(Outdated Post—see link)
Posted: Thu Mar 21, 2013 5:40 pm
This thread is outdated and has been replaced.
The new thread regarding the Player-Tone Talking Machine Company can be found here.
Thank You
My first phonograph was a Player-Tone, which sparked my curiosity in the company.
Below is the information I discovered when researching the company, and the resources where that information was found. Feel free to post, especially if you own a Player-Tone Phonograph.
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The Player-Tone Talking Machine Company; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
-Established:
The Player-Tone Talking Machine Company was established in September 1919 by Mr. Goldsmith of the Goldsmith Furniture Company and Railroad Sales Company.
-Location:
Player-Tone’s factory and sales room was located at 967 Liberty Avenue; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Player-Tone phonographs were sold at various furniture stores in the Pittsburgh area, a list of those stores includes but is not limited to: (as of 1919)
---Taylor Bros, 942 Penn Ave.
---A.Hamburger, 927 Penn Ave.
---The Household, 908 Penn Ave.
---Simon Solof & Son, 2000 Carson St., South Side
---Hahn Furniture Co. 6285 Frankstown Ave, E.E
---Goldenson Furniture Co., 1214 Carson St., S, S
---Kings Furniture Store, 223 Federal St., North Side
---Blum Furniture Co., 954 Penn Ave.
---Superior Music Shop, Superior & California. Ave., N.S.
In March, 1923 Player-Tone established a large retail store at 632 Grant Street along with United Furniture Factories.
-Products:
Player-Tone manufactured high grade mechanical phonographs of quality construction. The company specialized in the furniture aspect of construction, ordering their mechanical parts from phonograph suppliers. The company purchased most (possibly all) of their mechanics from the ‘Otto Heineman Phonograph Supply Company’ at 25 West 54th Street, New York. One of Player-Tone’s advertised features was its tone arm, a Heineman Tone Arm No.11 used on the floor models which featured a pivoting reproducer for playing vertical and lateral cut records. Player-Tones came in a variety of wood types, from golden oak to mahogany. Decorative ‘wood carvings’ on the phonographs were made of molded resin, which simulated fine wood carvings. The large floor model phonographs are made with wood veneers, with solid wood legs.
The Player-Tone models ranged in price from $95 to $250 (accounting for inflation, those prices are equivalent to ~$1,076 to $2,830)
-Company slogans:
“It’s simply great” “World’s Greatest Phonograph”
-Company’s purchase by Sig Hahn:
In 1926, Sig Hahn bought out the Player-Tone Talking Machine Company and liquidated its current stock in a large sale.
-Company fate:
It is unknown exactly what happened to the Player-Tone Company; accumulated research reveals the following possibility:
The company likely closed down in the early 1930s after the stock market crash and a devastating warehouse fire. A warehouse fire on December 11, 1930 destroyed $15,000 of inventory; this is equal to $203,790 dollars today. It appears that the company was already struggling before the fire due to a listed ad for their company truck “Selling cheap for want of use”.-(The Pittsburgh Press/Page 39/March 9,1930) No information on the company has surfaced post 1930, increasing the probability that the company closed down in the early 30s.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following resources were used to establish the information on this post.
Information format: (Paper or Magazine Title/Page #/Year of publication)
-Listed in order by date:
(The Music Trade Review/Page 33/September 28, 1918)
(The Music Trade Review/Page 53/September 28, 1918)
(The Pittsburgh Press/Page 34/September 11, 1919)
(The Grand Rapids Furniture Record/Page 211/October, 1919)
(The Pittsburgh Press/Page 48-49/November 5, 1919)
(The Pittsburgh Press/Page 68/November 30, 1919)
(The Washington Reported/Page 15/December 31, 1919)
(The Crawfordsville Review/Page 6/July 6, 1920)
(Reading Eagle/Page 12/August 11, 1920)
(Presto/Page 17/March 31, 1923)
(Credit Memo Stationary/1 of 1/Jun 17, 1924)
(The Pittsburgh Press/Page 39/March 9, 1930)
(The Pittsburgh Press/Page 1/December 11, 1930)
The new thread regarding the Player-Tone Talking Machine Company can be found here.
