“Freddy Bailey reflects on The Traveling Showmen and their
Connections to FEC’s and single site operating in the 1960’s”
Freddy Bailey
Showman’s Guild 1963
Crompton’s “Film Stars”
Arthur Bates
It was during the late 1950’s that many traveling showmen started to settle down
in the traditional Seaside Towns of England, and started operating amusement
arcades.
These very same traveling showmen did not know it at the time, but they would
set the trend in style for the future of Family Entertainment Centers as we know
them today.
Traveling showmen have entertained the public for more than 150 years, they
have traveled the length and breadth of the British Isles, with their Coconut
Sheets, Bumper Car Rides, Candy Floss Stalls and various “Redemption Games”
of the time.
Thurston’s Monte Carlo Rally “Speedway Track” the pride of the Eastern Counties Section of the Showman’s Guild.
Many of to-days “Redemption Game” manufacturers have taken ideas for their
games from the traditional “Fairground” games operated by the Traveling
Showmen.
A typical “Side Stall’ line-up on a Fairground in the 1950’s, (Showman’s Museum at Dingle)
Penfolds traveling “Coconut Saloon.
Feed The Clowns at Morecumb Winter Gardens.
Joey Rose with his Bucket Joint
those traveling showmen who migrated to the British Seaside Towns in
the early 1960’s, including my own family members, started to operate their
various arcade machines on single site locations throughout the Winter months,
we would take the pinball tables, fruit machines and jukeboxes out of the arcade
in the Winter months, and put them in local cafes and working men’s clubs, then
when Easter came around, many of these locations wanted to keep the machines
installed, and that is how many Traveling Showmen became single site
operators.
Many of
Many of the large operators of today came from Traveling Showman’s families,
Jimmy Thomas a past B.A.C.T.A president was a traveling Showman, Arthur
Bates a partner in the Crompton & Bates company (Who operated the famous
“Film Stars” arcade machine of the 1960’s) was a President of The Showman’s
Guild of Great Britain, Harry simmons and Peter Manning well known
Amusement Arcade operators were both Traveling Showmen.
Barry Hall with Jimmy Thomas
Harry Simmonds and Peter Manning
My best friend (And my Best Man Twice) Barry Hall a Notts & Derby traveler
operated Coin Amusements in Nottingham, and later settled in Skegness, was a
traveling Showman, The Noble Organisation, one of the largest operators of
arcades and Bingo Clubs in the Country, is run by the Noble family, another well
known Showman’s family, the late Jimmy Jones owner of the Pleasure Beach at
Great Yarmouth, who also operated J & J Amusements Ltd, one of the largest
single site operators on the East Coast was from a Traveling Showman family.
So many of the household names in the coin machine industry came from
Traveling families, even some of the major coin machine manufacturers, such as
“Streets Automatics”, several distributors started their business by supplying the
traveling showmen with coin operated machines.
The late Ralph Horwitz of Chicago Automatic Machine Supply Co, Ltd was so well
known by the Traveling Showmen that he supplied with machines, that they used
to ask him to deliver letters and messages to their various family members at
other traveling fairs throughout the Country, Ralph who was lovingly known as
“Old Chicago” was the most loved and trusted “Flattie” to Traveling Showmen.
Derek Horwood and Freddy Bailey in 1989
Ralph Horwitz on his stand at the A.T.E 1956
Derek Horwood receiving an Award for his late father’s contribution to the British Coin Machine Industry, at
The British Coin Machine Industry Awards Dinner in 1989 from Freddy Bailey
Ralph’s son Derek Horwood now Chairman of United Distributing Company, the
largest distributors of “Redemption “games in Great Britain, is a large supplier
of games to the Traveling Showman, so much so that one of the coin machine
Industries most well known and loved coin machine characters-Michael Green is
Sales Director of United Distributing Company is fondly known as the Traveling
Showman’s “Flattie” friend.
Mark and Derek Horwood of UDC
Michael Green Honoree Showman
This Article is dedicated to the late Ralph Harwitz a true founder of the British Coin Machine
Industry who I was priviledged to have known…….Until we meet again. Freddy Bailey
NEXT WEEK: Operating AWP’s in the 1960’s.