Around Northern
Colifornio
By DOROTHY PETSCH
Activity on Coin Machine Row during
May and June fluctuated between high
peaks of s elling and straight stretches
where jobbers considered barking hot
dogs at the Fair. There seemed a gen-
eral lack of consistency in the whole
affair. Weeks when games were going
hot, phonograph jobbers complained
that no operators ventured through
their portals and the same tune was
whistled through clenched teeth by the
games men shortly after. Through ii all,
operators agreed that they were doing
a swell business. None seems to know
the answer, and so it's blamed on the
Administration.
The Jack R. Moore office reports a big
demand for Chevron, Double Feature,
and Victory, all new Bally games the
past month. The Bally Beverage Vendor
has made its appearance in several
splendid locations about town this
month. Most interest has been created
in its Embassy Theater location-the
mop and broom closet. Wright and Ellis
transformed into one of the smartest
automats in town.
Believe it or not, the Laymons' have
made an airplane trip! We don 't know
just what this proves but maybe you
can supply the answer. In San Fran-
cisco they planned to stay two days,
take in the Fair, and visit the Jack R.
Moore office where Johnny is getting in
trim for his role as official greeter of
World Fair visiting coinmen. They were
shown such a good time that they
stayed six days and not only did the
Fair but every night spot in town.
The new Wolf Sales phonograph cab-
inet has become a hit of the month in
Middle Western, Eastern, and Southern
states confesses Wolf Reiwitz, owner
and manufacturer. In fact business has
been so brisk for him that every night
this month he has worked until mid-
night. Not one sample cabinet sent out
has failed to bring in a sizeable order.
Used phonographs have had a good
run as a result of the activity in cab-
inets, for Wolf has found that most ord-
ers for cabinets are accompanied by
requests for music, too. May proved to
be the best month this year for exports
with close to ten thousand dollars worth
of games and music shipped to foreign
ports. Corrado Massagi and Sherman
Olds, Jr. , were added to the force in
order to speed up work in the shipping
department.
Art Brant, formerly associated with
the Wolf Sales force and now located in
Melbourne, reports business is excellent
in Australia and New Zealand. In the
longest single telephone conversation
Wolf has ever held-eighteen minutes
-Art placed an extensive order for
games and music and managed to give
views on weather, health, business,
politics, and pleasure, all of which seem
to be very favorable.
May brought to San Francisco the
semi-annual open house at the E. T.
Mape Company when the new Seeburg
phonographs, Classic and Vogue, were
shown to over one hundred fifty opera-
tors from Northern California. Held in
conjunction with the regular meeting of
the Automatic Music Merchandising
Association, Inc., it attracted seventy-
two San Francisco and East Bay music
men and close to eighty ops from Sac-
Wurlitzer employees gather at North Tonawanda for Fifth Annual Inter-Company
Bowling Banquet. Thirty-two teams 'took part in the 1939 tournameut.
ramento, Stockton, Fresno, Salinas, Mon-
terey, and the Peninsula. Festivities
lasted from ten in the morning until
midnight with the phonographs sharing
honors with the bar and smoegaasbord
set up in the back of the Mape head-
quarters.
If there is any doubt as to the stand-
ing of the phonograph business this
month the Mapes assure you it's all wet.
1800 phonographs were sold by them in
this state during 1938 and sales are 38%
higher this year than last. Who says
conditions are bad?
Furthering the prettying-up campaign
at Advance Automatic Lou Welcher has
this month installed private offices for
each of his sales force with inter-office
communication linking each. The third
floor has been fixed up as a penthouse
for secretary Estelle Cyr while the
second floor has been converted into
super-conference rooms and office for
Lou. Rare teakwood, rosewood, and
mahogany have been used for the fin-
ish, says Lou, and a Brunswick bar, a
Frigidaire, and Monterey couches in-
stalled for interviews with particularly
tough customers.
"Have a variety of interests if you
want to be happy," read Lou in a Hor-
atio Alger story, and he never forgot
it. This month he decided to put it into
practise. He purchased 68 acres in San
Jose, hired the fellow who built Bay
Meadows, and had the land turned into
one of the finest and largest race tracks
in the West. Sunday, May 28 it opened
as the San Jose Speedway after having
been heralded for weeks in the sporting
pages of local newspapers. Called the
fastest track west of the Rockies, it
promises to give its owner plenty of
things to think about. Lou intends to
keep it open as an auto race track,
attracting stock, midget, and racing car
entries over the summer months and
later adding night fights , rodeos, polo
matches, and swimming exhibitions.
Outstanding driver on opening day was
29
COIN
MACHINE
REVIEW
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