Pinball Hall of Fame

October 25, 2004 (Revised) - This past weekend, Joe Kaminkow, Ed Cebula, Kevin O'Connor, and Paul Freris were inducted into the Pinball Hall of Fame at the annual Pinball Expo 2004. All have worked for, or done work for, Data East/Sega/Stern Pinball, Inc. at one point or another in their careers

The night was full of sentiments and laughs. Joe Kaminkow inducted Ed Cebula into the Hall of Fame, calling him "my mentor and my friend." Joe then brought out a man dressed in a chicken outfit, who proceeded to sing to Ed and give him a handful of balloons. Lonnie Ropp of Stern Pinball followed by presenting Ed with an engraved watch. Later on in the evening, Ray Tanzer of Stern Pinball gave Joe Kaminkow an engraved Waterford Crystal plaque. Ray then spoke on behalf of Gary Stern, saying, "Joe has been a great friend to me and to all of the people at Stern Pinball, and for that I love him."

Joe Kaminkow first achieved pinball fame at Williams Pinball, Inc. when he licensed the Space Shuttle from NASA. Joe then went onto start Data East Pinball, Inc. (later to become Sega Pinball and then Stern Pinball) with Gary Stern in 1986. There, Joe became well known for his ability to secure top licenses like Jurassic Park, Star Wars, and Lethal Weapon 3. In 1998, Joe left Sega Pinball to become Vice President of Product Development for IGT, the world's largest slot machine maker. Joe revolutionized slot machines by using licensed titles extensively.

Chicago Coin, Game Plan, and Data East Pinball engineer Ed Cebula was also inducted. Ed has been largely credited for being one of pinball's great mechanical engineers. Pinball artist Kevin O'Connor, who has worked with Data East/Sega/Stern Pinball and Williams Pinball, was also inducted for his outstanding contributions to pinball. Kevin has worked on many of Stern's most recent successes, including ELVIS®, THE LORD OF THE RINGS™, and THE SIMPSONS/PINBALL PARTY™. Last, also inducted were artist Greg Freres, game designer Gary Gayton, and Pinball Expo organizers Rob Berk and Mike Pacak.

Some previous inductees into the Pinball Hall of Fame include: Sam Stern, Harry Williams, Steve Kordak, Steve Ritchie, Pat Lawlor, and Gary Stern.

To learn more about Stern Pinball, visit www.sternpinball.com.

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