Wizard!, released in May 1975, was Bally's highest production flipper game to that date with over 10,000 units produced. The game comes at the tail end of Bally's electromechanical production schedule, and sets the stage for the company's solid state success in the years to follow. Widely regarded as one of the first proper licensed games in pinball history, Wizard! features the likenesses of Ann Margret and Roger Daltrey, stars of the 1976 Ken Russell film Tommy (a screen adaptation of the Who's rock opera of the same name). Other than its classic theme, Wizard! is notable as being the first game to showcase playfield “flip flags”, a feature used on only a handful of other Bally games.

Based on Pinside's game archive for the 1975 Bally Wizard! pinball machine, the game exists in three slightly different versions due to production changes: 

• Sample Games: These featured a short-lived "upside-down-frame" on the backbox and used black and red cabinet colors.

• Early Production: These adopted the more standard blue and red cabinet colors.

• Last Production Run: These featured updated apron artwork that included the big "BALLY" logo. 

Key Features of the 1975 Bally Wizard!

• Theme: Based on the 1975 film adaptation of The Who's Tommy.

• Gameplay: Known for its "flag" system where shots pass through lanes to activate four different flags that light up bonus features and the center target.

• Type: It is a 4-player electromechanical (EM) machine.

• Production: Approximately 10,500 units were produced. 

Note: Some online discussions may confuse this 1975 machine with other "Wizard" themed pinball machines (such as the 2015 Stern KISS machine which has a "Wizard" mode or later Stern/Jersey Jack games).