Always Read Disclaimers On eBay……….

While perusing eBay recently for antique slots I ran across a rather over priced but fine looking Mills Castle Front slot machine with side vender. Normally I wouldn’t give this listing much thought but I’m always curious to see ads on eBay that show their owners inadvertently or not.

The gallery images seemed to show two people standing beside the machine – so I clicked on the ad just see the fine folks trying to sell this piece of American history. Suffice to say the pair of women referred to as “fun girls” do not come with the machine as stated at the bottom of the ad: THE FUN GIRLS NOT INCLUDED”.

I got a real kick out of this one and thought I would share it.

Was The Naked Lady The Gangsters Choice During Prohibition?

One of my favorite slot machines ever made is the Caille Superior of 1925-1931. Referred to by many as the Naked Lady, this model stands out as a true pioneer in design, function and historical significance. While many of the classic slot machines of the 1930’s are very bright and fun looking, the 1920’s machines were much more quite and functional in appearance. One of the exceptions to this rule is the Superior Operator Bell, aka The Naked Lady. It has a sophisticated look making it the type of machine that could have been found in the classist speakeasy or the shadiest of back rooms.

Made by Caille during the height of Prohibition in Detroit, MI this model was a moderate success for the company. During Prohibition (1920 to 1933) in Detroit there was a LOT of illegal activity going on. Most notable the Purple Gang ran a lot of the vice in the city, including gambling. During this time all the slot machine manufactures were located in Chicago, except for Caille. While Chicago was probably the epicenter of gangsters, speakeasy’s, slot machines, etc, Detroit was a major hub for rum running to and from Canada, allowing the Purple Gang to grow and become the primary force in the city. It’s no doubt that organized crime utilized slot machines as a profit center. While I have no proof, I’ve got to believe that when the Naked Lady came out in late 1925, every back room, speakeasy and bar had to have one of these machines in Detroit.

What made this machine special for a short period of time is its unique design. During the early and mid 1920’s slot machines were relatively mundane and appearance. Year after year the big companies such as Mills would bring out their standard 3 models – a straight operator bell, a side vender operator bell and a front mint vending machine. For the time, these models made by Mills, Watling and later Jennings & Pace were what operators expected and were satisfied with. Caille on the other hand was fighting for market share and had to be innovative in design and function. Since the late 1800’s Caille was regarded as the premier manufacturer and produced some of the most elaborate coin operated devices ever conceived. Their product was superior but Mills Novelty of Chicago took over the vast majority of sales during the early part of the 20th Century and continued to do so into the 1950’s.

Caille’s status in the mid 1920’s as a slot machine manufacturer was fading. By 1925 they were probably third in sales volume. With research into serial numbers of Mills and Jennings machines of the same time, it’s evident Jennings was out pacing Caille by 4 to 1 and Mills was running at 12 to 1. However, the Superior for a short time did give them a boost!

The Naked Lady utilized a classic look of heavy flowing design throughout the cast aluminum castings. The use of the woman is very reminiscent of silver and gold coinage from the period. Caille also designed a very unique “slug-proof coin detector”. Known today as the escalator, this feature to the right of the 3 reels showed the last 4 coins played in the machine. Cheating slot machines with the use of slugs was a big problem at this time. Almost all competitors machines had a small window that showed the last coin played, but not the last 4! Caille advertising for the Naked Lady even quotes an operator as saying: “Had an old style Operator’s Bell in a location and every time I made a collection there were be as many slugs as quarters. I put in a Caille Superior Operator’s Bell and there wasn’t a slug in my last two collections. The best part of it is that play increased.”

The Naked Lady was a mechanically advanced machine and looked cool as well. While I’m sure the crime world had their fair share of these machines, a majority were sold to legitimate operators around the country. In order to get around sometimes vague gambling laws in certain areas, slot machines experimented with various gimmicks that would hypothetically allow them to operate legally. One of those attempts was called a “skill stop”. The idea of the skill stop was give the player a physical button(s) on the machine so they could stop the reels manually – hence using some degree of skill to line the reels up.


The particular machine shown at the top of this column has this rather rare option on it. When a dime, in this case, is inserted into the machine and the handle is pulled, the player can then push the button in and stop all three reels immediately. Wrapped around the button is the phrase “Are You Skilful? Push Button Catch A Winner”. In theory the player could use his or her cat like skills to stop the reels just how they want. In reality this feature didn’t help the player one bit. The reels simply spin to fast and the reel window opening was too narrow to gage when the right images would come up. Mills, Jennings and Watling also used skill stops, but theirs had three buttons for each reel.

