Pinball pioneer Alvin J. Gottlieb has died in Florida, US, at the age of 86. Inventor Gottlieb was a member of the famous pinball family D. Gottlieb and Co. which built pin tables in Chicago from 1927.
He was the son of Dorothy and David Gottlieb, who established the Gottlieb company and also the Gottlieb Memorial Hospital in Melrose Park, Chicago, in 1961 and Alvin Gottlieb was dedicated to working for the hospital for much of his life.
The Gottlieb company originally came into the amusement industry making grip-testing machines. Alvin worked in the engineering department of the business which saw some major innovations into pinball, including the flipper device. He was inducted into the Pinball Hall of Fame in 2007
Gottlieb died on October 14, leaving four children. His funeral was on Friday last week in Chicago.
