A fruit machine is a coin-operated gambling machine.
In 1895 an American, H.S. Mills, installed an early version at many of his lemonade stands. They were also known as ‘One-armed Bandits’ or ‘Kalamazoos’.
Today’s machines have a number of dials printed with symbols. These are spun when a coin is inserted into the machine. If a certain combination of symbols is achieved, then a prize is won. The odds are, of course, against the player, but small wins are not difficult to achieve.
