The phonoscope (Nov 1896-Dec 1899)

Vol. II. No. 12 THE PHONOSCOPE 11 TLvnbc flotes First-class blanks are being manufactured in France. The selling price of all standard make horns has been greatly reduced. The Columbia record-making plant will probably be removed to Bridgeport April 1st. Mr. Bettini has many new devices for talkingmachines which will be ready in the near future. Old records are now in great demand by enthusiasts who aim to possess valuable collections. Columbia salesmen are allowed twenty-five per cent of all sales they may make outside of the salesroom. "Perpetual Motion" as played by the Metropolitan Band has met with great success. G. Peluso is the composer. "She Was Happy Till She Met You" is the title of a song with which Dan W. Quinn has met with great success. Mr. Norcross, of the Norcross Phonograph Company, deserves credit for his latest record entitled "The Old Church Organ." Records made on the automatic banjo are surely a frost. They sound so mechanical that customers refuse to purchase them. Fred Hylands has published his "Darky Volunteer" and dedicated it to Vess L. Ossman, "the foremost banjoist in the country." The Edison National Company expect to have ready for the market in six weeks a machine to compete with the Graphophone Grand. Leon F. Douglas, of Polyphone fame, has been east a few days looking after his interests. He reports enormous sales of his invention. With increased capital and enormous sales Messrs. Reed & Dawson are now enabled to offer first-class records of any description at reasonable prices. A Hamburg inventor has devised a penny-in-theslot machine which sells milk and keeps the glasses clean, closing when it is empty. It is to be used especially for schools. The talent of the Columbia Phonograph Company have presented Mr. Vic. H. Emerson with a handsome gold watch. Dan W. Quinn delivered the presentation speech. Cassi, who was the bugler for the Rough Riders during the Spanish war, and who made bugle records for several of the talking-machine companies, has been appointed Lieutenant of the Havana police. The American Graphophone Company has entered suit in the United States Circuit Court against Messrs. Hawthorne & Sheble of 604-6 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, to enjoin an alleged infringement of the Graphophone patents. ' 'Michael Murphy' ' series of records are destined to become very popular; some we have heard are very fine. "Michael Murphy as a Dressmaker" must be heard to be appreciated. This series is originated by Joseph Gannon and sold by the Greater New York Phonograph Company. Arrangements have been made with the Columbia Phonograph Company 'whereby the Polyphone Company secure special records of all the singers and bands now in the exclusive employ of the above company. They are devoid of the usual announcement. , Ed. H. Cahill, who was formerly with the Columbia Company, has, with partners, formed the Interstate Phonograph Company with office in the St. James building. Besides dealing in machines and supplies they will inaugurate the exchange of records system. Harry B. Norman, although new in the business, has made a hit with his "Rolling Mill Kelly" series. His first trial was with the Lyric Phonograph Company ; since then he has made records for several other Phonograph companies, among them the National Phonograph Company. A musical and Phonographic entertainment will be held at the Association Hall, Newark, N. J., February 1, under the auspices of the Phonoscope Publishing Company, for the benefit of the Montgomery Street M. E Mission at which several prominent Phonograph artists have kindly volunteered their services. A. O. Petit, general manager of the Edisonia Company, Newark, N. J., is prepared to furnish everything in the line of talking-machines, records, horns and general supplies, at the shortest notice. Mr. Petit has been engaged in the business for the last twelve years and has established branch stores at Paterson, Plainfield and Bloomfield. Messrs. J. W. Stern & Co., together with their Phonograph department — the Universal Phonograph Company — will occupy their entire five-story building situated at No. 34 East 21st Street, where, with increased facilities and commodious apartments, they invite the trade to "come and take the records off the rack while they are being made," thus insuring them that they are original. "Casey" records made by Mr. Joseph Gannon, are now being placed on the market by the Greater New York Phonograph Company. These records are worthy of special mention being loud and distinct; no collection is complete without a few of these "Casey s." This company has met with great success with their chemically prepared linen fibre diaphragm and adjustable horn crane. Our representative has seen the new five dollar Graphophone. This appears to be only an improved Eagle Graphophone. The discount to wholesalers is but twenty per cent. We do not see why the manufacturers could not have offered the Eagle in its place, with an additional discount to make the