Anyone else own a Star Warrior cocktail by Potomac Mortgage?

[Video_Invader]

If so, what a great job. I like it. Very cool info.

[astrp3]

If so, what a great job. I like it. Very cool info.

 

Yes, that is my blog.

I continue to unearth info about Leisure Time.

They were actually investigated by the Justice Department and the FTC.

 

It also seems that they were a bit more subtle than I thought.

 

Another issue of Play Meter had an interview with one of their customers and he went into more detail about their sales pitch.

While they showed articles of machines earning upwards of $1000 a week, they said they liked to "work with" the $75/week figure because they didn't want to overstate their case and even asked him if he was comfortable with that figure.

He said that during his "interview" the salesman asked most of the questions and made it sound like THEY were evalutaing HIM to see if he was worth having as a customer.

They even showed him a picture of another customer with a corvette in front of his house and gave him contact information (he actually did call the guy who, of course, said his games made money).

They also showed him a picture of their manufacturing plant in Florida (lending some credence to the idea that Centuri manufactured the machines, though I'm still skeptical).

They offered a free service seminar, which he said was pretty good (though they also hit him up to pay the rest of his bill).

 

When his games made only $15-16 a week, he tried to get Leisure Time to take them back or help him get rid of them, they told him they might resell them for him, but only if he signed a statement saying that the games made $40-50 a week.

[astrp3]

Geez, just when I think I've reached the bottom of the barrel, I find out something new.

It appears that there was at least one of these companies that made Potomac and Leisure time look like the Salvation Army by comparison.

In this case, I'm just going to quote the story in its entirety (it's short so I hope the orignal author won't mind).

Note that the term "biz op salesman" was used to refer to companies that ran scams like Leisure Time.

 

Biz Op Salesman Bludgeoned

Mike Shaw

Play Meter, September 1, 1982, p16

 

A business opportunity salesman who quit one firm to work on his own said he was threatened by the principals of that firm and then beaten with a lead pipe the evening those threats were made. Fred Ammond, a Minnesota video game business opportunity salesman. said he received three threatening calls. one each from the president, chief attorney, and owner of a firm he had just quit. The call warned him not to continue selling video business opportunities on his own. (The name of the firm and individuals who allegedly threatened Ammond are withheld pending further police investigation.) The last of the three calls was the most viciously threatening, Ammond said. The firm's owner allegedly called him at approximately 6 p.m. one day in mid-February and told him he better not continue to compete with the firm he had just left. Ammond said his former boss told him he had wiped out other competitors and would do the same to Ammond. ''I'll get you, you son of a ****." Ammond said he was told. "I'm going to take you out. After I break your arms and legs, I'm going to take you out." Ammond said he ignored the warning and left his room at the Ramada Inn located by the Minneapolis airport to conduct interviews that evening within the motel with potential buyers for his videos. "After the session, I went downstairs to eat dinner and have a couple of drinks in the motel lounge," Ammond told Play Meter. "I left the lounge a little after midnight and stopped to buy a newspaper. then stepped into the elevator to head for my room." When the elevator reached the seventh floor and the door opened, Ammond. alone on the elevator, was greeted by a young man with a lead pipe, he said. Ammond said he struggled with the man but was no match for the lead pipe. When he regained consciousness later in the hospital. he had already been through surgery that required more than 100 stitches three layers deep to close the gaping wound above his left eye. Bloomington, Minn., police said their investigation of the incident has become inactive because of the lack of evidence and its limited resources. "It was a setup," said Bloomington police detective Laurila, "but proving it is difficult . There is no corroborating evidence. I doubt if Fred (Ammond) could even identify hi attacker." So. currently. Ammond's attorney, Steven Yasgur of Hoff & Allen in Eden Prairie. Minn., is pressing suit against the Ramada Inn for damages at the highest level Minnesota law allows, "in excess of $50.000." Yasgur said the principals of the firm Ammond accused of being responsible will be joined into the suit "if a link is established by police investigation." Because the firm Ammond accused is located outside Minnesota, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has become involved in the investigation. That fact was confirmed by Laurila, who said that although the FBI does not share the findings of any investigation with the Bloomington police, it continues to request information on the case. The Minneapolis office of the FBI refused to comment on the case.

Edited May 20, 2013 by astrp3

[Video_Invader]

Geez. Keeps getting better doesn't it? LOL

[Tempest]

My god, it sounds a bit like the Mob doesn't it? Actually, I had heard that the Mafia was involved in arcade games back in the day, any truth to that?

[S1500]

When I think of reputable video game companies, I think of "Potomac Mortgage Company". Hilarious. Reminds me of numerous bad MST3K-style movies where the parent company that financed/owned it was of a similar name.

 

Interesting story of cutthroat business tactics, all happening local to me! This would make a great movie.

[Video_Invader]

When I think of reputable video game companies, I think of "Potomac Mortgage Company". Hilarious. Reminds me of numerous bad MST3K-style movies where the parent company that financed/owned it was of a similar name.

 

Interesting story of cutthroat business tactics, all happening local to me! This would make a great movie.

