Nov.-Dcc, 193,7
23
P R E S T 0-T I M E S
WINTER & CO. WESTERN DISTRIBUTING FACTORY
Shipments of Grands and Uprights Now Going
Forward Rapidly
Mr. Fay Now Wurlitzer
Manager
Advertising
As had been announced by Mr. Cyril Farny, Vice-
President and General Manager of the DeKalb Divi-
sion of Wurlitzer, Mr. E. O. Fay, succeeded Mr.
Earl L. Hadley, on
September 1st, in
The establishment of a branch factory of Winter ments, prior to which he had given a like service charge of the Ad-
vertising
Depart-
& Company, of New York, at La Porte, Indiana, is, as with the foot player; the player piano.
ment of The Ru-
their statement to the trade says; "to keep pace with
Two years ago, Mr. Billings was engaged by Mr.
the rapidly growing demand for the Winter Line and Heller, President of W T inter & Co., in whom, as he d o l p h Wurlitzer
to speed up delivery to Western dealers. The trade says, "I found a real, live piano manufacturer." Mr. Company.
Mr. Fay had been
accepted this announcement as tangible evidence of
Billings says he expects to make excellent progress
the confidence of the Industry's largest producer in with the new work at La Porte which affords him assistant to Mr.
Hadley since the
the continued growth of piano sales. Since the de- the opportunity to exercise his past training and
and
cline of retail sales from 1923 to the low hit in 1932, fondness for the factory and sales end of the busi- Advertising
the number of manufacturers has steadily fallen until ness. "I am happy," he says, "to be associated with Publicity d e p a r t -
ment was trans-
"S,
today there are only about 35. The expansion of Win- our capable superintendent, Mr. William Betz, who
ferred
to
De
Kalb
ter & Co.. is reversal of the trend."
is doing a real job at La Porte."
about a year and
Another excerpt from this Winter & Company an-
Mr. Billings has three sons, Earl R., Jr., well-
one-half ago, with
nouncement says:
"The new plant consists of three units with two known in the piano and piano manufacturing field; other departments
railroad sidings. The main building is three stories Bill Billings, graduating from Purdue University this and divisions of the
Wurlitzer organiza-
high and there is a two-story and a one-story plant year, and Frederick Billings, the third, already aspir-
tion.
Before this
adjoining. Production was started as soon as equip- ing to some day make the Purdue football team.
he had
And this covers some of the points of one of the transfer
ment was installed and deliveries commenced in Sep-
conducted
the
Wur-
best
piano
travelling
men
of
the
country
as
we
find
tember."
litzer Grand Piano
Of executive operations at the La Porte plant the him today at the Winter & Co., La Porte factory.
Co. advertising but
following is the line-up: Wm. G. Betz is the super-
when
Mr. Hadley
intendent; Earl Billings, Sr. is in charge of Western
came
to
De Kalb E. O. Fay, Manager Advertising
Sales, with headquarters at La Porte.
he became, Had- Department, The Rudolph Wur-
Mr. Betz is a noted piano technician and in-
litzer Co.
ley's right hand
ventor; for a long period he was superintendent of
man in all Wurlitzer advertising activities, which have
the Straube piano factory, Hammond, Incl. before the
been of great variety and marked individuality, com-
collapse of that industry and of late has been located
U N I Q U E as well as ex- prising retail, wholesale and manufacturing. A great
at the Winter & Company factory, New York. In
tremely handsome bro- amount of this diversified work fell for the immediate
this connection announcements have gone forth
chure has come to Presto- attention of Mr. Fay, who, aided by practical experi-
of the connection of Paul Fink formerly with the
Times from the Rudolph ence in printing, engraving, and editorial work, be-
Aeolian American Corporation with Winter & Com-
Wurlitzer—advertising and came a very important figure in the advertising and
pany, by which Mr. Fink becomes vice-president and
•
promotion studios, at De promotion work of Wurlitzer.
in charge of sales of Winter & Company. Mr. Bil-
Kalb,
Illinois. The cap- Mr. Fay was born at Hinckley, a town some four-
lings is one of the Billings family of piano and piano
tion on the little volume teen miles from De Kalb, fifty-two years ago. When
supply notables; a son of the elder Billings of "Bil-
is; "Keys to a Fascinating he was less than 18 months of age his parents moved
lings Brass Flange" fame.
