Pinball Manufacturers: Chicago Coin

Founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1932 by Sam Wolberg, Sam Gensburg, and Lou Koren, Chicago Coin Machine Manufacturing Company (often simply called Chicago Coin or CCM) was a foundational pillar of the early coin-operated amusement industry. While competitors occasionally chased flashy, expensive gimmicks, Chicago Coin built its reputation on creating affordable, highly reliable machines that appealed equally to location operators and casual players.

By the 1960s and 1970s, the pinball landscape was shifting rapidly. Despite their historical success, Chicago Coin struggled to keep pace with the faster, more complex designs coming out of rival factories like Williams, Bally, and Gottlieb.

Facing severe financial difficulties and bankruptcy in late 1976, the company’s assets were purchased in 1977 by Sam Stern (a former powerhouse executive at Williams) and his son, Gary Stern. The father-son duo rebranded the remnants of Chicago Coin as Stern Electronics, pivoting the factory directly into the burgeoning solid-state pinball revolution.

While the Chicago Coin name eventually faded from the arcade marquees, its physical factory floor and historical DNA served as the literal launching pad for what would eventually evolve into Stern Pinball—the undisputed giant of the modern pinball industry.