November, 1930
PRESTO-TIMES
YEARS AGO IN THE TRADE
THE PASSING OF GEO. P. BENT.
The sudden death from heart disease of George P.
Bent, aged 76 years, at Los Angeles, Calif., on Octo-
ber 26, was the passing of one of the most remarkable
(From The Presto, November 11, 1915.)
Heretofore The Presto's telephone service has been and lovable p ano men of the last half-century. At
the height oi his career a few years ago he was pres-
Because Germany is inaccessible to our markets, inadequate because of our sharing the house telephone ident of the George P. Bent Co. with a huge factory
that population is deprived of many of the necessaries of the Monon Building. A new and exclusive con- at Sangamon and Washington streets, Chicago, man-
of life formerly bought in the United States and is nection has just been installed in The Presto's offices ufacturing Crown pianos. He was a shrewd adver-
compelled to rely on its own resources. This is one and we especially invite friends and members of the tiser, and one of the stunts that brought the Crown
trade to make use of it freely. Items of news will
of the fortunes of war and is not of our making.
be appreciated whether of general or individual in- pianos into world-wide recognition was the placing
The Friedrich Music House, Grand Rapids, Mich., terest. Call up at any time, and often, Harrison 234. of a Crown instrument in every one of the state
buildings at the Chicago's World's Fair in 1893.
recently made an interesting window display of Meh-
(The same number today, November 15, 1930.—Ed.
Air. Bent was a native of Dundee, 111. He retired
lin pianos—one of the regulation grand and the other Presto-Times.)
from the piano business about eleven years ago to
the inverted grand, the construction of which is a
Chickering pianos exclusively will be used in con- reside in a beautiful home he had built for his occu-
recent improvement of the manufacturers, Paul G.
nection with the concerts of the Eduard Strauss' or- pancy at Los Angeles. However, he retained his
Mehlin & Sons of New York.
chestra throughout the country. The tour will con- membership in several clubs in Chicago and else-
Pianos valued at $20,000 were imported into the sume six months and will embrace every city of
where.
state of Rio Grande du Sul, Brazil, in 1914, the latest musical importance in the land.
Mr. Bent is survived by his widow, Clara Wingate
period for which statistics are available.
One of the signs of prosperity passing west on Bent and two sons and three daughters: George H.
Edwin F. Lapham, of Grosvenor, Lapham & Co., Madison street, Chicago, early Monday morning, was Bent of Pasadena, Charles M. Bent of San Francisco,
Fine Arts Building, Chicago, was a happy man this a load labeled "Estey Organs" upon a big transfer Mrs. Stanley G. Harris of San Francisco; Mrs. Clay-
(Monday) morning as he came down to his office. wagon of the Lehigh Valley railroad. The float car- ton Lane of Warsaw, Poland, and Mrs. Edward O.
A little granddaughter had been born—the child of his ried at least a dozen of these instruments from Brat- Pringle of San Francisco.
son and daughter-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Lyon tleboro, Vt., for some dealer in the far west.
Like Theodore Roosevelt, Air. Bent played to the
Lapham.
The Russian pianist, Gabrilowitsch, began h'S limelight in a big way. At the Buffalo national con-
Max J. de Rochemont, vice-president and general American triumphs at Carnegie Hall, New York, last ventions of piano men some years ago Mr. Bent hired
manager of the Laffargue Co., New York, stopped Monday night.
every taxicab, carriage and one-horse shay in that
off at Chicago for a few hours this (Wednesday)
great
city and took the whole convention for a ride
Another of the characteristic Vose advertisements
morning before catching the Twentieth Century for
along the Niagara river bank. In 1925 he gave a
appears
on
The
Presto's
title
page
this
week.
It
is
New York.
incisive in its statements and as clear in its tone "dinner to the aged" in the music industry and trade.
