Clarence Mabe, originally a high school basketball coach, founded S&M Amusements based in Johnson City, Tennessee in 1978. The story goes that Clarence was noticing that many of his student athletes were skipping classes, and ever the curious individual, Clarence discovered that they were going to play a Space Invaders game at a local gas station. Being entrepreneurially minded, Clarence himself began purchasing games and placing them in local convenience stores.

While working full-time as a schoolteacher, Clarence continued to grow the business over the next several years. His first big break came in the form of a roadside attraction that he owned in 1981, located in Cherokee, NC.

In 1988 Clarence had the opportunity to partner with and operate the game room at Rockin Raceway, a 10,000-square-foot game room connected to a go-kart racetrack.

Switching from route operations to running a game room came natural to Clarence, who emphasized creating a "wow" experience for guests through theming and customer service. Clarence is famous for his quote, “Anyone can put games in a room and call it an arcade. But we create an experience for our guests.”

Clarence’s company, S&M Amusements to this day has a significant arcade route business in restaurants, grocery stores, and convenience stores, focusing mainly on crane games across Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, and North Carolina.

Clarence Mabe is also credited with creating several game titles licensed by various factories. Some of these games include:

Toss Em
Alley Cat
Basket Fever

In addition to these games, Clarence also had a pivotal role in developing the Ticket Time Crane with SMART industries.

Collaborating with Smart Industries owner Jeff Smart, they developed the Ticket Time crane, which became a sensation in the market. Clarence Mabe later commented on the RFID version of Ticket Time, stating it was one of the smartest moves in the industry. He emphasized the uniqueness of repackaging a common concept (cranes) and making it immensely popular.

In 2017, Jeff Smart introduced the idea of a larger prize, leading to the creation of the Taj Mahal-themed giant crane with 12” rings as prizes. This crane was first tested at one of Clarence Mabe’s locations in Tennessee, where it exceeded expectations, grossing $160,000 in six months.

Mabe highlighted the importance of players seeing value in the prizes, perceiving a genuine chance of winning, and the actual experience of winning.

“First of all, you have to know why people play a crane and that’s because they get to see something in there of value. Second, they have to perceive that they can win it. Third is that winners make players. Put those three together and you’ve got a winner.”

In 2013 Clarence, Alongside his sons, Bucky and Rusty, merged their efforts to form FACE Amusement. This year also saw the opening of two new FECs in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee – Arcade City and Big Top Arcade.

In 2017 the company expanded to Branson, adding a downhill coaster alongside a new Arcade City location.

2019 saw another great period of expansion for the company as FACE launched LuLu’s Beach Arcade in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

FACE jumped into the hospitality industry in 2020 with the opening of Guy Fieri’s Kitchen and Bar. In 2021 FACE expanded the Guy Fieri portfolio with two Chicken Guy! Restaurants.

In 2022, FACE’s flagship location, Downtown Flavortown, opened in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. This is the first of a planned series of FECs under the Flavortown name.

In conclusion, Clarence Mabe has made significant contributions to the attractions industry, from innovative game creations to the establishment and expansion of entertainment centers. His legacy, carried forward by his sons, Bucky and Rusty, continues to shape the industry.

AAMA INDUSTRY HALL OF FAME

Nomination Details

2024 INDUCTEES

Al Alcorn

Rick Kirby

Lou Nicastro

Golden Tee

Bill Cravens

Clarence Mabe

Ed Pellegrini

Pong

Dick Hawkins

Millie McCarthy

Frank Seninsky

Don Hesch

Jorge Leonardo Mochkovsky

Mike Stroll

CLASS OF 2023

Eddie Adlum

Ralph Coppola

Lynn Durant

Eugene Jarvis

Chuck Milhem

Bill O'Donnel Sr.

JP Seeburg

Harry Williams

Skee Ball

Bert Betti

Buster Corley

Earl Feddick

Joe Kaminkow

George Miller

Joe Robbins

Malcom Steinberg

Marcine Wolverton

Space Invaders

Martin Bromley

Dave Corriveau

David Gottlieb

Michael Kogan

Jules Millman

David Rockola

Gary Stern

Donkey Kong

Touchtunes Juke Box

Nolan Bushnell

Richard Ditton

Elaine Hodgson

Raymond Maloney

Masaya Nakamura

Hank Ross

Sam Stern

Pac-Man

Wurlitzer 1015

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