07/19/2026
Earlier this summer, we did some service work on a Paragon pinball. When Todd looked up some specs on the Internet Pinball Database (ipdb.org), he found a story about Paragon's design:
Greg Kmiec, the designer of Paragon recalled: The Italian, French and German markets were quite strong for Bally during that period and Bally was often visited by various foreign distributors. The way it was relayed to designers through interpreters was that their players liked to hold the pinball on the flipper, take a drink of beer and brag to other players about the skill shot they were about to shoot. That couldn't be done with the original Paragon design. It was relayed to Bally that the foreign player preferred one return lane on each side at the bottom of the game that "returned" the pinball to the flippers for a playfield skill shot. This type of design became known within the industry as the "Italian Bottom." It was used extensively then throughout the industry and is still in use today. [Adjustments were reportedly made to Paragon games being shipped overseas.]
The smoke is back today, stop by and get out of the air and play some pinball! Open Sundays 11-4, Saturdays 10-6 or by appt. Donations accepted for pinball play.
