Every time I go to Asbury Park, I feel better. I don't know why. Is it because I usually go in the off-season, when it's quieter and feels more like the shore did when I was a kid, before every TV station in Philly insisted that everyone MUST spend their weekends at the shore or else waste their summers? Is it because it hasn't bulldozed its history for shore homes & instead honors what is there as well as what was lost? Is it because getting there is a once-a-year-at-best experience? Is it cuz the protective energy of Bam Bam Bigelow watches over us all upon entering the city limits? I can't say. I just know that I really truly feel at peace there.
View of the Carousel House & Casino from the boardwalk. It's now a showcase for various local mural artists, along with catnip for urbex types.
Turn around from there and you'll see the theater & convention center. Note that pretty much everyone was ignoring the 'no dogs on the boardwalk' sign in the center.
Beautiful white-capped waves that morning.
And I especially feel that peace at Silverball. Yeah, I know, it's weird to have your happiness attached to a noisy retro arcade/museum (now with its own attached snack bar) that has an entrance fee, but I dare you to find that somehow worse than the people who take out a separate mortgage for multiple Disney vacations & season passes. I just want a day among the machines, near a beach where you can still see the ocean & sand because it's not swarmed in tourists, on a boardwalk where you can still walk without getting killed by a Main Line family riding seven across on their bikes.
My visit was a little more populated than usual, since it was the day after the annual Sea Hear Now music festival & a few people were taking an extra day to see the town, but it was still a calming experience. Also, it wasn't so late in the off-season that the other businesses were closed, so it was just the right level of liveliness.
Now, for my photos from Silverball itself. Fair warning, I am NOT a photographer of any caliber. But I wanted to capture a few pictures that caught my attention.
A couple of the older machines, moved to the private party room (which wasn't in use that day). Note the photo of the Morro Castle wreck on the wall to the right, which I hadn't realized was there until several days after taking this picture.
To go with their beloved arcade curiosity Joust, Williams also made a two-player Joust pinball game, with a format similar to the early 80s cocktail cabinets. In true Joust fashion, it's both difficult and confusing, with the single player switching you from playing one side's flippers to the other until both are out of balls. You don't need to move, as the buttons will switch control to whichever side is in play. Sadly, couldn't find anyone to do a 2-player game, even though playing against me is always an assured victory.
Hercules, the largest pinball machine in the world! Well, since that Sid & Marty Krofft indoor park closed & took its ride-able pinball thing with it, anyway. While expectedly slower than your usual hectic pinball game, there's a certain novelty to playing with what appears to be a dense rubber cue ball.
Pin-Bot and The Machine: Bride of Pin-Bot are both great games, rightfully considered classics. Also, I'll be shocked if there hasn't been at least one drag queen who dressed as The Machine as some point.
There are always several new Jersey Jack's tables every time I visit, and each one is a delight to play. This Godfather one had you picking one of five mob families to play, which would then change what your play goals would be, as well as the color lighting for the table.
Elton John tables, then & now. The Bally table always cracks me up due to the sheer volume of busty cartoon ladies on the table art, to assure the users that it's perfectly straight to enjoy Elton John music. Meanwhile, the new Jersey Jack's table on the right has a "British animation" vibe and lets you pick your favorite song from a surprisingly long list for your enjoyment. Lemme tell you, choosing between "I'm Still Standing" and "The Bitch Is Back" was an unexpected dilemma.
There were other tables whose pictures didn't come out that I wanted to showcase, be it the super saturated dark light Cirque du Voltaire or the three-physical-play-spaces of Haunted House or just favorites that I have to play every time like Medieval Madness or Theater of Magic. And that's to say nothing for their non-pinball offerings, from a well-worn bowling table game to a play-till-you-win ancient cousin of the crane game saved from Palace Amusements to an OG Pong cabinet. But as you can see from above, I'm nowhere near a professional photographer. I apologize for the omissions.
One last view of the sea, with a sailboat on the horizon.
Sadly, the day didn't end so great, thanks to a parking ticket, but that won't stop me from eagerly waiting for the day that I can return to Asbury. I just wish I had a car that I could trust to make the trip, since it really wasn't as far as I used to think. But it is truly my favorite place in the entire state, and every visit brings me a moment of tranquility that nothing else can. It's a glimpse of the old shore and a place where the concerns for the day vanish among electronic bleeps, dazzling lights, & heavy clicks from flippers being pressed, with a heady aura of local history & sea air. Anything else I could say would just be repetitive, so I will leave it here, looking forward to my next chance to visit.
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