Image via Wikipedia"Ever since I was a young boyI've played the silver ball" -- Pete Townshend
When Pete wrote those lines he was probably in his late 20's, but pinball had been around for years before that. But, in the 21st century it's been overtaken by video games so much that actual pinball parlors have become odd fusions of museums and nostalgia pits.
So, when I saw a news article talking about a New York city who banned pinball, I had to check the date -- was this some sort of weird retro posting from the 50's? As the news article quotes: "it's like 'Footloose' -- except we actually care about what's being banned."
Turns out, yes, the ban has been on the books for years, but not enforced until just recently. The CNN video doesn't explain why the city decided to apply the law, but the owner faces a fine of up to $1000 a day if he stays in business.
Boing-boing, however, explains that the reason for the shutdown is due to noise complaints. "The issue is noise and only noise," says Steve Gold, the mayor of Beacon. You can read his comments here.
Here's the Facebook page to Save the Beacon Retro Arcade.
Meanwhile, even the Beacon Retro Arcade's website shows it's shut down:
DUE TO ISSUES BEYOND OUR CONTROL WE WILL BE TEMPORARILY CLOSED. PLEASE KEEP CHECKING THIS WEBSITE FOR UPDATES AND FEEL FREE TO CALL OR EMAIL. SEE YOU ALL SOON AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
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