Legal Information:
So what do Pinball and Dancing have in common.
They can both be loud.
They can both involve bright lights.
They both are fun ways of enjoyment.
They both can be banned from small town America.
Yes ladies and gentlemen Very much like the ban of dancing in the 1980’s musical Footloose, Pinball that game that goes back even to the 1920’s and 1930’s is banned in 2010 in the small town of Beacon, New York.
This Archaic law which goes back decades on the books forbids the operation of any video or pinball arcade in Beacon. The law is not the only one of its kind although it is one of the few that has not been ripped off of the books or is enforced.
In the 1930’s with the growth of the Mafia and organized crime pinball machines and arcades were seen and bad influences and perpetuated the mafia racket. This is mainly due to the fact that the pinball machines of that time lacked the little flippers at the bottom making pinball quaint essentially a game of chance. This lead to a strong venue for gambling which organized crime started to have a strong liking.
Machines were banned in most major cities including New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. After the ruling in New York more than 3,000 pinball machines were destroyed and their metal used for the war effort.
In 1947 the integration of flippers at the bottom of the Pinball machine changed the dynamic of the game and most bans were lifted and forgot about.
But what does this have to do with anyone anymore. I mean with Xbox’s, Playstation’s and WII’s around every corner and in every home who goes to video game arcades anymore?
For Fred Bobrow this law still on the books but untouched for almost a century means that he had to shut down his pinball museum or be jailed and or fined. This being said most of the town people enjoy Bobrow’s business and says it fits well with Beacon ‘s atmosphere but still he is shut down 18 months after opening up its doors.
Bloggers Bit:
Ok, Who did this guy make mad? 18 months after opening they close him down. Come on that’s over a year. Most cities have a planning and zoning commissiosn in which he would have had to get permission to open. Although the law is very old and unused most of those individuals on these commities have to know about all of the legislation dealing with their field of review. I also feel that this law is so quirky that someone somewhere in the town would have used it as a joke some where. “Did you know that we can never play pinball.. oh that’s funny“ Then the City Council shut him down and said they would review the legislation but it may take awhile. Come on City Council, don’t kid us. Beacon is not a metropolis and I am sure that your all’s agenda is not full to the hilt.
Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness, all Mr. Babrow wants to do is fulfill his dream of running his own business. Just let the man be.
Photo used with a creative commons liscense: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hdude/2575132072/sizes/z/in/photostream/
