John Popadiuk, also known as J-Pop, created some of the most interesting and whimsical playfield designs of the 1990s. He went from a god tier Bally-Williams designer to a start-up pinball company owner and finally to a pinball pariah. John once described his journey as “a long tale of woe in some cases, but also tales of glory in others.”
His name was once included with other Pinball Legends but in 2022 J-Pop had been reduced to a pinball leper. People would often say ‘What could J-Pop have done with Bally-Williams had never closed’? Now the question most likely heard is ‘Where did it all go wrong?’ Does J-Pop deserve all the criticism and abuse, which has sullied his legacy?
This month, we go Down the Rabbit Hole With John Popadiuk