The skill stop gimmick lasted on slot machines from the 1920’s into the 1930’s. During that time numerous other ideas were tried, some with success. For Caille the skill stop feature was apparently not a big seller, therefore today making examples like this one quite hard to find and adding a premium to the value.

It was not until 1931 that Mills caught up in design and function with their “Silent” line of machines – notable the War Eagle. Caille tried to complete with the own “silent” machine called the Silent Sphinx, which was the same as the Naked Lady except it had a jackpot and was a different theme on the casting. As evident by the Silent Sphinx’s rarity today, it’s obvious it was not a sales success for Caille. As the 1930’s rolled in Caille tried a total redesign of their machines – even hiring a commercial designer to make something new and visually modern in appearance. What resulted was a line of machines similar looking to the outboard boat motors Caille also produced during the 1930’s, except in this case the slots were better suited as boat anchors. Caille was sold and stopped slot machine production in the late 1930’s. A large majority of slot machines they made are eternal classics today – including what I believe was probably the gangster’s favorite – the Naked Lady….

A 1948 Mills High Top Jewel Bell Never Looked So Good!

Recently I had a customer and blog follower email me Gil Elvgren’s illustration titled “Potluck”. I’ve always loved this image for a number of reasons and thought it would be interesting to comment on it briefly. Elvgren produced countless pin-up images, with the most famous images coming from the 1940’s to the 1960’s. The one relevant to this blog is the beauty shown above. It was put into Brown & Bigelow calendars and other advertising items during 1961.

While doing a little research on the image I ran across the original black & white photo Elvgren took of model Janet Rae. I also found the photo of the slot machine used as well. Both were really cool to see and how they matched up with the finished product of Potluck. Elvgren typically always took photos of models in similar poses to use as reference for his art. Janet Rae was used as a model over 75 times during the 1950’s and 1960’s. In almost every case Elvgen brought out even more life and excitement in his illustrations from those photos, including Potluck.

The photos tell us that Ms. Rea was originally standing in front of a light – not nearly as exciting as a slot machine. The photo also shows a nice original 1948 Mills High Top Jewel Bell – now we are talking! With the two images put together Elvgren whipped out another classic in 61’. He even drew in a fairly accurate representation of a period slot machine stand as well, not bad Gil.

If you have been following my other posts, you may be wondering the same thing as me – where in the world did Gil get that evil slot machine for his photo shoot? Didn’t he know slot machines in 1961 were highly illegal to own, especially in Florida where these images were taken? Maybe Mr. Elvgren knew one of those resourceful law enforcement officials that would “lend” him the machine to take photos of – like in my previous Twilight Zoon posting. Hopefully Janet Rea wasn’t mixed up in some illegal gambling which then gave Mr. Elvgren the inspiration for the art?

All kidding aside, I’m sure glad Gil Elvgren decided to immortalize the all American girl with a true piece of American mechanical history. His creation has hopefully inspired other beautiful women to wear super low cut outfits, use those incredibly complicated panty hose and collect their winnings in anything but a plastic cup!

Mrs. Gibbs , a 1930’s Vender Front Watling Rol-A-Top that talks just killed your husband…

Rod Serling In Front Of A 50c Rol-A-Top

One of my favorite shows of all time is the classic Twilight Zone hosted by Rod Serling. While there are many episodes that are truly classic, one of my favorites is titled The Fever. While some consider it one of the more forgettable shows in the first season, I have other reasons for ranking this one in my top 5.

With my profession and passion in vintage slot machines I’m always watching for slot machines in the background of old movies and shows. Typically westerns will have some slot machines situated in a saloon and typically used as background props. Gangster movies from the 30’s and 40’s will show slots in bar scenes, etc. The classic Oceans 11 with Frank Sinatra shows lots of them in each casino! However, I don’t recall the slot machine(s) ever playing a leading role in a show, until The Twilight Zone.

The ever cool Rod Serling starts out the show by giving us a brief synopsis of what we are in for;

“Mr. and Mrs. Franklin Gibbs, three days and two nights, all expenses paid, at a Las Vegas hotel, won by virtue of Mrs. Gibbs' knack with a phrase. But unbeknownst to either Mr. or Mrs. Gibbs is the fact that there's a prize in their package neither expected nor bargained for. In just a moment, one of them will succumb to an illness worse than any virus can produce, a most inoperative, deadly, life-shattering affliction known as "The Fever".