net figure which is quoted on this machine, as there is almost no appreciable difference between it and the Eagle model. The President of the Denio Smoke Company, of Rochester, N. Y., Mr. W. L. Denio, was in the city recently. He has succeeded, after long experimenting, in perfecting a new attachment for recording on the Phonograph and Graphophone. It is claimed that records made with this new attachment are the best for volume, the tone being large and full. The experiments in this city have been conducted by a well-known expert in the business. Fire recently damaged the twostory building known as the New Zealand Building. A large portion of the damage was due to the water which was poured into the building while the firemen were extinguishing the flames. One of the stores in this building is occupied as a Phonograph parlor ; the damage to this parlor being estimated at $ [,000. Fortunately, the Norcross Phonograph Company, which occupies half of the second story, escaped without any injury. An enterprising company in Portland, Me., has decided to experiment in the exchanging of records. They intend to exchange old records for new ones of your own selection, allowing you twenty-five cents on your old records. The old records may be played out and weak, but so long as they are not cracked they will be taken in exchange. This idea will enable you to keep up with the times ana have the latest records without having a large number of ones that you do not use because they are out of date. C. M. Campbell, President of the American Parlor Kinetoscope Company, has purchased the buildings and ground at 3,234 and 3,236 Water Street, Georgetown. This company has occupied the premises since last summer. At present the factory is working night and day and employ a large force of employees. An order for 1,500 machines has recently been completed for John Wanamaker, of Philadelphia. Orders at present are so far ahead of the output that they have decided to enlarge the factory. Mr. Leo Lefebvre, the general agent of the well-known house of Pathe Freres, of Paris, has been visiting this country in the interest of his firm and has made his headquarters with Mr. F. M. Prescott, of the Edison Building, New York, and is leaving for France with a good knowledge of the talking-machine and animated picture business as it is conducted in America. Mr. Lefebvre is a very pleasant gentleman to meet and has made a host of acquaintances. We have seen catalogue of Messrs. Pathe Freres, Paris, in which they illustrate and advertise graphophone recorders and reproducers at a list price of ten francs each, or $1.90. We understand that they allow a liberal discount from this list price to jobbers. As we all know, the price of these articles in this country is $5.00 list each. This shows the enormous profit in these articles, and what the price may be some day when there is no patent restriction in the United States. Being a thorough business man but not adapted to the Phonograph business, Mr. Stephen Giles has decided to devote his time to the fruit business. Mr. ArthurS. Alexander and Mr. A. Allen Stafford have purchased his stock in the Excelsior Phonograph Company and will hereafter manage affairs for the above concern. Mr. Alexander and Mr. Stafford started business on a small scale having a small counter in a drug store in Brooklyn, working their way up gradually, opening two elaborate stores on Fulton Street, Brooklyn. They have concluded that it is cheaper to make their own records, hence their latest venture. There is on exhibition in the office of Mr. F. M. Prescott a photograph of a new animated picture machine, which is about to appear on the market. This machine is without spool bank or any receptacle for endless film. With the advance of the animated picture business there is less call for a repetition of films, the audience desiring to see new films. This new machine has reels which have a capacity of 2,000 feet, more than enough for one exhibition. We will give to our readers in the next issue an illustration of this machine, with a fuller description and its advantages over the present types. Our representative has seen in the show room of Mr. F. M. Prescott in the Edison Building, New York, what is probably the largest brass horn ever made for Phonogr phic purposes. The horn is of polished brass and measures eighty-four inches from tip to mouth. The diameter of the bell is forty inches. It requires two men to carry this immense horn. Mr. Prescott has informed us that he had this horn made up especially for use with the Graphophone Grand at Koster & Bial's Music Hall, New York, where he has just closed an engagement for a limited time for the Graphophone Grand. Through the kindness of Mr. Prescott this machine and horn will also be used in the Musical and Phonographic Entertainment to be given under the auspices of the Phonoscope Publishing Company for the benefit of the M. E. Church, Montgomery Street, Newark, N. J. A special stand has been devised for this enormous horn, made of oneinch pipe.