WOW! THAT WAS AMAZING!
Another TPF has come and gone. As usual, we needed a few days (ahem… weeks) to recover.
And now it’s time to say THANK YOU!
TPF2023 was the BEST one yet! There is absolutely no way that we could have pulled this off without the support of an incredible pinball community that reaches far and wide. We had Exhibitors bring games from all over the United States and Vendors that came and shipped games from all over the world!
Putting on THE best pinball show though… that’s impossible without you and the games you bring to share with us all weekend. Every year, we’re amazed at the quantity and quality of machines that you bring to the show. And we’re proud you take ownership in the Texas Pinball Festival.
This year, sincere thanks go to our dedicated and passionate volunteers: Pam Heffern, Tony Macevicius, Heath Stidham, Robert Harris, Jaelanne and Trey Gilliam, Kris Klinge, Gina Curbo, Michael and Melinda Braly, Kristin and Clark Nethers, Greg and Julie Spivey, Lauren VanderVeen, Blake Dumesnil, Colin MacAlpine, Ken Kemp, Liz Dronet and Dick Curtis, and Richard and Howard Barnett. And we can’t forget our Best in Show Judges Bill Morrison, Scott Martin, Rich Wiski, and Keith Holbrook. You all spent more hours than we can count making sure things were handled… before, during and after the show. There were another 40+ volunteers that helped us fill in the gaps. We even had people just step in and lend a hand where they saw a need. Thank you all!
There are too many to list here, but we wanted to recognize all of our special guests and speakers, including industry designers, artists and online and media personalities. We were pleased to have pinball manufacturers and executives bring their newest games out to show off. 7 new titles debuted at TPF2023!
As much effort as we put into making the Texas Pinball Festival a great show, we recognize the time and effort each of you puts forth. YOU make TPF the best pinball show in the country! It’s your show!
THANK YOU FOR MAKING TPF2023 INCREDIBLE!
And now we say Congratulations! to all of our winners… and there were a lot of them, even if we can’t list them all here.
To start with, Morgan Stickney (center) took home the Stern “The Simpson’s Pinball Party” pinball machine in our charity raffle benefitting the National Videogame Museum and Kidd’s Kids.
This brand new 20-year-old time capsule was generously donated by Ross and Lisa Viguet (left). You can see the unboxing here hosted by Cary Hardy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5ZRAFSaXnw
Tournaments!
Karl DeAngelo took home the top prize in the Texas Wizards Tournament. Escher Lefkoff dominated in the Classics Tournament. Meghan Shattuck was the winner of the Women’s Tournament. Miles Bradley took the Number 1 spot in the Kids’ Bump ‘n’ Win.
Exhibitor James Kemp earned the Grand Champion plaque in the Best In Show competition for his incredible Fish Tales.
During Exhibitor check in, over 400 pinball machines and classic arcades came through the doors. We awarded over $20,000 in tournament money and trophies and over $1,500 in the Best In Show Award money. All in all, more than 4,600 people attended the 2023 Texas Pinball Festival.
For the best TPF2023 show coverage, head over to Pinball News to check out Martin Ayub’s wrap up. Jonathan Joosten at Pinball Magazine also wrote up a great article.
If you didn’t see the TWIPY Awards Show LIVE… and you haven’t seen it since, you can check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-2BXTXLXIY
A lot of effort went into this production… William Oetting from This Week in Pinball, Imoto, Todd Tuckey, and their committee did an amazing job.
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE 2022 TWIPY AWARD WINNERS!
Finally… TPF Organizers Ed and Kim VanderVeen are announcing their retirement as TPF show runners.
Founding organizer Paul McKinney will continue to carry the TPF torch along with Robert Harris. Ed and Kim will be at TPF2024, but they will be playing pinball, enjoying the show, and visiting with all of you!
Mark your calendars now for TPF2024!
March 15-17, 2024