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Episode 280: Mitch Curtis

PodcastAnalysis updated 2d ago32 min listen
From the creator

IFPA State Director for Massachusetts and area operator, Mitch talks about New England action, his ideas for pinball during a pandemic, and taking mods to a whole new level.

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Highlights

  • Mitch Curtis made the A playoffs at Pinberg in 2018, placing 34th out of 840 players
  • Flat Top Johnny's in Boston operated 11-12 pinball machines at its peak, hosting weekly New England Pinball League play and monthly tournaments before closing in June 2020 due to COVID-19
  • Mitch modified The Walking Dead pinball to feature Michael Jackson from Thriller using Pinball Browser software, replacing the walker toy and editing sounds/video clips
  • Massachusetts state law prohibits arcade reopening while allowing restaurants and casinos to operate, creating regulatory inconsistency
  • Mitch operated Fresh Aircade outdoor events with 4 people per 2-hour blocks, masks required, sanitizers provided, with individual game challenges (e.g., Jurassic Park under 4 minutes)
  • The Boston Bells women's pinball group organized monthly tournaments at public and private locations in Boston before the pandemic
  • Mitch is the IFPA state director for Massachusetts and is planning a fall state championship at Fresh Aircade with the top 16 players

Notable quotes

“Funkatron is a frame of mind, Jeff.”
Mitch Curtis
“I don't think Stern is ever going to make a Michael Jackson machine call me crazy but I don't know Michael's had some bad press lately yeah so I'm going to put that at maybe a 50-50 chance they make a Michael Jackson game”
Mitch Curtis
“I just loved running tournaments and having people get together to play. And it was just killing me not to be able to do anything, to not be allowed to do anything.”
Mitch Curtis
“I believe that. I 100% do too, because of the loyalty of the pinball players, the community, we want to help out.”
Jeff Teolis
“I think in the future, if there are arcades, they're going to have to be bigger. They're going to be bigger in the sense that the games can be spread out.”
Mitch Curtis
“I'm making sure my home collection is tight and ready to go for the winter because I feel like we might get locked down again.”
Mitch Curtis

Entities

  • Pinberg· event
  • Pintastic· event
  • Flat Top Johnny's· event|location
  • Fresh Aircade· event|location
  • A4cade· location
  • Super Electric· location
  • The Sanctum· location
  • Boston Bells· organization
  • IFPA· organization
  • New England Pinball League· organization
  • Vermont Pinball Club· organization
  • Brian O'Neill· person
  • Chuck Webster· person
  • David Schumacher· person
  • John Borg· person
  • Josh Sharp· person
  • Lyman Sheets· person
  • Mitch Curtis· person

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