.”

    Spencer Klingin @ ~12:00 — Characterization of Gene Cunningham's legacy as parts innovator

  • “Just another intelligent life form on this planet that you just dig and that digs you. Anyway, that's a little mini episode for tonight. Play pinball. Keep America strong.”

    Spencer Klingin @ ~20:30 — Episode closing with personal philosophy and catchphrase

Entities

Spooky PinballcompanyRick and MortygameMatt Scott DanesipersonDeep Root PinballcompanyRetro Atomic Zombie AdventurelandgameJohn PopadiukpersonDennis NordmanpersonBarry Ourslerperson

Signals

  • ?

    business_signal: Spooky Pinball securing contemporary licensed IP (Rick and Morty) positioning them competitively with current entertainment trends vs nostalgic classic themes

    high · Spencer notes excitement about 'theme that's relevant and uh out there right now, current and happening' contrasting with 'nostalgic themes, vintage themes'

  • ?

    community_signal: Northern California pinball community highly active with league play, tournament infrastructure, and competitive events (Black Friday tournament, Capital Quarter league finals)

    high · Spencer discusses league night, league finals Saturday, Capital Quarter Commissioner running Black Friday tournament with notable player participation

  • ?

    event_signal: Deep Root Pinball showing working prototype of Retro Atomic Zombie Adventureland at Houston Arcade Pinball Expo with planned full reveal at Texas Pinball Festival March 2020

    high · Spencer confirms Houston show November 2019 display and states 'They're going to reveal it in March—full reveal at the Texas Pinball Festival'

  • $

    market_signal: Spooky Pinball expanding production capacity significantly with Rick and Morty reaching 750 units vs previous 550-unit TNA record

    high · Spencer states '750 units, which...will be their largest production run to date of any game, the previous being 550 units of Total Nuclear Annihilation'

  • ?

    announcement: Spooky Pinball officially announces Rick and Morty pinball game with 750-unit production run, largest in company history

    high · Spencer confirms official teaser video released, designer Matt Scott Danesi named, voice talent from show, 750 units confirmed production number

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.053

0:00
It's another rainy night and we're going to talk about pinball and what's in the news. So hang on. Welcome to the Spinner's Lit Pinball Podcast. I'm your host, Spencer Klingin. Tonight's episode, episode 27. Another rainy night. Because it's been raining a lot lately. It's not actually raining right now, but it was earlier Anyway, I needed a title and I felt like doing a show So I've got my strong cup of coffee Some basic show notes and it's uh me solo tonight Don't worry the round table crew will be back real soon and we're gonna have some other special guests coming on the show real soon, too Um, maybe not till after the new year, but who knows december 4th 2019 in the news just broke today boys and girls hold on your hats pinheads because spooky pinball just dropped the bomb that's right the big one game over man game over for the competitors well one competitor anyway well we'll get to that rick and morty it's here you guys been asking for it you've been asking for it for a while and they're gonna deliver it's gonna be scott denise's second title that he's a head of the design on y'all know him and love him from uh total nuclear annihilation also by spooky pinball so they did a uh a quick little teaser video today um we don't know much about the game other than the theme is rick and morty and they've got uh voice call outs from the actual cast of the show um i gotta be honest with you i don't know the show that well i've seen a few episodes of it my oldest son and my daughter are both big fans and uh you know they talk about it a lot i i really don't watch a lot of television these days so but you know i'm excited because this new pinball it's a a theme that's relevant and uh out there right now current and happening that's kind of different from pinball we get a lot more nostalgic themes vintage themes and i'm cool with those i love those we get all kinds of great stuff you know like the monsters and jurassic park and wizard of oz and woolly wonka um you know but as far as uh licensed themes goes you know it's nice to have something that's uh fresh and new and uh different so i'm really excited to see this uh they're scheduled start producing very soon i'm guessing right around christmas uh maybe a little after maybe right the first of the year um it's uh confirmed at 750 units which uh when they bat that one out that will be their largest production run to date of any game the previous being 550 units of total nuclear annihilation but uh tna or total nuclear annihilation as many of you know is an evergreen theme for them. They own it. It's unlicensed. So I believe they're going to be producing more of those down the road. So if you haven't picked one up and you're looking to, hang out a while. I'm sure more are going to end up being produced. But anyway, back to Rick and Morty. So it's going to be real exciting to see this. All the upcoming shows in the spring, which we'll start doing show shout-outs for all the upcoming shows. I'm not going to do it this episode. So this is going to be a quick little episode just to get us through the day and get some stuff going. Anyway, but that's Rick and Morty, man. It dropped today. So save your pennies. We don't have a price point yet. Only a quick teaser video so far. But I'm pretty confident this is going to be a really neat game. I'm really excited to see what's going to be happening. I'm going to check my volume control. Now I looking good I think you all can hear me if not turn your volume up If it too loud you too old All righty On to the last big show the Houston Arcade Expo which was last month, November.

