I think the reason many start
collecting classic games is for the nostalgic factor. Sure the
games themselves are great, but allot of that nostalgic factor
is how they made you feel, back in "the day".
For me it was the hundreds of, now classics machines; for the
younger, perhaps Mortal Kombat, and the Street Fighter get the
nod on being the next collectable arcade machine.
Ether way, both the young and the old shed a tear as Fun N
Games Closed after 33 years of service, on Saturday November
24, 2007.
There were only 3 arcades I called
home in the 80s and they were, (in order of patronage), Game
Town in Pinebrook, NJ, Fun and Game in the Willowbrook mall in
Wayne NJ, and to a lesser degree, the Chuck E Cheese that
boarded the Willowbrook mall. There was also a small arcade
named the Purple Room inside the Willowbrook mall, but they
were overshadowed by Fun N Games size and offerings.
Game town was closest to my house and I soon learned that
there were trails through the woods that would make a 3.7 mile
bike ride much faster on the mini bike
Although Game town game and went without a digital reference,
a friend on mine documented the building, pre and post Game
Town. Click here
for that picture, and the token on that page lives in my
wallet :-)
Fun N Games was still possible by bike but the round trip was
25 miles. None the less, visits weekly were always in order.
Looking around the room the day of the auction was a bit
eerie. Looking through "80s eyes" I remembered where all the
Pac men sat, how Gauntlet sat at the end of the row as myself
and 3 friends augured about who shot the food, or watching the
monitor mounted above Dragon Lair so all could enjoy the
travels of Dirk. I played Venture, Zookeeper and Mouse Trap
here for the first time. I also played my only Crazy Climber
cocktail here (until buying the one I now own).
Looking around in 2007 the games had changed but the memories
remained. The sign outside was the same, the neon in the mall
still lit bright, and the decals on the door were no doubt, 33
years old. Now, without a lease from they mall, the choice to
move on was forced on them and inspired the sale of the
location.
The Auction was run by Super Auctions and was listed as a
Private auction, meaning that you needed to be invited to
attend this show. I got the feeling that they later opened up
the show to the public as they change the info on the web site
and there were signs inside to alert the public of the show.
None the less, I recognized a lot of the faces attending, and
most of them were operators or others in the business.
The other unusual thing to this auction is that it was a
catalog auction. For those unfamiliar with catalog auctions
vs. the "normal" way amusement auctions are held I will
explain the difference.
The normal way auction houses hold shows is that you file into
a room with rows and rows of machines, and the auctioneer
starts at the beginning of a row and zig zag up and down till
everything is sold. The equipment is never in order by Lot #
and there is never a list of what is available for sale.
With this show, we were handed a sheet of everything for sale
listed on the paper and all items were auctioned in numerical
order. After the preview period, the games were shut down, and
the auctioning began.
Below are the prices of the more important things. Since this
was an absolute auction EVERYTHING was sold, from arcade
machines to office desks. From change machines to the trash
cans. From the phone system to all the parts in the back room.
Fun N Games promises to open up again someday and invites them
to follow them via their website.
Thanks Fun N Games for molding my childhood…. You will be
missed.
-=Mark=-
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