6/08/2005
Pinball Wizard Gets Some Long-Delayed Recognition
By BETHANY GORDON Plymouth Bureau bgordon@citizen.com
PLYMOUTH — After waiting for more than thirty years, self-proclaimed Pinball Wizard and Plymouth resident Ronald Mowry will get the respect he deserves. In 1974 Mowry said he set the first record for the longest continuous pinball playing session in a small sandwich shop in Hallendale Beach, Fla. Mowry played pinball for 72 hours and eight minutes until he was eventually coerced into stopping by paramedics who were concerned about the circulation in his legs. Mowry said he was inspired to embark upon the pinball marathon because a local radio station was offering a similar contest for fifteen contestants. The contest was timed with the opening of the movie "Tommy" in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. with prizes ranging from an $1,800 pinball machine to a date with Anne Margaret, one of the actresses from "Tommy." Mowry did not agree with the way radio station chose its contestants and decided to break the record on his own. "I started my game at the exact same time as they did," said Mowry, who has told his story regularly for the past thirty years. Mowry said the machines in the radio station's contest were set to continuous play, but his required quarters. "I didn't have a rigged machine," he said From there, Mowry played for more than three days. The small sandwich shop remained open throughout the three days, and customers acted as witnesses to the unusual feat. Stopping for only five minutes each hour to regain circulation in his legs, Mowry eventually fed more than $100 into the Gottlieb Super Soccer pinball machine and played more than 700 games. Mowry said his affection for pinball began at a very early age. In the late 1940s, Mowry could be found playing pinball at his father's doughnut shop on Main Street in the back of Samaha's. "As a little boy of three, my father would stand me on a milk crate and have me play his pinball machine so he could run the shop," said Mowry. "People used to stop and look through the window to watch my father make doughnuts. They were also watching a three-year-old play pinball." Over the past 30 years, Mowry has attempted to receive recognition for his marathon pinball session, which he said is the first world record of its kind ever to be set. "I did go to the Guinness Book of World Records office in New York," said Mowry. "But the woman came out and said that pinball would never appear in the Guinness Book of World Records." A representative from Sterling Publishing Co., the New York firm that publishes The Guinness Book, told Mowry shortly after his accomplishment that pinball was considered a non-competitive sport. Despite several rebuffs through the years, Mowry continued to search over the next few decades for recognition. "I am both the Rodney Dangerfield and the Babe Ruth of pinball," he said. Mowry's claim to have gotten "no respect," for being "the pinball champion of the whole world" will end soon. Earlier this month, Walter Day, founder of Twin Galaxies Official Video Game & Pinball Book of World Records promised Mowry a spot in the 2006 Edition of the gamer's bible. Day also presented Mowry with a certificate marking his record therefore providing the first official evidence of his record. Previously, Mowry's only evidence was an article written in 1976 in a Butler, N.J. newspaper explaining the feat. Mowry used it to verify his record with Twin Galaxies. "What does this mean? I guess I'm the most famous pinball player ever," said Mowry. "And until now, unknown." For Mowry, seeing his name in print will provide him with a huge sense of accomplishment. "Finally I will be given the recognition I earned and deserve," he said.
PLYMOUTH — After waiting for more than thirty years, self-proclaimed Pinball Wizard and Plymouth resident Ronald Mowry will get the respect he deserves. In 1974 Mowry said he set the first record for the longest continuous pinball playing session in a small sandwich shop in Hallendale Beach, Fla. Mowry played pinball for 72 hours and eight minutes until he was eventually coerced into stopping by paramedics who were concerned about the circulation in his legs. Mowry said he was inspired to embark upon the pinball marathon because a local radio station was offering a similar contest for fifteen contestants. The contest was timed with the opening of the movie "Tommy" in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. with prizes ranging from an $1,800 pinball machine to a date with Anne Margaret, one of the actresses from "Tommy." Mowry did not agree with the way radio station chose its contestants and decided to break the record on his own. "I started my game at the exact same time as they did," said Mowry, who has told his story regularly for the past thirty years. Mowry said the machines in the radio station's contest were set to continuous play, but his required quarters. "I didn't have a rigged machine," he said From there, Mowry played for more than three days. The small sandwich shop remained open throughout the three days, and customers acted as witnesses to the unusual feat. Stopping for only five minutes each hour to regain circulation in his legs, Mowry eventually fed more than $100 into the Gottlieb Super Soccer pinball machine and played more than 700 games. Mowry said his affection for pinball began at a very early age. In the late 1940s, Mowry could be found playing pinball at his father's doughnut shop on Main Street in the back of Samaha's. "As a little boy of three, my father would stand me on a milk crate and have me play his pinball machine so he could run the shop," said Mowry. "People used to stop and look through the window to watch my father make doughnuts. They were also watching a three-year-old play pinball." Over the past 30 years, Mowry has attempted to receive recognition for his marathon pinball session, which he said is the first world record of its kind ever to be set. "I did go to the Guinness Book of World Records office in New York," said Mowry. "But the woman came out and said that pinball would never appear in the Guinness Book of World Records." A representative from Sterling Publishing Co., the New York firm that publishes The Guinness Book, told Mowry shortly after his accomplishment that pinball was considered a non-competitive sport. Despite several rebuffs through the years, Mowry continued to search over the next few decades for recognition. "I am both the Rodney Dangerfield and the Babe Ruth of pinball," he said. Mowry's claim to have gotten "no respect," for being "the pinball champion of the whole world" will end soon. Earlier this month, Walter Day, founder of Twin Galaxies Official Video Game & Pinball Book of World Records promised Mowry a spot in the 2006 Edition of the gamer's bible. Day also presented Mowry with a certificate marking his record therefore providing the first official evidence of his record. Previously, Mowry's only evidence was an article written in 1976 in a Butler, N.J. newspaper explaining the feat. Mowry used it to verify his record with Twin Galaxies. "What does this mean? I guess I'm the most famous pinball player ever," said Mowry. "And until now, unknown." For Mowry, seeing his name in print will provide him with a huge sense of accomplishment. "Finally I will be given the recognition I earned and deserve," he said.
