- ipdb.corporate_entity_name
- Westerhaus Manufacturing Company
- ipdb_id
- 3393
- ipdb.image_urls
- ["https://www.ipdb.org/images/3393/image-1.jpg","https://www.ipdb.org/images/3393/image-2.jpg","https://www.ipdb.org/images/3393/image-3.jpg"]
- ipdb.notes
- 'Marines At Play' was a conversion of Bally's 1941 'Flicker'.
This is the advertised second run of Westerhaus Amusement Co.'s 1944 'Marines At Play (1st Edition)'.
Westerhaus called this edition their "1945 model". Their ad specified "many added features" for this second run, such as "2 new 5000 bumpers, the 5000 roll-over and the 2-5 free play bumpers". However, the game pictured in the July 1945 ad that announces this edition (shown here) is identical to the picture used in their 1944 ads, and the playfield cannot be clearly seen in these pictures. Perhaps they did not yet have an updated picture when they placed this announcement. In any case, we are not sure if this second run truly had new features unique to it, or if it is simply a continuation of the design change that occurred during the first run.
This is the last game produced by Westerhaus Manufacturing Company which only a few months earlier had come into being when it split off from Westerhaus Amusement Company, moving production to 3418 Harrison Ave and leaving the Amusement Company at 3726 Kessen Avenue to function as an operator. The Manufacturing Company did not last long, because a Billboard announcement dated Sep-8-1945 p102 (shown here) indicates their equipment and building at 3418 Harrison was taken over by Esquire Manufacturing Company, retaining Bill Hardig as sales manager and indicating that this new company would continue to offer Westerhaus conversions to the trade. Perhaps Esquire meant only to deplete their acquired inventory of Westerhaus games, as we cannot find any further online mention of Esquire except a 1955 Billboard ad where they supplied toy gun and holster sets as prizes for a children's contest sponsored by Pepsi. Westerhaus Amusement became Pioneer Vending, still at 3726 Kessen, and today is owned by Bill Westerhaus, grandson of the founder.
- month
- 7
- player_count
- 1
- technology_generation
- electromechanical
- theme
- Wartime
- theme
- Marines
- theme
- Military
- year
- 1945