high confidence · Spencer states 'They're going to reveal it in March—full reveal at the Texas Pinball Festival'

Gene Cunninghamperson
Spencer Klinginperson
Total Nuclear Annihilationgame
Special When Lit Pinball Podcastorganization
Houston Arcade Pinball Expoevent
Texas Pinball Festivalevent
Capital Quarter Pinball Leagueorganization
Haggis Pinballperson
Clay Harrellperson
Golden State Pinball Festivalevent
  • ~

    sentiment_shift: Initial community skepticism about Deep Root prototype; Spencer expresses lukewarm first impression despite recognizing talent involved

    medium · Spencer: 'Nothing that I haven't seen before, nothing that made me go, Oh my God, wow, I must play that and have it...but nothing that knocked my socks off what I've seen so far'

    • 4:34
    Deep Root, Deep Root Pinball, finally showed something to the world. They showed a couple of prototype Razzas, R-A-Z-A, or Retro Atomic Zombie Adventure Land. most of you probably most of the listeners are probably aware of this if you're not that's okay too Deep Root has been gearing up and ramping up for a couple of years now they've hired a lot of really good talent Dennis Nordman if you know his games he's kind of he's a legend in pinball let's just say it games like Whitewater Elvira and the Party Monsters Elvira's Scared Stiff The new Elvira from Stern Pinball. That was actually Dennis' design.
    5:23
    Oh, God. Indy 500. I said Whitewater, didn't I? I did say Whitewater. Yeah, a slew of games. Demo Man, Demolition Man, a slew of other great games. Pirates of the Caribbean from Stern. There you go. Wheel of Fortune. Put out a lot of good games. Blackwater 100, older ballet title. anyway uh he's over there and you got barry orsler pimbot need i say more he's done dr who uh bram stoker's dracula um they've got a gotley guy whose name i just keep forgetting i'm a terrible human for that i'm sorry and he was at the show this last year golden state pinball festival which is coming up in may of course in beautiful sunny low die california um I'll think of his name and I'll get back to him and of course the notorious John Papaduke uh so anyway so I'm getting kind of sidetracked here but anyway so they showed John Papaduke's game it's something that he's had in the works in one iteration or variation or another for about 6-7 years now it's got a lot of gizmos and toys and gimmicks on it mechanical devices um it's got some neat artwork it's a quirky theme um you know like any prototype there were probably some you know issues the flippers there was some concern they weren't strong enough you're gonna get that at a show we'll wait and see what's going on with that um but coming out of the gate um you know they show some pretty cool stuff at the show but nothing that i haven't seen before nothing that made me go oh my god wow i must play that and have it um again it's an unfinished prototype so we'll see what happens they're going to reveal in march full reveal at the texas pinball festival it looks like it'll be a fun game but again it's not knocking my socks off what i've seen so far now i'm really excited about the rick and morty pin so i really think that's going to crush it.
    7:29
    Some sad news in the pinball world. Gene Cunningham has passed away. If you're a hardcore pinhead, you may have heard of him. You may have met him in a show, talked with him online or via phone or in person. I never had the pleasure to meet him, but he passed away this last week.
    7:51
    Gene was a longtime pinball collector and pinball fanatic. And I think the term fanatic fits him perfectly. He was a larger-than-life character in our crazy little hobby and sport.
    8:05
    I know he owned several other businesses. He dabbled in I don't know what all. But he had owned a skating rink for many years. And he bought pinball machines to put in it. Like back when I was a younger dude. And we'd go to the skating rink on a Friday night and hang out with our friends. And there were pinball machines there. and we'd play pinball. This is back in the dark ages before solid-state technology kids. Anyway, so Gene did that. When the games got old, he'd just take them to his house instead of selling them you know when he put newer games on route And he buy other games at shows and auctions and like that Eventually he amassed a collection of about 1 games at one time Well a dark time for pinball came along in the late 90s and he ended up buying Capcom when they folded, bought the rights to their stuff, got all the parts from the as-of-yet unmade Big Bang Bar games, 180 something I forget the exact number you can google it don't take my word for it and he assembled all these you know he got I guess he got a little crew together and he built them and sold them with numbered plaques and he got them out the door he got them out to people took a couple three years but he delivered those games so the original whatever it was nine or ten prototypes um the factory built i think one test game i think one actually ended up on location uh of the original test games for a short time and uh he built 180 i want to take like 183 i could be wrong on that number but you can look it up and got him got him into people's hands and other people still i know a couple people uh locally to me that uh bought that game from gene and still have it to this day. Some of his other achievements is, you know, around that time, in 1999, 2000, when Bally Williams closed their doors to pinball,
    10:11