As we find out, “The Fever” is Franklin’s sudden addiction to a slot machine after initially not wanting anything to do with them. While the premise is entertaining the show gets a little goofy towards the end. However, as a slot machine historian – looking at all the slot machines in the casino is truly fascinating and also raises questions.

While I’m not old enough to have visited Vegas in the early 1960’s my research and period photos have given me a darn good idea of what kind of machines were operating in the casinos during that time. Suffice to say, the star machine in the show (and killer), the Watling Rol-A-Top, was not at all a standard machine used then, especially by casino’s!

After stopping and starting the Twilight Zone DVD a few times I was able to identify all of the machines in the casino set. There is quite an eclectic collection of machines dating from the early 1930’s to the late 1940’s. The first machine that got my attention other than the murdering Rol-A-Top was a really rare AC Multibell. Those rarely come up for sale today and are very unique. A mix of Mills Black Cherry and Golden Falls machines can be seen lined up a few times. A Mills Extraordinary and Mills High Top machines are also in the room. Another interesting machine is a Mills jackpot revamp sitting off the side in a number of scenes. Watling Rol-A-Top’s in various forms are sprinkled in the background as well.

The primary Rol-A-Top that somehow follows Mr. Gibbs to his room is actually quite rare. By rare I don’t mean the flashing bulb at the top that covers the escalator either – ha ha. The Rol-A-Top that figures out how to belch out “Franklin” throughout the show appears to be a $1 Vender Front. I’ve had a number of rare Rol-A-Top machines but I’m actually not aware of real $ Rol-A-Top machines. During the show Mr. Gibbs is dropping them in and he also screams at the end of the show after knocking over the machine “Give me back my dollar”. I’m guessing that this machine could have been modified by an operator before the police confiscated it. By accepting dollars, I’m sure the escalator was modified or even removed, which is possibly why the white lens was placed over the top as well. The machine could be a real half dollar and the show simply implied it was a dollar – silver halves and dollars do look similar from a distance.

Regardless if it’s a 50c or $ machine it is quite odd that a large denomination machine has the mint vending columns on it. It’s possible that this machine was modified somehow for the show or the mechanism was switched out. I’m sure the shows director or prop department did not even know the machine originally vended mints. After finding some cool software on my computer I was able to freeze a scene from the shows trailer (image above). Mr. Serling is standing in front of a similar but different Rol-A-Top. This one is also a rare 50c machine with the escalator window covered, but it is not a vender front. I also have a shot of Franklin standing in front of the Rol-A-Top above as well.

A book titled The Twilight Zone Companion by Marc Scott Zicree has a brief background history of this show, which is really fascinating. In the 1960’s, slot machines were illegal to own in California. So, the only way to get a bunch of machines was to contact the police department where a number of them were impounded. For the filming of the show the police supplied all of the machines and kept an officer on set the entire time – apparently to make sure no one appropriated one of them. This behind the scenes trivia explains why the casino set has such an assortment of different machines not likely found in a real casino! It also explains why so many slot machines are hard to find today, with the police snatching them up. See my previous blog of where some of those machines ended up after the police snached them.

I’ve had a number of Rol-A-Top’s over the years. However, the next time I find a 50c Rol-A-Top it’s going to be hard not to stick a flashing plastic lens over the escalator and a cover over the jackpot with a white box and evil smile on it. Hopefully I won’t wake up in the middle of the night with the machine somehow wobbling towards me as I fall backwards out the bedroom window.

Police Benefit Casino Night or Nasty Prohibition Era Gambling Raid?

