Great photo of Edison - Look!

[Jerry B.]

We had our little Sounds of Nostalgia phonograph sale last weekend and one of the collectors brought this photo. It was too cool to pass up so I bought it. On the lower left is says "@T.A.E / 8-9-17". On the back it says "Copyrighted by Thomas A. Edison". The majority of the people appear to be wearing a lapel pin of some sort. Besides Edison, the focal points of the photo seem to be the business phonograph and the tinfoil machine. Thanks to Charlie Hummel, the man to the right side of tinfoil machine is Francis Yehl a long time worker from Menlo Park. Charlie said he died the same day as Edison or the next day. Jerry Blais

[Brad]

Wow, all those folks are not at all phased by the flaming plasma ball floating over them. Edison must have run a very rigid shop!

Jerry, If you take the picture at a slight angle to the photo, the reflection of the flash will be greatly reduced if not if eliminated.

[phonogfp]

The venerable fellow sitting to the right of the tinfoil phonograph is indeed Francis Jehl (note the spelling), a man instrumental in helping Edison develop the incandescent light.

This tinfoil phonograph was specially constructed for the occasion of an Ediphone Dealers Convention in August 1917. (Rene Rondeau's informative book, Tinfoil Phonographs, tells all about this machine on pages 110-111.) It's a curious artifact, constructed nearly 40 years after all the other Edison tinfoil phonographs!

Cool photo, Jerry!

George P.

[EdiBrunsVic]

Yes, it is a great photo. Thanks for sharing it. I checked the Wikipedia website and noticed that Thomas Edison's assistant, Francis Jehl, was born on September 6, 1860 and died on February 11, 1941.

[Lenoirstreetguy]

Might the gent on the right be Fred Ott? In 1917 I think Jehl was still in Europe, was he not?

Jim

[Starkton]

Below is a photo taken on August 12, 1927 at the meeting of the Ediphone Distributors Association in honour of the 50th anniversary of the phonograph. The dealer with his arms crossed standing to the right of Edison doesn't look so "sour-faced" as in the cut-out Rene shows in his book. I especially like his white hat.

Isn't it remarkable that the same table as in 1917 is used as phonograph stand?!

[TinfoilPhono]

I don't think that's Francis Jehl to the right. In pictures and movies taken of him in the 1930s he was a taller and far more robust looking man that the person in the photo. (Also bald!)

Francis Jehl in an original 5x7 photo in my collection, with autograph:



Screen capture from a movie made at the Ford Museum in the 1930s where Jehl worked in the Menlo Park laboratory reconstruction up until his death in 1941:



The original film can be viewed here: http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=28146

The Bergmann tinfoil in the film is still used for exhibitions at the Menlo lab today.

[phonogfp]

Gosh Rene - I think you're right! When Jerry's photo is enlarged, you can see some sort of mole on the left side of the nose (his right side), and at the top of his forehead just to the left of midline. The
mustaches are different too.

George P.

[TinfoilPhono]

I didn't even notice that Jerry's picture could be enlarged, and significantly so. There's no question at all in my mind that these are two completely different people. I don't know who is in Jerry's picture but I am willing to state categorically that it is most definitely not Jehl. The man in the picture is very old in 1917; twenty years later when the picture and film of Jehl were made he would have been downright ancient. Jehl was in remarkably good form in his late years.

[Starkton]

Very nice photo of Jehl!

The man sitting next to the phonograph is in fact John F. Ott, the brother of Fred Ott. John Ott died on October 19, 1931, aged 81, on learning of the death of his friend Edison one day before. Confined to a wheelchair in later years he looks much more frail than Edison. Below is another photo with him and Edison in a stylish white suit and freshly-shined shoes.