According to local press reports, two men attempted to break into an ATM with a blow torch but only succeeded in welding it shut. The attempted robbery took place on the second floor of the Boardwalk on Okaloosa Island in Northwest Florida. As the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Department noted, when a route man discovered the hinges of the machine welded shut on a routine service call. A review of the surveillance tape showed two men approach the machine in the early hours and attempt to open it with a blow torch and crow bar before abandoning their efforts.

The U.K.’s towering coin-op veteran Michael Green has passed away, and numerous industry people throughout the world are mourning. InterGame magazine’s David Snook passed along the sad news to us, along with a message from our own Marc Haim of Gold Coast Distributing (Long Island export/importers), who knew him as well as anyone. During his lengthy career in coin-op, which brought him into manufacturing, operating and distributing from his various bases in England, Green’s passing (said Haim) marked the end of an era. “Michael was one of the last to grow up in this business during the 50s and saw…

Bob Muniak was named by Shaffer Distributing as a recipient of the Bernard C. Flynn Devotion Award at the company’s 90th anniversary celebration, held June 7 at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. Muniak has been with the company for more than 18 years, and is noted for his sales production, customer relationships, product knowledge and superb reputation throughout the industry. The award was established in 2001 as a tribute to the late “Bernie” Flynn, who served as Shaffer’s executive vice president for a number of years, managing “a multitude of services for the company with dedication, loyalty and competence,” Shaffer…

The esports attraction Omniverse VR Arena is now available at the Dave & Buster’s location in Austin, Texas, according to manufacturer Virtuix. The “action-packed experience” will be offered first for a limited time at the D&B in Austin, the company said. “We are thrilled to bring VR Arena to Dave & Buster’s,” said Virtuix CEO Jan Goetgeluk. “We believe this exciting and active gaming experience will fit well with the venue’s audience.” More information is available at www.virtuix.com.

A second Beercade, aptly named Beercade 2, is in the works in Omaha, Nebraska, the same city that is home to its first location. The second is scheduled to open sometime this summer closer to downtown in the city’s Little Bohemia neighborhood, according to the Omaha World-Herald. It’s a bigger place, which they say will allow for larger games that couldn’t fit in the original Beercade, as well as Skee-Ball, racing games and more pinball machines. It also has an outdoor patio space. “We were looking to do another one for a while, and we didn’t want to leave Omaha.…

The London coin-op distributor Electrocoin recently opened its doors to customers new and old for an annual event that showed off their newest and best games. Among those shown for the first time in the U.K. were Catwoman: Signature Edition and Black Knight: Sword of Rage, as well as others from Stern Pinball. Pictured here are John Stergides of Electrocoin, Doug Skor of Stern and Armando Bendahan from SFA. (Thank you to our roving pinball reporter Gary Flower for this photo and report. He noted  guests were greeted with a champagne reception, followed by an al fresco feast of Greek cuisine.)…

Henry Winkler of Happy Days fame stopped by the Alpha Amusements booth at Motor City Comic Con in Detroit last month to sign a Nip-It pinball machine, a game played by his character in the 1970s TV series. Nip-It was a machine from Bally released in 1973. Thanks to John Pascaretti for sending the pic of his son, Chris, with Winkler. Alpha Amusements, online at www.alpha-amusements.com, is owned and operated by Pascaretti Enterprises.

Celebrating the May release of their Marvel Adventure Lab photo booth, Apple Industries recently had its annual barbecue, catered by the New York favorite Brother Jimmy’s BBQ. “Following the phenomenal response to the launch of the Marvel Adventure Lab by Face Place in May, Apple’s team took a well-deserved break and spent hours playing lawn games while savoring an amazing BBQ buffet,” the company said. They’ll be showing the new booth, and others, at Booth #601 at the Bowl Expo at the end of the month. More information at www.faceplacephoto.com.

Due to the generosity of coin-op industry people and businesses, the Allen Duke Tutor Center at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colo., opened April 24 – named after the youngest son of longtime industry vet Brian Duke. Allen Duke was hit by a car in March 2017 while walking to work on the sidewalk, two days after his 23rd birthday and five weeks from graduating with his accounting degree. His family later found out that Allen was volunteering his spare time as a tutor at the school to help struggling students. The Allen Duke Memorial Foundation was formed as a…

The highly-awaited Mario Kart Arcade GP virtual reality experience launches today, June 12, at K1 Speed in Irvine, Calif., following the product’s success during its six months at Union Station in Washington D.C. and VR ZONE arcades in Tokyo and London. The multiplayer VR experience allows four players at a time to hop into the specially-designed “Mario Karts” before racing through the iconic Mushroom Kingdom as Mario, Luigi, Peach or Yoshi. Mario Kart Arcade uses the HTC VIVE system, featuring “industry-leading graphics but, in homage to the original game, VIVE’s Tracker technology will allow players to reach up and grab…