Hello fellow phono enthusiasts!

My name is Benedetta. I am a female collector, probably the only one..... My fascination began with talking dolls and toys, I have always loved them, and collected and still collect all types. But my favorites were always the phonograph dolls. I learned to restore these fascinating marvels when I was about 11 or 12 years old, so if you have an Ozen toy or any other talker, count on me to tell you just how to bring it to life! My addiction and fascination quiclky spread to other children's machines, and eventually all types of "talking machines", as I like to call even the retro ones. I was raised listing to children's records, even though I was a nineties child. I still have my first player, and the old children's records in mint condition. The player wasn't exactly mine, it was my parent's, but it's mine now, as they moved up the technology ladder. I, unlike most people my age, still listen to records and cassettes. Good old' vinyl will never die! Anyway I hope I am welcomed to your little community

Thanks,
Benedetta

Hi Benedetta:

Welcome to Phonoland. As you can see, there are a number of different message boards covering all eras of sound reproduction, from the early crank models to more modern stereos and radios and jukeboxes.

We haven't really had many discussions about children's phonographs or records, though there was a post, awhile back, about the Berliner talking doll --

click --> viewtopic.php?f=7&t=3519

As with talking dolls, children's phonographs/gramophones and records go back to the dawn of the industry. The first Berliner Gramophones, in fact, were sold as toys --

http://objectwiki.sciencemuseum.org.uk/ ... erman.html
(This was at a time when the Edison Phonographs and Graphophones cylinder machines were marketed almost exclusively as business dictation devices. )

If you have any photos or videos of your collection you'd like to share, feel free to post them. Also, if you have any questions, ask away...

Joe

Wow, the Berliner toy Gramophone looks a lot like the mechanism for the Kammer & Reinhardt Talking Doll! I wonder if it can play her records.....

This was one of the reasons I wanted a Collaro Conquest. Mine not only plays my 6" Golden, Spear, and Disneyland records, it changes a stack of them automatically. It also changes a couple of German 8" polka records I have.

The Collaro Conquest is an amazing changer and performs well when well maintained. The Shure M 44-E really improves it too. I love this old mechanism and gained my love and understanding of Collaro changers maintaining and servicing Magnavox consoles (I love a good Maggie console, especially better tube and Astro-Sonics)