    shortly thereafter, parts became very scarce. A lot of collectors were in a panic. They were unable to get any replacement parts for their games, or very few. And if they could find them, they were very expensive. And Gene was kind of a pioneer. He started making reproduction playfields, I think, before anyone else and making other parts, playfield plastics and, you know, other metal and plastic parts. Really a pioneer in the field of, you know, aftermarket replacement parts to keep our games up and running and looking and playing good.
    10:50
    So I just wanted to shout that out. And if you want to hear a fantastic interview, I went back and I re-listened to it over the weekend after hearing it was passing.
    11:02
    And it's Clay Harrell. Clay Harrell is another longtime pinhead, a legend in the pinball community. And he did a podcast. He was another pioneer. He's still around, thank God.
    11:18
    But he did a podcast for some time and did a lot of fantastic interviews. So you want to listen to that, it's www.pinrepair.com forward slash topcast forward slash past dot php.
    11:36
    And it's episode number 11, an interview or an evening with Gene Cunningham. And it talks about great detail, some of the stuff I kind of went with the overview tonight. But we want to salute you, Gene, and thank you for all you did for the hobby. and uh you know be at peace sir uh it was well earned and well deserved uh all your accolades and uh um all of us still stuck around planet pinball we're gonna miss you so um just wanted to give that shout out this is gonna be a really short episode even shorter than i thought it'll be a nice commute episode uh in some upcoming episodes we're gonna have uh you know the round table gang back uh have them back real soon got a busy schedule uh you know with the holidays and all um want to give a few shout outs uh real quick now we'll get shout outs in a minute anyway where was i oh yeah um got league league night coming up tomorrow and the league finals on saturday the no league till january i mean i don't know what i'm gonna do um but uh yeah have some more coffee and we'll think about this for a second oh yeah yeah I'll go ahead and go in the shower so let's cut this out at about 14 minutes so it'll be a nice little quick episode nice little commute to work and we'll have the roundtable back real soon that's where I was going okay coming up soon with the roundtable Brian cast is a regular part of the roundtable is gonna talk about talk about a couple games he uh doing shop jobs on and and uh doing some restoration work and about a super score he got three different really cool games that uh you know i'll let you tell them all about that but that's coming up and uh we have a lot of neat stuff coming on a lot of special guests coming very soon so i'll do a few shout outs i'm going to shout out to myself first um on it's actually sunday december 1st was marked the 20th anniversary with the company i work for hunter services pest control and i'm a branch manager i run sacramento branch so shout out to me um and shout out to my employers cory and nikki stall god bless you guys uh great great bosses to have and wonderful humans and good friends.
    13:59
    Give a shout-out to the commissioner, the commissioner of the Capital Quarter of Pinball League, who put on, once again this year, a fantastic Black Friday pinball tournament. And I want to give a shout-out to Damien for winning that tournament.
    14:18
    Damien Charity really came out of, came out from kind of behind the pack a little bit towards the beginning and qualifying and really deliver the goods. Congratulations, Damian. Well done, sir. And Michael, thank you always for hosting, opening up your home to us for tournaments and league play and for all you do for competitive pinball in Northern California.
    14:43
    And let me see. Shout outs to who else? Birthday shout outs. My cousin Kelly, Wooey in Red Bluff, California. Happy birthday belated. who was on the third, to my dear friend and shipmate, Clayton Andrews, whose birthday was also yesterday, the third. Happy birthday, brother. Miss you.
    15:05
    We got a bunch of other upcoming birthdays and stuff. I'm sure I'm going to miss somebody. But, oh, hey, we made it to 15 minutes.
    15:14
    I got to quit doing this with very little notes, very little sleep, and lots of coffee. Anyway, shout out, as always, to Mark Scoff, the Reno Boys. Happy birthday today, December 4th, to Clinton, Savini, and Reno, part of the Reno Pinball Crew. What's up, bud? Happy birthday, man. Happy birthday to Alex.
    15:37
    Alex is part of the show, part of the Roundtable Crew. Sorry I missed your birthday party, bud. You know, work and family life just gets busy. But Alex had his birthday just the other night. And wishing him well. Alex Lambert There you go I can't think of any other shout outs I'm sure there's like a hundred of them But anyway So I don't know if we'll have another episode Before the end of the year Gonna try to do one more And whether we do or not Everybody have a safe and wonderful Holiday season Watch Charlie Brown Christmas Watch The Grinch Eat lots of good food Most importantly just be with people you love family, friends, co-workers, you know, your adopted, extended family, whoever, and just spend some quality time. Play pinball or even not play pinball. Netflix and chilling, folks. Whatever it is you're going to do. But this is a time of year where you just hold your loved ones close. And they can even be of the furry variety, you know, like your pets and stuff. They don't always have to be people. Just another intelligent life form on this planet that you just dig and digs you. Anyway, that's a little mini episode for tonight. Be well, everybody. You guys know the drill. You guys know the words. We'll see you all real soon. Play pinball. Keep America strong.
    17:21
    Thank you.