Hit me on nineteen — Williams’ Black Jack is an electromechanical single-player that brings the timeless tension of the blackjack table to the flippers, designed by the pioneering Harry Mabs, a genuine giant of early pinball whose innovations helped shape the flipper game itself, with art by George Molentin. With light-based scoring, it’s a woodrail-era artifact from a founding master of the craft.
The layout is a lively, engaging spread with a classic period feature: two flippers, four pop bumpers, a pair of slingshots, four standup targets, three kick-out holes, and a gobble hole. That gobble hole is a hallmark of the era’s bold design philosophy — the daring, high-risk feature that swallows the ball for an award — while the four pop bumpers promise a bouncy, unpredictable ball and the four standups and three kick-out holes give a player plenty of objectives to work through. It’s a clean, well-balanced design in the classic Mabs mold, all in service of the ever-popular card-table theme and its high-stakes atmosphere.
This Black Jack is a lovely piece of history for the collector who cherishes the deepest roots of the hobby and the legendary figures who planted them. Harry Mabs was a genuine visionary whose work helped invent the modern flipper game, and playing one of his designs is a small brush with the origins of everything that followed. The blackjack theme was a perennial favorite, universally appealing and full of gambling tension. For anyone who loves the golden age of EM pinball and its founding masters, it’s a worthy find. Brave that gobble hole, ride the four bumpers, and try to beat the dealer. Some machines are a piece of the foundation, and this Mabs card classic is one of them. Place your bet and drop a coin.