A number of years ago I found this vintage photo and hung it up on the wall of our shop. When people notice it they always ask me why a few guys with guns and note pads are standing in the middle of a bunch of old slot machines! Are they tough guys getting ready to start their own casino in the 1930’s? Could it be savvy collectors storing away these old machines to later cash in on their collectible value in the 21st Century? Or my favorite – a shot from a 1930’s movie about the dangers of gambling combined with alcohol consumption and caring a gun………
Actually this image was taken in the early 1930’s and is a police evidence photo. When law enforcement would come busting in they would take all kinds of photos of the evidence and aftermath. A lot of these photos really capture some great scenes. This particular photo I believe was taken in Chicago after a raid. As you can see it appears they found the mother load of slot machines and trade stimulators. After a raid the police, in most cases, would confiscate all the machines and later destroy them. I have a number of great shots of piles of slot machines being broken up and either burned or dumped into a lake.
As someone that deals in these antique slots for a business every day I get calls from people with rather unique back stories about the origin of their family’s slot machine. One of the more common ways a slot machine made its way home was via someone back in the day who was a cop. I’ve restored countless slot machines that are family heirlooms that were originally brought home after a police raid. Dad, uncle or grandpa was a cop and rather than distort all the “evil” slot machines, he would save one and bring it home. Of course all the kids in the family were told never to breathe a word of this at school. Family friends after diner were shown the illegal device and sworn to secrecy afterward. In many cases playing the machine on special occasions was tradition and became important parts of family memories over the years. One of the best parts of my job is getting to talk to those people and bring those very slot machines back to life. A sample of the before & after photos of some of those machines can be seen on our web site at http://www.nationsattic.com/antiqueslotmachinerestorationrepair.html
If you browse the web site a little you will notice that a number of the machines in the police photo above are models we have restored. I’ve always found it neat to look at these vintage images and see just how the machines looked when they were new. As a restorer it’s always a great tool and reference. The photo shows quite a collection of mostly Mills slot machines from the early to mid 1930’s. The Mills War Eagle, Extraordinary, Castle Front, QT, FOK and Lion Front to name a few. There are also some early turn of the century upright slot machines at the far back left of the photo as well. The smaller machines are called trade stimulators; one can clearly be seen called the Pok O Reel.
When I look at this photo I always wonder if there is a old warehouse somewhere that still has all this evidence waiting to be discovered again!

Gambling With Antique Slot Machines

Thank you for checking out my first blog entry! I hope to keep this site updated consistently with new and interesting stories and information about the world of antique slot machines and other unique devices. Hopefully the content with some humor and sarcasm added in will compensate for my lack of proper writing skills and make this an informative place to visit!
So why in the world would some want to collect, much less base an entire business on finding and restoring antique slot machines? My simply answer is, because they are really cool! In addition to being cool, they are purely an American invention that in many cases over the last 100 years have been very illegal to own.
The first slot machine as we know them today was invented by Charles Fey in San Francisco, CA around 1895. Fey invented a number of coin operated devices but that first slot machine called the Liberty Bell is what started everything! At some point in future postings I will expand on some interesting stories about those first Liberty Bell machines and just how many are around today.
As those first “nickel in the slot” machines became hugely popular in San Francisco and other parts of the country, they also became the source of much criticism, corruption, theft, you name it! The slot machine would have probably flown under the radar but they were making so much money they just kept popping up everywhere and problems were inevitable.
Depending on what part of the country they were in, slot machines were welcomed with open arms, mildly tolerated or simply banned. Even areas where they were strictly a no-no, they still seemed to pop up! With the amount of money each of these machines were making, it was common practice to make sure the proper people were well “taken care of” when the issue of shutting them down came up.
Slot machines flourished during Prohibition, with the decade of the 1930’s, now called the Golden Era of slot machines. During this time slots came in all kinds of designs to attract the player. Internal engineering and external design were at their peak during this time period. All kinds of gimmicks were tried and even unique ways to conceal and quickly move slot machines were invented by the major manufactures during the 1930’s. Everyone associated with slot machines were making money at this time – except for the players.
Just as slot machines were going into the 1940’s with full force, WWII started for the US. All production of slots was stopped from late 1942 until early 1946. After the war companies like Mills Novelty, OD Jennings and Pace geared back up for production but they were in for a big surprise. Changing views on gambling were taking place and by 1951 it became illegal to transport slot machines over state lines. It was also illegal to operate or own slot machines in almost every state except for Nevada.
From the early 1950’s until the early 1980’s it was very illegal for an individual in almost every state to be in possession of a slot machines – regardless of its age. There are lots of stores and period news accounts of people with old slot machines being arrested and given serious fines and jail time during the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s. As the old mechanical slots from the 1940’s and older became more obsolete and simply antiques, laws started to change state by state in the 1980’s. Today 44 states have laws making it legal to own antique slot machines of a certain date, typically one at least 25 years old. Here in Kansas where Nations Attic is located, slot machines must have been made before 1951 to be legal to own.
So with that brief history of slot machines covered, it’s clear if you are a collector or history buff why there are so many reasons why to became fascinated with them. I have clients that enjoy the mystique of having something that was once illegal. There are people that feel it’s like going back in time playing a slot machine that is all original from the 1920’s. There are also people that see them as fun, functional antiques that they can enjoy as a hobby or investment.
My future blog entries will cover some of the unique devices that I have handled for clients in the past and currently. In addition to slot machines I will also delve into the depths of other mechanical devices I deal in as well, such as old diving helmets, non gambling coin operated devices, gas pumps, advertising, etc.