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Gabeola


fmlondon

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At the 1915 World's Fair, The Gable Automatic Entertainer, the first juke box, was acclaimed.  Also acclaimed was a home version, the Gabeola.  It was said to produce the finest sound of any talking machine.  And, it automatically changed needles after every playing.  It sounds extraordinary!  Supposedly, they went on sale in 1917.  I have never seen one.  I have never seen a photograph of one.  Does anyone know anything about them?  Do any survive?

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I have seen two examples of the The Gable Automatic Entertainer.

 

One was recently auctioned at the Stanton Spring 2021 Auction and can be seen as lot 405 in the PDF Catalog currently on Stanton's site:

 

Stanton Spring 2021 Auction Catalog

 

The other is in the Sanfilippo Collection and featured on page 136 (3-100) of Discovering Antique Phonographs by Fabrizio & Paul

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I have never seen one of these, but it is a completely amazing machine....  Imagine what it took to design that needle changer.

Screen Shot 2021-09-25 at 7.23.38 PM.png

Edited by CurtA
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The gentleman who invented it designed it in 1906.  He gave his first three away to friends in 1905, and it used a diamond needle.  However, it quickly ruined records, and by working with it, he determined that the steel needles used by Victor were the best, but should only be used for one record.  So, he designed the needle feeder.  The man was a mechanical genius!  I only wish I could track down one of his home models.

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