The Slot Machine Story

Slot machines made their first mark in the beginning of 1891. Pitt and Sittman created five reels which showed poker hands in New York. The mechanism had no payout facility, so several places that bought these machines around New York paid out their own prizes which were usually in the form of free drinks. Online slot machines would make an appearance one hundred years later.

When Charles Fey came along he created the first slot machine known as the Liberty Bell. This slot machine was created in his basement but didn’t have widespread success in the early years. However, later on it gained in popularity and was placed in the Las Vegas Flamingo Hilton Hotel. Charles Fey created a slot machine different to any other slot machine that is seen today. It was made with cast iron and weighed over one hundred pounds. The fruit symbols were nowhere to be seen on this machine, instead it had horseshoes, stars and playing card suits like Spades and Diamonds. Winners received a fifty pence payout from the Liberty Bell. This amount was considered to be substantial at that time. Players can still take a peek at the very first Liberty Bell which is showcased in the Liberty Bell Saloon. Fey’s grandchildren own the establishment and carefully preserve his legacy of creating the very first workable slot machine.

Charles Fey went on to make the Operator Bell slot machine. This was where he introduced the famous fruit design, which became a standard aesthetic for all slot machines. This changed the history of slot machines forever! When anti-slot machine sentiments started to rise, Fey used his clever imagination and made the slot machine look similar to a vending machine. The public confused the two machines often and police had to step in when needed. The Bell Fruit Gum Company is reputed to have stolen Fey’s creation of the slot machine and introduced a vending machine that dispensed gum each time the lever was pulled. The BAR symbol came from the Bell Fruit Gum machine in an effort to advertise their gum.

The anti-gambling movement became a hindrance to Charles Fey. Soon after, slot machines became illegal in 1909 in San Francisco and later in Nevada. California banned slot machines in 1911. It seemed popular to take on the anti-gambling stance, especially by politicians. LaGuardia, the Mayor of New York even had a photo of dumping the slot machines at sea. Many of these machines resembled vending machines, however, the city had taken some of the legitimate vending machines to score a coup against the public. Slot machines experienced its black day in history.

Bugsy Siegal was a notorious crime figure, who featured prominently in the revival of slot machines. Bugsy built the Las Vegas Flamingo Hilton and invested in these slot machines to keep his wives and girlfriends of rich players happy. He looked upon it as a novelty and didn’t take the concept of slot machines seriously, however, all the women that played them did!

The popularity of slot machines spread like wildfire across the United States. Slot machines account for 80 percent of casino revenue in this day and age. They are no longer mechanical, and have become electronic, but the basis of the machine is still the same. Online slots are similar to the Las Vegas one arm bandits.