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SLOTS HISTORY
Charles Fey invented the first slot machine
way back in 1895. He went on to perfect his original innovation
in 1907, when he teamed with Mills Novelty Company who manufactured
the "Mills Liberty Bell." The Liberty Bell featured
a cast iron case and originally had cast iron feet with
toes. In later models the toes were scrapped and replaced
with ornate decorated feet.
The machine's reel strips depicted playing
cards the king, queen, and jack. The machine also initially
had a bell that rang when you hit a winning combination,
but this was also scrapped. The initial concept, however,
was not lost because now-a-days, modern slots have a bell
that ring as a gauge that a player has just hit the jackpot.
This "Liberty Bell" is the primary
ancestor to all modern American slot machines as its basic
design continues to be used in mechanical gaming devices
today. The simple mechanical devices with three old-style
reels holding 20 symbols have evolved into microprocessor-controlled
devices with up to five spinning reels holding hundreds
of symbols.
In 1910, the Mills Novelty Company introduced
a slight variation to the Liberty Bell and called it the
Operator Bell. This machine had a gooseneck coin entry and
featured the now famous fruit symbols, which are still used
in many of today's slot machines. These cast iron slots
are heavy, weighing over 100 pounds. Over 30,000 of these
machines were made.
The era of cast iron machines ended in 1915,
when Mills introduced slot machines with less expensive
wood cabinets. In the early 1930s, the Mills Novelty Company
made a number of extra changes to its line of slot machines
that revolutionized the industry.
First, it designed its machines to be much
quieter. That's why its 1930s machines are referred to as
the "silent bell". Then it introduced a double
jackpot that assured players that one could win twice in
quick succession.
To make its machines memorable and enticing
to players, Mills introduced a series of cabinet designs
that were striking and colorful, each with its own theme.
The first in early 1931 was the Lion Head. In late 1931,
it was the War Eagle and the Roman Head, and in 1933, it
was the Castle Front.