That's a great idea! I wish someone would make a movie about this. I'd buy it. Heck, i love anything historical like that. I like that movie, King of Kong Fistful of quarters.

[onmode-ky]

They also showed him a picture of their manufacturing plant in Florida (lending some credence to the idea that Centuri manufactured the machines, though I'm still skeptical).

 

When I looked into Leisure Time's games earlier, I found them described as hacks of 3 Taito games. Does this mean Centuri (or whoever was making Leisure Time's cabinets) was producing hacks for them? Have you come across anything corroborating or disproving the clone allegations? Well, I suppose we could see if the ROMs are available and runnable by MAME, but those games are kind of obscure and not exactly in demand.

 

Geez, just when I think I've reached the bottom of the barrel, I find out something new.

It appears that there was at least one of these companies that made Potomac and Leisure time look like the Salvation Army by comparison.

 

Hey, don't forget that one company whose founder was a felon who ran off when he got sued and later murdered his wife and got the death sentence! These awful "biz op" guys make it seem like the video game violence controversy should really have been focused on those who sold, not those who played!

 

onmode-ky

[akator]

Fred Ammond, a Minnesota video game business opportunity salesman. said he received three threatening calls. one each from the president, chief attorney, and owner of a firm he had just quit.

 

I had that happen when I quit working at an Apple/Mac "authorized sales and service" business in the 90s. The owner, a crook named Joe, used his lawyer to threaten people all the time when they didn't want to pay after being over-billed.

 

I quit after 2 months when I wasn't paid what I was promised. Fool me once (excuses at the end of the first month), but at the end of the second month it was obvious they were scamming me. A few days after I quit his lawyer called and threatened that I couldn't work with Macs, computers, or "in a related or competing field" for 2 years. I told them good luck and I would take my chances in court with years of previous employment as a college instructor and IT manager against a shady lawyer representing a shady businessman who failed to pay me what I was owed, that I would counter-sue and win.

 

I received an "anonymous" call a few weeks later threatening violence. I said, "Hi Joe, thanks for your call. This call is being recorded. If anything happens to me or my wife, you're the first person the police are coming after." The caller hung up. The following day I called Joe's lawyer, described what happened, and played the recording. He immediately started making excuses about how he didn't really represent Joe, etc., and that he wasn't affiliated. I told him if anything happened to me of my wife, the police would be coming after both him and his client.

 

Thankfully I never heard from either of the crooks again after that.

 

Funny thing, Apple received many complaints about Joe and his business but Apple never revoked his "Apple certification" and he continued screwing Apple and Mac owners for at least another several years.

 

There are shady people everywhere, in every business, in every field. It should be no surprise that arcade manufacturing and distribution attracted its share of crooks. I'm actually surprised we don't hear more horror stories about the arcade industry...

[Video_Invader]

I had that happen when I quit working at an Apple/Mac "authorized sales and service" business in the 90s. The owner, a crook named Joe, used his lawyer to threaten people all the time when they didn't want to pay after being over-billed.

 

I quit after 2 months when I wasn't paid what I was promised. Fool me once (excuses at the end of the first month), but at the end of the second month it was obvious they were scamming me. A few days after I quit his lawyer called and threatened that I couldn't work with Macs, computers, or "in a related or competing field" for 2 years. I told them good luck and I would take my chances in court with years of previous employment as a college instructor and IT manager against a shady lawyer representing a shady businessman who failed to pay me what I was owed, that I would counter-sue and win.

 

I received an "anonymous" call a few weeks later threatening violence. I said, "Hi Joe, thanks for your call. This call is being recorded. If anything happens to me or my wife, you're the first person the police are coming after." The caller hung up. The following day I called Joe's lawyer, described what happened, and played the recording. He immediately started making excuses about how he didn't really represent Joe, etc., and that he wasn't affiliated. I told him if anything happened to me of my wife, the police would be coming after both him and his client.

 

Thankfully I never heard from either of the crooks again after that.

 

Funny thing, Apple received many complaints about Joe and his business but Apple never revoked his "Apple certification" and he continued screwing Apple and Mac owners for at least another several years.

 

There are shady people everywhere, in every business, in every field. It should be no surprise that arcade manufacturing and distribution attracted its share of crooks. I'm actually surprised we don't hear more horror stories about the arcade industry...

I think you scared them off. They talked big until they saw that you weren't backin down. People like Joe all need a good dose of this. They're everywhere.

[astrp3]

My god, it sounds a bit like the Mob doesn't it? Actually, I had heard that the Mafia was involved in arcade games back in the day, any truth to that?

 

There were rumors of mob involvement with various coin-op companies. I don't think it was common but I'm sure it happened.

I had 3 or 4 people I talked tell me they saw things they "can't talk about" or that "scared the hell out of me" but details weren't forthcoming.

The mob was involved with slots at various times (Capone controlled a number of them in Chicago, as did Frank Costello in New York under the guise of his "True Mint" vending company).

