SFGE FACT SHEET
EVENT NAME:
Southern-Fried Gameroom Expo
DATES & TIMES:
Friday, June 20, 2014
WHERE:
Atlanta Marriott Century Center
2000 Century Boulevard NE
Atlanta, Georgia 30345
DESCRIPTION:
Family-friendly pinball, classic arcade and console gaming event with more than 100+
games set on “free play”. The weekend also features special guests, fun and educational
programs, gaming tournaments, movie screenings, and a swap meet.
SPECIAL GUESTS:
Billy Mitchell: "Video Game Player of the Century", star of "King of Kong: A Fistful of
Quarters" and "Chasing Ghosts: Beyond the Arcade"
Barry Oursler: Legendary game designer whose collaborations include Gorgar, Solar
Fire, PINBOT, Comet, Dr. Who, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, JunkYard, and more.
John Trudeau: Stern Pinball’s newest game designer who produced blockbuster games
like Congo, Black Rose, Judge Dredd, and TX sector.
Jerry Buckner: 1/2 of Buckner & Garcia, whose smash hit song “Pac-Man Fever” took
the world by storm.
Richie Knucklez: World Record Holder on Space Invaders, Phoenix, and more, Star of the new
movie "King of the Arcades"
George Leutz: Q*Bert World Record Holder
Joel West: Former record holder for Berzerk, Star of "Chasing Ghosts: Beyond the Arcade"
Full details available at: http://www.southernfriedgameroomexpo.com/index.php/speakers/
SPECIAL EVENTS:
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75 Anniversary of “Pinhibition” in Atlanta: Did you know that pinball was formerly
illegal in Atlanta? In fact, the newspaper article announcing the decision by the Atlanta
City Council under Mayor William B. Hartsfield to make this ‘dangerous’ game illegal was
printed on the front page of the Atlanta Constitution newspaper on June 20, 1939 – 75
years to the day of the opening of the 2014 Southern-Fried Gameroom Expo! See a scan
of the original article – ‘Game of Skill’ Machines Banned – on our website.
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2 Annual Southern-Fried Pinball Tournament: We are thrilled and honored that our
tournament is now an official stop on the Professional and Amateur Pinball Association
(PAPA) world championship circuit tour! Sanctioned by the International Flipper Pinball
Association (IFPA), this competition allows novices and experienced players alike to face
off in competition to earn World Pinball Player ranking points, prize money, trophies,
and bragging rights among gaming enthusiasts everywhere!
Star Wars Tournaments: On Saturday, June 21, we will have high score contest for both
the Star Wars pinball machine by Data East and the classic Atari arcade game. We are
pleased to offer both a kids division (13 and under) and an adult division for both
machines. We’ll have plenty of prizes to hand out to the top scorers along with trophies
for the two adult winners and medals for the top three scoring kids in each category! If
that wasn’t enough, we’re proud to announce that we will have members of 501st
Legion in full costume on hand for the event!
Atlanta PinSwap Swap Meet: The Southern-Fried Expo actually grew out of the Atlanta
PinSwap, so it is only appropriate that we continue to host a swap meet for gameroom
collectors and enthusiasts. This year’s swap meet will be held in the parking lot behind
the Marriott Century Center. Bring your projects, parts, collectibles and cash – it’s a
great place to sell (and find) some treasures!
Movie Screenings: Sure, we know all the games in the Southern-Fried Gameroom Expo
arcade are the big attraction, but we’re also screening some films that highlight the love
of gaming. The Space Invaders, a film by Jeff Von Ward, is the story of arcade video
games and their second life in basements and garages across the United States. The
Video Craze, a film by Dave Danzara, is a documentary that examines the impact of the
arcade from the viewpoint of those who first embraced the worldwide video game
culture. SFGE is also offering one of the earliest public screenings of a new documentary
feature film, The King of Arcades, which takes the viewer on a pilgrimage in search of
what inspires the passion of the video game culture.
th
30 Anniversary of Space Shuttle: At the 2014 Southern-Fried Gameroom Expo, we’re
th
also celebrating the 30 anniversary of Space Shuttle – one of the greatest pinball
games of all time – with the game’s designer, Barry Oursler. Barry will sign an original
Space Shuttle pinball machine and help us raffle it off, and it could be yours! For every
game you bring to the Southern-Fried Gameroom Expo, you receive one entry in the
raffle to win a signed Space Shuttle pinball machine. Bring 1 game, get 1 entry; bring 3
games, get 3 entries. The more games you bring, the better your chances of winning this
amazing Space Shuttle pinball machine!
PARKING:
Free parking at the Atlanta Marriott Century Center hotel.
TICKETS:
Discounted 3-Day Weekend Passes available until May 31, 2014: $35 adults / $20 kids
AT THE DOOR PRICES:
Friday, June 20: $15 adults / $10 kids
Saturday, June 21: $20 adults / $10 kids
Sunday, June 22: $15 adults / $10 kids
CONTACT INFO:
General Inquiries: SFGE Organizers
Sponsor and Vendor Inquiries: Shannon DeWitt
Media Inquiries: Dana Reeves
CONNECT ONLINE:
Like us on Facebook (SouthernFriedGameroomExpo)
Follow us on Twitter (@SFGameroomExpo)