This was in Chicago and about 200 attended from all
With the revival of trade in all lines, the piano as the "Vose" piano itself.
parts of the United States. A greater dinner was one
industries are going after their full share of the com-
Don't beast of how you hustle,
he gave at the Congress Hotel, Chicago, just before
ing winter's good business. One of the best of the
For pride must have a fall;
he set out on a trip around the world. He kept the
form letters that has come to The Presto's attention
Remember, in the tussle
trade posted on the sights he saw and the appeal
is from the Jesse French & Sons Piano Co. It is
You cannot do it all.
strange countries had for him, through letters to The
from the ready pen—or typewriter—of General Man-
What for a time threatened to spread into a dis- Presto, which made mighty interesting reading.
ager H. Edgar French.
Two of the best books he wrote are "Four Score
The George Jacobs Music House of Fort Wayne, astrous fire broke out yesterday in the factory of
Ind., caters to a high-class trade, and besides main- the Story & Clark Co. at Canal and Sixteenth streets, and More" and "Tales of Travel, Life and Love." The
taining a local reputation for giving dependable serv- Chicago. It was, however, confined to the dry kiln latter book recounted adventures and observations in
his trips around the world—for he was a globe-
ice in things musical, they advertise their leading and was subdued before gaining great headway.
The new Story & Clark Grand piano will be ready trotter.
pianos and player-pianos in a commendably dignified
for inspection and criticism within a few days.
way.
Mr. Charles H. Parsons, of the Needham Piano &
Not every trademark name is "good" in the sense Organ Co., is a man who says things with a sin-
that some other established names are good, because cerity that is impressive. Direct, straightforward, in
not every trade-name may be trade-marked. Doing
a manner, he speaks not for the sake of speaking,
business with a trade-name that is not eligible to but to express a thought.
registration as a trade-mark is very much like trav-
A battered and water-soaked piano stands in one Remarkable Revival of Interest in Pianos, Says H. S.
eling abroad without a passport—you may get along of the Bush & Gerts Co.'s windows, on the North
Jones of Birmingham.
all right, but if identification is necessary the man
Side, Chicago. It is in good condition except for
with a governmental certificate to prove his claims is the bruised and discolored case. A card leaning
T. B. Newberne has been appointed sales manager
in a much more advantageous position than the fellow
against the piano tells that it is a victim of the Gal- of the piano department of Clark & Jones Piano Co.
who is not thus fortified.
veston storm and floods. "Slightly disfigured but still of Birmingham, Ala. Mr. Newberne first entered the
Thirty-five years with a big industry is indeed a in the ring," is the suggestive quotation on the card. piano business with Steinway & Sons' store in Cin-
record of which any person may feel proud; and
Mr. Melville Clark expects to be turning out his cinnati and was later transferred as manager of the
when the results of this long period's activities find
pianos steadily and in good numbers by the nrddle of Huntington, W. Va., store where he resided for ten
one as vice-president of a firm like the W. W. Kim-
December. The success of the first samples was in- years. For some time Air. Newberne has been con-
ball Co., and when the thirty-fifth anniversary is stantaneous, and only the demand for "Orpheus" and nected with Phillips & Crew Co., Atlanta, Ga.
celebrated as was the occasion of E. B. Bartlett's "Apollo" has prevented the Melville Clark Piano Co.
Clark & Jones have been representatives of Stein-
surprise-banquet tendered to him by officers and from producing many more pianos before now.
way & Sons in Tennessee and Alabama for a num-
members of the big Chicago industry, then one can
J. C. Henderson, general manager of the Ann Arbor ber of years. H. S. Jones, president of the firm,
say that he is more than proud!
Organ Co., is in Chicago this week, having returned states there has been a remarkable revival of interest
An uncommonly good tribute is pa ; d to the high from a trip to Texas and the Southwest. Mr. Hender- recently in pianos and he looks for almost an old-
quality of the Mathushek in the recent local news- son says that trade was never better and he shows the time piano business this fall and winter. This com-
pany is also jobber for Philco radio and is doing an
paper advertisement which appeared above the signa- general after-election good feeling.
outstanding job on Philcos for the northern half of
ture of the F. O. Miller Music Co., 39 West Forsyth
The Paris international exposition of 1900 is ended. the state. They have a four-story building occupied
street, Jacksonville, Fla.