The mob also had some involvement with video poker, but I don't know the extent. The New Jersey mob tried to take over SMS (video poker and trivia game manufacturer). They even beat one guy's (an executive at a handful of early video game companies) uncle to death with golf clubs.

 

Al Alcorn tells a story of the early days at Atari when they had their game route. During a meeting in a restaurant, some wise guy pulled out a gun and told him that this was HIS territory (though it sounds like it was mostly bluster).

[Video_Invader]

I'm just Minutes from the Ohio Club where Al Capone hung out frequently. There's even a gangster museum as well. Never been in there tho.

[SoulBlazer]

Plus also the founder of Namco said that the Yakuza tried to front him money for his new business. SInce they are really the Japanese version of the mob, I'd say it counts. Konami also had problems with the Yakuza early in their history.

[onmode-ky]

By the way, astrp3, your blog entry about 1973 still says "50,00" instead of "50,000" coin-op video games. The missing zero was what I was trying to get at earlier in the thread (though I wasn't sure at the time if it were a missing zero or a mispositioned comma).

 

I found

on YouTube, and it really is just Space Invaders upside-down and with replaced graphics. The sound effects are the same, and the attract screen is nearly identical, so it very well could be a hacked ROM running on Taito's own hardware. Not that no one else did that.

 

onmode-ky

[jhd]

There are no reported court decisions about Potomac Mortgage Company's game business, but there was one lawsuit involving Leisure Time that made it to the appellate-level:

 

Cassioppi v. Damico (Supreme Court of Alabama, 1988) 536 So.2d 938

 

"Damico agreed to purchase certain game tables and game machines (hereinafter referred to as “games”) from Leisure Time Electronics, Inc. Leisure Time represented to Damico that if, within 18 months from the date of purchase, the games did not yield a 100% return of the initial investment, they could be returned and Damico would be reimbursed the difference between the initial purchase price and the earnings up to the date of the return of the games. The games did not yield a 100% return within the time promised, and Leisure Time refused to repurchase the games as it had agreed to do. Damico sued Leisure Time, alleging breach of contract and fraud. Subsequently, he amended his complaint to add as defendants Cassioppi, who was president of Leisure Time, and Challenge Electronics, Inc. All assets, equipment, fixtures, and inventory of Leisure Time had been transferred to Cassioppi and Challenge Electronics. All defendants filed a motion to dismiss, with supporting affidavit, which was overruled on January 31, 1984."

 

Leisure Time appears to have been based in Indiana; the company failed to file a defense, and so a default judgement was awarded against them at trial. That decision was upheld on appeal. There is no indication that Damico ever received any money.

 

Edited to add that the full-text of this decision is not available online for free, but it can be accessed via Westlaw.

Edited June 11, 2013 by jhd

[Video_Invader]

The guy I bought this game from calls up yesterday wanting to know if i'll trade it back to him for a complete Galaga upright.

[S1500]

The Damico boys are movin' in on our turf!

[Chuck D. Head]

The guy I bought this game from calls up yesterday wanting to know if i'll trade it back to him for a complete Galaga upright.

Ummm, sooooo have you, by any chance, opened up the cabinet to see if there might be anything interesting inside?? Like bags of white powder, or human remains??

[Video_Invader]

Ummm, sooooo have you, by any chance, opened up the cabinet to see if there might be anything interesting inside?? Like bags of white powder, or human remains??

Nothing that shouldn't be in there

[Video_Invader]

Not sure I want to sell but if I were to sell this, what should I expect for it?

[Cebus Capucinis]

I wouldn't sell, personally. Sounds like he realized what he had only after sale, and wants it back for more now.

[Video_Invader]

I wouldn't sell, personally. Sounds like he realized what he had only after sale, and wants it back for more now.

That's what I was thinking. He wont get it from me. I'm gonna keep it. Curious what it's worth though.

[astrp3]

Man, this thread never seems to die.

 

I mentioned earlier that someone claimed that at least one of these ripoff outfits (Leisure Time Electronics) said their games were made by Centuri.

I was skeptical when I read it, but I've recently been going through Allied Leisure/Centuri's annual/10k reports and confirmed that it's actually true.

 

You can read about it here:

http://allincolorforaquarter.blogspot.com/2013/09/centuriallied-leisure-annual-report.html

[SoulBlazer]

Interesting article.

 

I thought Centuri was owned by/a label of Konami, much like Ultra was in the 80's? Or were there two companies with the same name?

[astrp3]

Interesting article.

 

I thought Centuri was owned by/a label of Konami, much like Ultra was in the 80's? Or were there two companies with the same name?

 

Centuri did have a profitable relationship with Konami and licensed a lot of games from them but I've never heard that Konami ever owned them (unless it was much later).

Allied Leisure was bought by a company owned by Milton and Burton Koffman (I may do a series on Allied/Centuri next. If so, I'll give a lot more details there).

 

Centuri shut down their video game division in 1984 to focus on their other holdings: Outdoor Sports Headquarters, Inc. (hunting and fishing equipment), Virginia Capes Seafood (frozen seafood), and Poloron Outdoor Homes (modular homes - may have gotten the name wrong).