'Sopranos' sure makes a mean pinball

The first entirely New Jersey-themed pinball machine has the makings of a hit. Make that a mob hit.

"The Sopranos" pinball machine, a spinoff of the popular HBO drama, will be available next month, and already pre-orders are pouring in to pinball dealers and distributors.

"I got an order from a guy in Germany who never heard of 'The Sopranos' but played the game at a trade show there and loved it," said Jack Guarnieri, owner of Lakewood-based PinballSales.com.

"We've had interest from customers in Croatia," said Gary Stern, owner of Melrose Park, Ill.-based Stern Pinball, the game's manufacturer. "They're going to put the machines in bars and restaurants over there."

The game, like the show, is colorful, comical, crazed and a little risqué. The back and side panels show off the cast -- Tony, Carmela, Paulie Walnuts, Silvio, Uncle Junior, Chris and others. The playing surface features signs for the Meadowlands, a replica Pulaski Skyway, two miniature go-go dancers from the Bada Bing, a talking fish (a detail from a Season Two episode involving Big Pussy), and a tractor-trailer marked CHASE (a reference to show creator David Chase). Rack up points, advance up the family ladder -- associate, soldier, acting capo, capo, consigliere, underboss. There's also a space labeled "RIP." Landing on that can't be a good thing.

"It's really very cool, very fun," said Stern, speaking on a cell phone from London, where he was attending a trade show.

"It's going to be a hit -- or else," Guarnieri chuckled.

The pinball game retails for $4,199 and will be available through PinballSales.com and other dealers.

Several of the show's stars, including Steve Van Zandt (Silvio), Lorraine Bracco (Dr. Melfi), Vincent Pastore (Big Pussy), Edie Falco (Carmela) and Dominic Chianese (Uncle Junior) recorded lines from the show for the pinball machine. And, naturally, you hear the voice of Tony (James Gandolfini).

"The machine says stuff like 'What are you looking at?' " Guarnieri said.

It's too early to tell how successful the game will be, but Guarnieri has already taken orders from several well-heeled customers, including the creator of one of television's most popular dramas and Mark Tremonti, co-founder of the band Creed. Others who have pre-ordered the game from Guarnieri include a chiropractor in Franklin Lakes, a game collector in Mendham, an investment banker in Manalapan, plus a country music station deejay in Tennessee, the president of a car dealership in Florida and the owner of a milk company in Tulare, Calif.

"The game has a wonderful quality in that it speaks to both regional and international audiences," said Tim Ferrante, publisher of GameRoom Magazine, devoted to home game room enthusiasts. " 'The Sopranos' is bathed in all things New Jersey. For all of us who go into a 'Sopranos' withdrawal between seasons, the pinball machine is like having our own Dr. Melfi."

There are an estimated 60,000 pinball machines in homes around the country, according to Guarnieri. Most popular pinball machine of all time: The Addams Family pinball made by Bally in the early 1990s. About 22,000 units were built.

A "Sopranos" pinball will be raffled off at a benefit at the Stress Factory in New Brunswick sometime in March. The date has yet to be determined. Several cast members are expected to attend the event, to benefit a New Jersey charity.

"The Sopranos" is "the first pinball machine designed for New Jersey," according to Guarnieri. Other pinball machines may have included elements of the state, but "The Sopranos" is the first to be entirely dedicated to New Jersey, albeit a skewed version of it.

"It's not Garden State Pinball, we're not talking blueberries here," he said laughing. "It is New Jersey, though."