Social Effect
It has strong appeal to individuals in their youth because it offers a display of strength. Young boys use the high striker to determine who among them is the strongest. More often than not, high strikers are used to impress other people.
In the 1930s, some High Striker operators preyed on young men and rigged (or fixed) the High Striker unit to prevent anyone, no matter how strong, from striking the bell. They usually picked a small man to demonstrate how easy it was to swing the mallet and impact the arm, ringing the bell. Then, when a stronger person (usually a young man in his late teens and early 20s) attempted, they failed. Players attempted the game repeatedly to avoid humiliation. Eventually, the operator would allow that player to ring the bell so as to not discourage others from attempting. Popular Mechanics in a 1935 article revealed this secret, and, since then, most High Striker operators have ceased fixing their units.
Read more about this topic: High Striker
Famous quotes containing the words social and/or effect:
“The value of a family is that it cushions and protects while the individual is learning ways of coping. And a supportive social system provides the same kind of cushioning for the family as a whole.”
—Michael W. Yogman, and T. Berry Brazelton (20th century)
“An actor must communicate his author’s given message—comedy, tragedy, serio- comedy; then comes his unique moment, as he is confronted by the looked-for, yet at times unexpected, reaction of the audience. This split second is his; he is in command of his medium; the effect vanishes into thin air; but that moment has a power all its own and, like power in any form, is stimulating and alluring.”
—Eleanor Robson Belmont (1878–1979)