Australia unearths rare pinball history, including first licensed star wars machine
Canberra – The National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA) of Australia has acquired a remarkable collection of five vintage pinball machines, a treasure trove for gaming history buffs. The find includes a significant piece of pop culture history: the world's first officially licensed Star Wars pinball machine.
Rare machines from a golden age
Manufactured by Newcastle-based A. Hankin & Company between 1978 and 1980, these machines represent a rare glimpse into Australia's pinball past. Reportedly the only Australian-designed examples from the golden age, the collection features games inspired by iconic Australian imagery – the FJ Holden car, cricket legend Dennis Lillee, and even surfing encounters with great white sharks. But it’s Hankin’s The Empire Strikes Back that truly stands out.
“The concept of making a pinball machine like The Empire Strikes Back wasn't common at that stage,” explains David Hankin, manager of A. Hankin & Company, in an NFSA mini-documentary. The company's audacious proposal to George Lucas – seeking permission to create a Star Wars-themed game – was met with surprising enthusiasm. Lucas's response? A personal machine for himself. “We were flabbergasted,” Hankin recounts. “Here we are – this pint-sized pinball manufacturer in Australia – competing with manufacturers that were making so many more pinball machines than we were, but he was happy to do it.”
The NFSA’s acquisition underscores the growing recognition of pinball’s cultural significance. The archive is also actively preserving a rapidly expanding collection of video games, acknowledging the fragility of these digital artifacts. The collection will eventually be available for public viewing in Canberra. The machines offer a tangible link to a bygone era of analog Entertainment, a stark contrast to the digital dominance of today.
The acquisition highlights how seemingly niche cultural artifacts can hold surprising historical weight. The Star Wars machine, in particular, offers a fascinating case study in the early days of licensing and the unexpected collaborations that shaped the Entertainment industry.