Thank You
My first phonograph was a Player-Tone, which sparked my curiosity in the company.
Below is the information I discovered when researching the company, and the resources where that information was found. Feel free to post, especially if you own a Player-Tone Phonograph.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Player-Tone Talking Machine Company; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
-Established:
The Player-Tone Talking Machine Company was established in September 1919 by Mr. Goldsmith of the Goldsmith Furniture Company and Railroad Sales Company.
-Location:
Player-Tone’s factory and sales room was located at 967 Liberty Avenue; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Player-Tone phonographs were sold at various furniture stores in the Pittsburgh area, a list of those stores includes but is not limited to: (as of 1919)
---Taylor Bros, 942 Penn Ave.
---A.Hamburger, 927 Penn Ave.
---The Household, 908 Penn Ave.
---Simon Solof & Son, 2000 Carson St., South Side
---Hahn Furniture Co. 6285 Frankstown Ave, E.E
---Goldenson Furniture Co., 1214 Carson St., S, S
---Kings Furniture Store, 223 Federal St., North Side
---Blum Furniture Co., 954 Penn Ave.
---Superior Music Shop, Superior & California. Ave., N.S.
In March, 1923 Player-Tone established a large retail store at 632 Grant Street along with United Furniture Factories.
-Products:
Player-Tone manufactured high grade mechanical phonographs of quality construction. The company specialized in the furniture aspect of construction, ordering their mechanical parts from phonograph suppliers. The company purchased most (possibly all) of their mechanics from the ‘Otto Heineman Phonograph Supply Company’ at 25 West 54th Street, New York. One of Player-Tone’s advertised features was its tone arm, a Heineman Tone Arm No.11 used on the floor models which featured a pivoting reproducer for playing vertical and lateral cut records. Player-Tones came in a variety of wood types, from golden oak to mahogany. Decorative ‘wood carvings’ on the phonographs were made of molded resin, which simulated fine wood carvings. The large floor model phonographs are made with wood veneers, with solid wood legs.
The Player-Tone models ranged in price from $95 to $250 (accounting for inflation, those prices are equivalent to ~$1,076 to $2,830)
-Company slogans:
“It’s simply great” “World’s Greatest Phonograph”
-Company’s purchase by Sig Hahn:
In 1926, Sig Hahn bought out the Player-Tone Talking Machine Company and liquidated its current stock in a large sale.
-Company fate:
It is unknown exactly what happened to the Player-Tone Company; accumulated research reveals the following possibility:
The company likely closed down in the early 1930s after the stock market crash and a devastating warehouse fire. A warehouse fire on December 11, 1930 destroyed $15,000 of inventory; this is equal to $203,790 dollars today. It appears that the company was already struggling before the fire due to a listed ad for their company truck “Selling cheap for want of use”.-(The Pittsburgh Press/Page 39/March 9,1930) No information on the company has surfaced post 1930, increasing the probability that the company closed down in the early 30s.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following resources were used to establish the information on this post.
Information format: (Paper or Magazine Title/Page #/Year of publication)
-Listed in order by date:
(The Music Trade Review/Page 33/September 28, 1918)
(The Music Trade Review/Page 53/September 28, 1918)
(The Pittsburgh Press/Page 34/September 11, 1919)
(The Grand Rapids Furniture Record/Page 211/October, 1919)
(The Pittsburgh Press/Page 48-49/November 5, 1919)
(The Pittsburgh Press/Page 68/November 30, 1919)
(The Washington Reported/Page 15/December 31, 1919)
(The Crawfordsville Review/Page 6/July 6, 1920)
(Reading Eagle/Page 12/August 11, 1920)
(Presto/Page 17/March 31, 1923)
(Credit Memo Stationary/1 of 1/Jun 17, 1924)
(The Pittsburgh Press/Page 39/March 9, 1930)
(The Pittsburgh Press/Page 1/December 11, 1930)
