The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

phonogfp wrote:Very nice! I seem to recall bidding on one just like this on eBay several years ago... Are you the guy who broke my heart? That's a great item!

George P.

No, I was the one. But didn't I more than compensate this by letting you have the United States Talking Machine Co. hand-wound gramophone quite cheaply. I see you have nicely completed and displayed it.

The (autograph) collector from whom I got it told me all about the members of congress on the picture. Unfortunately, I mislaid his mail.

No, I was the one. But didn't I more than compensate this by letting you have the United States Talking Machine Co. hand-wound gramophone quite cheaply. I see you have nicely completed and displayed it.

Well, my Berliner friend - I didn't know you are "Starkton!" Good to hear from you! ...And yes - I forgive you...

George P.

phonogfp wrote:Well, my Berliner friend - I didn't know you are "Starkton!" Good to hear from you! ...And yes - I forgive you...

George,

He changed names once at our old board; I do not know if this might lend itself to a bit of confusion. If I remember correctly, he was originally using the user name ‘gramm’. (And my apologies if my memory is incorrect. After cutting out that avatar, it is hard for me to associate any user name other than ‘Starkton’.)

These forums and eBay can make the world seem like such a small place at times, I think. And it’s a great thing to be able to converse with collectors all over the world.

We just really need a Japanese member to help me with the text in the second Asian advertisement that I posted. I’ve played with trying to look up the kanji in the first half of that line (I have the second half after the logo), but I’m terrible at looking up kanji if I don’t know how it’s read.

I may have to try to track down one of my friends that has studied the language more than I have.

— MordEth

I changed names quite frequently on the "other board" for fun.

Unfortunately, after ebay changed rules, it is impossible to detect a collector's friend by his "nome de guerre".

Attached is a picture of the Edison exhibit at Chicago 1893.

Starkton wrote:I changed names quite frequently on the "other board" for fun.

Unfortunately, after ebay changed rules, it is impossible to detect a collector's friend by his "nome de guerre".

Starkton,

I’ve noticed that, as well—it is unfortunate that you cannot tell whether or not you are bidding against your friends now.

Starkton wrote:Attached is a picture of the Edison exhibit at Chicago 1893.

Thanks for sharing that with us! Going to a trade show back then must have been a lot more exciting than it is today.

Because I have had Photoshop open too long (and am playing with other images in it), here is that image after a touch of color correction, with the eBay image hosting logo removed:

— MordEth

MordEth wrote: Did anyone ever manage to take a picture of him where he looked happy (after he was out of his childhood)? He almost smiled, as a young boy.

— MordEth

I recently saw color footage of him at a garden party with George Eastman and guests. Lots of close ups of him smoking, and smoking, and smoking, and he cracks a smile or two. Honestly, if you didn't know who he was you'd put him down as an affable old hick- the sort who'd always be looking over your shoulder saying: "No Sir, they didn't do it that way when I was a boy". (Then again, he did go around talking like that....)

If we're still allowed to guess the identities of the people in the photo, I would suppose that the woman on the right (in the back) is Mrs. Potter Palmer. She resembles photos I've seen of her, though I think Mrs. Palmer was a little stouter, and she was the president of the Board of Lady Managers for the Fair.

By all means, if you think you know who someone is in that photo, feel free to share that information with us.

— MordEth

The history around the Columbian Expostion is fascinating. You can get a good overview here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World's_Co ... Exposition

"The Devil In The White City" by Erik Larson not only chronicals the history, development and construction of the Exhibition, but follows the exploits of America's version of Jack the Ripper who killed dozens of young women who stayed at his boarding houses.

Dave

Wikipedia has a lot of great images, including these two (click either image for a slightly larger version):

(World's Fair Tesla presentation)



(Ticket for ‘Chicago Day’ at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition.)

— MordEth