Pinball machine:Cirqus Voltaire Pinball Machine

Designed by John Popadiuk and Cameron Silver and released by Bally in 1997, Cirqus Voltaire featured one of the most innovative pinball playfields of the 1990s. The whimsical playfield includes a dot matrix display mounted at the top of the playfield rather than in the backbox, a "Ring Master" toy head that elevated from the playfield, and a ramp adorned with a bright neon tube. Cirqus Voltaire is also the first "solid state" or electronic pinball machine to feature a "dissapearing" pop bumper, or pop bumper that can raise up and retract into the playfield. Bally produced more than 2,700 units.

The history of pinball dates back to 18th-century Europe; many similar games gradually evolved from court games--games played with balls upon a playing surface, including bowls and even golf. Table versions, it seems, were inevitable inventions to make these games portable and to bring them indoors. What we recognize as pinball evolved in America during the 20th century. The year 1947 saw the invention of the "flipper," which added a whole new dimension to the game. In the 1960s, smaller and cheaper home versions were commonly available.