Maker record
Williams
Williams was an American maker of coin-operated pinball and arcade games, founded in Chicago in 1943 as Williams Manufacturing Company. Its early pinball designs introduced electrical features including solenoids that propelled the ball, and a tilt mechanism that penalized players for lifting or nudging a machine. The company developed a long-running pinball business, with designers introducing features such as ramps, drop targets and modern three-inch flippers. Its name later changed to Williams Electronics Games, Inc.; the pinball division closed in 1999.
- Founded
- 1943
- Countries
- United States
- Locations
- Chicago, Illinois, United States · 1943
- Founders
- Harry Williams
The story of Williams
Harry Williams founded Williams Manufacturing Company in Chicago in 1943. Before establishing the company, he had developed the tilt mechanism, patented to penalize players who lifted or nudged a game. His 1933 game Contact combined battery power, solenoids that kicked the ball across the playfield, and an electric doorbell. The company’s second game, Dynamite, followed in 1946; Sunny, released in 1947, was its first game with flippers.
Williams’s pinball designs continued to develop through successive generations of designers. Gusher (1958) used a bumper that dropped into the playfield, and Vagabond (1962) was the first Williams game to feature a drop target. Later innovations included ramps, scoring reels and modern three-inch flippers. The company’s name changed to Williams Electronics, Inc. in 1974 and WMS Industries in 1987; WMS acquired Bally/Midway in 1988. Williams pinball designs also moved from hand-drawn playfield layouts toward AutoCAD during the 1980s. The pinball division closed in 1999 after more than fifty years of design and production.