Last Monday night the booming of cannon from the exclusively by them. Formerly they claimed they
President Percy Tonk's desk in the offices of the Eiffel Tower announced that the exposition of 1900 were the largest Victor dealers, retail, in the south and
Tonk factory at Clybourn avenue and Lewis street, had ceased to exist. It ended in a blaze of illumina- are now said to have the largest radio business in the
Chicago, was, literally speaking, strewn with orders tion, the final evening being celebrated by a night state.
which had come in one morning's first mail this week. fete.
White Piano & Organ Co., Chicago, has been in-
The Gulbransen new style will soon be ready for corporated: Capital, $15,000; manufacturing organs,
SELLING SUMMER RESORT PIANOS
the trade, a matter of a week or so more having to pianos and musical instruments.
Griunell Bros, are holding their 27th annual sale
Incorporators,
be passed before formal announcements and descrip- Albert L. White, Hiram C. Bernstein, John H. Cogan. of summer resort pianos at their Traverse City, Mich.,
tions of the new instruments can be made. In the
The size and character of the Everett piano trade in store—161 East Front street. This company says it
meantime the huge plant at Kedzie, Sawyer and
New
York city is a high and well-merited compliment is a record-breaking annual event, "for, included with
Chicago avenues, Chicago, fairly teems with manu-
to
that
instrument, to the John Church Co., and to the large number of instruments returned from sum-
facturing activity.
mer rental are all the exchanged, shopworn, demon-
the New York manager, Mr. A. M. Wright.
strator and new sample pianos and players on our
The factory of the Kreiter Manufacturing Co. is
floor." A similar sale is being held by the company
operating every day until 10 o'clock at night in the
effort to catch up with back orders, according to SELLS PIANOS; BUYS BUYERS' GUIDE. at its Ann Arbor, Mich., store.
Milwaukee officials of the concern.
George W. Morris, postoffice box 403, Marietta,
A GOOD SPEAKER AT CLUBS
The current issue of Presto Buyers Guide has Ohio, who says he was 70 years young in 1929 (St.
made a most favorable impression with all Philadel- Patrick's Day in the morning) is out for business—
Lionel Tompkins of the publicity department of
phians who have thus far received a copy of this 'Everything musical, or real estate"—admits that lie the Baldwin Piano Co., Cincinnati, is quite in demand
very authoritative and reliable "Blue Book of Ameri- is deaf, and jokingly adds on his introductory card, as a speaker at advertising clubs. His recent ad-
can Musical Instruments. It is concise, beautifully "and perhaps a little dumb in some ways (but not dresses before advertising clubs at Des Afoines, Iowa,
printed and its contents include advice that should all)." He asks on this card that persons speaking and Cincinnati, Ohio, were considered by his hearers
be in the possession of every prospective purchaser," to him look him squarely in the face, so that lie can
as main features of the programs.
see their lip movement and understand their conver-
writes a piano man of Philadelphia.
sation. However, he has written for a copy of Presto
CABLE CO.'S 50TH ANNIVERSARY
Buyers' Guide, which was gladly mailed to him last
(From The Presto, November 15, 1900.)
On all letterheads, envelopes and advertising litera-
week.
The edition of "Buyers Guide to the American
ture that the Cable Co., Chicago, is sending out ap-
Pianos" being nearly exhausted, no further orders for
pear announcements of the company's fiftieth anni-
EXPERT JOINS GULBRANSEN
the popular book can be filled. A new edition is con-
Frank Weiser, all-around piano man, manufacturer, versary in business. From 1880 to 1930 is a long
templated, wholly revised and greatly improved, to scale draftsman, salesman—who knows almost as stretch, and the company has been gaining strength
appear in the spring of 1901. It will be duly an- many angles in the music and manufacturing trade as and prestige during that half century.
nounced, but until its appearance, we repeat, no more
any man living, has joined the Gulbransen Co., Chi-
copies of the "Buyers Guide" can be had at any cago, in the sales department. His home address is
Elmer Olson, music dealer, opened a new store in
price.
the Francois building, Chetek, Wis., on October 25.
244 Arlington street, Elmhurst, 111.
0LD=TIME PIANO
BUSINESS IS RETURNING
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