Opened: 197_
HISTORY & INFO
The Patio Gardens was built in 1954 to be used as a concert venue. Many big name artists performed there. Concerts were no longer held there after 1968 after which, the building was converted into the Roller Skating Rink. At some point in the 1970s, the Penny Arcade took the place of the Roller Skating Rink. As video games became more popular, the older Penny Arcade games were replaced and the name was changed to Game Time.
MEMORIES
Here's what Mike McAllister remembers about the Penny Arcade:
"I remember when I was about 7 years old back in 1975, or maybe even as early as '74, I was playing games in the Penny Arcade and the entire room was full of old style arcade games and pinball machines but no roller skating rink existed at that time."
And Robert Johnson had this to say:
"In the 1970’s the Penny Arcade was really cool. It's really too bad that they updated it into Game Time because it would be extremely cool today if they had kept it vintage (hindsight is 20/20). The arcade had several of the drop 'claw' machines. They had several different types of those. It also had a bunch of machines that would print out cards that you could keep as souvenirs. Not really the gypsy woman type (although they had those as well). These were more like a vending machine and some would have pictures of pretty girls, some with guys, some with jokes. The back half of the arcade had many pinball machines and air hockey."
Thanks to Mike McAllister for help with information on the Penny Arcade.
