My Father’s Personal Gaming History of California for the 1950s, 1960s
Alex: “In the 1960s, did you play video games?”
Father: There were no video games.
Alex: “Well, there were arcade games.”
Father: Yeah! Pinball, Skeeball, and carnival games.
Alex: “Did you play any games?”
Father: No, I had no money. I was a kid and my parents were retired and very poor.
Alex: “Did your parents play video games?”
Father: They never went out and did anything. My father worked until he was in his 70s years of age.
Alex: “Did you guys go on any vacation?”
Father: Not that many. My parents were very poor. They had 2 vacations. I think they took one vacation to Pismo Beach and another vacation to San Diego.
Alex: “Cool! Your parents were very responsible with their budget. So, you did not have any money for games growing up as a kid.”
Father: Of course. I was still a kid.
Alex: “There was pinball in the 1950s.”
Father: Probably. I was very young.
Alex: “Do you remember any entertainment in your childhood for the 1950s?”
Father: Oh, there were a couple of black-and-white TV shows and I had my toys.
Alex: “I’m sure you had very good toys! In that 1950s environment, Elvis would’ve been very revolutionary and shocking. Some of your relatives were just quiet farmers and they would eat cow brains for lunch.”
Father: Yes. My relatives did what they could! They needed to use their animals or they would be without food for a week. There was a ponyman who came to my neighborhood and offered the children rides on his horse.
Alex: “Did your family go to Las Vegas during this time?”
Father: No, of course not. They were very poor.
Alex: “Your family loved you very much and took care of you. A few residents in Tehachapi call you “Santa” today. Back then, in the 1950s, some Californians were so mean, their parents would dump Santa in the middle of nowhere and refuse to raise him as their jolly hand. Grandpa on my mom’s side would even cut Santa’s hair.”
Father: Yes, that’s true! Very sad.
Alex: “You couldn’t have afforded any carnival games. You were just a kid. You didn’t work in a job yet.”
Father: I did not play any.
Alex: “So, there were likely no video games even near you in the 1950s and 1960s. Pinball did exist. But, pinball was almost like gambling.”
Father: Yes. People made no sense sometimes.
Alex: “But there were arcade games in the 1960s that were like video games. These “games” had attractions and tricks for pleasure and entertainment. Do you remember those?”
Father: I can’t remember any. Of course, there was pinball and skeeball, but I never played them. No money.
Alex: “Did you do something in Las Vegas at all at this point?”
Father: Never. My parents did take me with them to a cabin in Big Bear for a short time with a gift from a relative’s sister; and, that was all.
Alex: “What a lovely gift! You went to Pismo Beach?! I’m jealous. Pismo Beach is expensive now.”
Father: Well, I took you there once.
Alex: “(Yes.) Farmers were very quiet back then in the 40s and 30s, probably. Noise was scary. Little or no television at most for most of these people. You might as well give a quiet cowboy a screaming monster.”
Father: Yes, that’s true. Time changes a lot.
Alex: “Do you remember anything else for entertainment in the 1950s?”
Father: Not really.
Alex: “Anything?”
Father: Very little, but I remember the black-and-white TV. They showed very little on TV back then. Amazing!
Alex: “You just saw pinball machines and other arcade games without playing them.”
Father: Yes, of course.
Alex: “I’m sure even these 1960s games were better than PONG.”
Father: PONG was just starting in the 1970s and it quickly faded away. People didn’t do very much with it. I was like, “Really? Is that it? Oh well. Technology is amazing.”
Alex: “Pinball has existed for a long time. We have a long history of it. Pinball did offend some people back then.”
Father: Yes and people did some really dumb things.
Alex: “For a society with almost no TV and no video games and basic toys for children, Elvis was really out there. He was “something” all right.”
Father: Yeah! Elvis was THE KING.
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