World." Its twenty, or so, to De Kalb and today, his home is the same house
Mr. Billings in Charge of Western Sales
pages make up a miniature and grounds where his parents located in De Kalb,
history of the piano, cer- over fifty years ago and where he has lived ever
The record of Mr. Earl R. Billings in charge of
tainly so of the Wurlitzer. since. After his school days at De Kalb, he went to
Western sales with headquarters at La Porte, covers
But more than this phase work in the printing shop of the De Kalb Review, of
a wide range of piano activity. Mr. Billings graduated
of the contents there are il- which newspaper his father, now the Custodian of
from high school in 1905 and immediately started
lustrations to attract at- The Lincoln Monument Association, at Springfield,
work for his father, Fred R. Billings, inventor and
tention of any piano man was the editor. He was succeeded by his son, E. O.
manufacturer of the Billings Brass Flange Piano Ac-
Fay, who after several years of newspaper activity
and make a fine selling
tion. By the way, his father, Fred R. Bilings, now
help in the hands of sales- was induced to join the Wurlitzer Grand Piano Co.
81 years of age, is a resident of Hollywood, Calif.
and take charge of the advertising, publicity and ex-
men.
Mr. Billings remained in this Brass Flange business
ploitation work of that rapidly growing and pros-
The
illustrations
cover
for several years, first
perous organization. This took place in 1925 when
various piano interests; the late E. R. kauworth was the manager at De Kalb,
at Rockford, 111. and
"Teacher and Pupil At and his present office location at the factory head-
later
at Milwaukee,
when the business was the Piano," ensemble of players, singers, instru- quarters are just about where they were twelve years
mentalists grouped about Wurlitzer pianos variously ago when he joined Wurlitzer.
moved to that city.
located in home, studio, shop, concert hall, a Sym-
Mr. Billings is a noted phony Orchestra, The Class Room and other attrac-
pianist and organist but
THE LA PORTE RETAIL AGENCY
tive situations. Some of the captions with these
with a strong inclina- photographic reproductions read; "Learning Is Fun
WINTER & CO. LINE
tion toward the business At Any Age," "A Career in Music," "Personal Satis-
The Joseph C. Smith Music Shop at La Porte, Ind.,
angle of music. He
faction" and, speaking of the piano itself, one heading makes a quite extended notice of the Winter & Co.
therefore
decided to says: "A Musical Instrument for You and Yours," agency for La Porte County. The particular Win-
give up a good manu- "When You Buy a Piano Check These Important
ter & Co. models featured at the store are the Mu-
facturing job and a nice Points," "Every Wurlitzer Piano Is Tone-Tested" sette and the Lowboy. Mr. Phalen, manager of the
church position in Mil- and so on to the last; "The Super-Harmonic Scale An
Smith Music Shop, is trying to push very exten-
waukee to accept a posi-
sively the Winter & Co. lines, in addition to the
Exclusive Wurlitzer Feature."
tion at the Cable Com-
Schiller-Cable goods which they have been handling.
To
get
to
the
point
of
brevity
in
this
stroyette
of
pany's
factory.
He
"Keys," this is the moral of it all; get hold of a copy
worked in all depart-
of
the booklet. If the Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, TILLER MUSIC HOUSE MUCH PLEASED
ments and under the
WITH ITS NEW LOCATION
De
Kalb, 111., have any left over you can probably
supervision of the late
secure one there. Try to get one.
A. A. Tiller, who took over the business of his
J. Frank Conover who,
Speaking of this brochure, Mr. Stewart, Sales Man- father, the F. M. Tiller Music House, Louisville, Ky.,
R. r Billings
... . Earl
—•• •••
Mr. Billings considers,
A y.--:»~ . -
ager of The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company says and is now well settled in the new location at 309 West
Western Sales, Winter & Co.
,<
,
'
r
was one of the really advises thus: "Take time to read and analyze this Chestnut street, to which he moved after taking over
the business of A. A. Tiller. In his new store he has
great piano builders of America." Later Mr. Billings booklet carefully. You will find that it pretty well much
more room and various improvements which
tells
your
own
sales
story;
photographically.
It
was put into the general offices of the Cable Company
make his store an up-to-date music shop. He has
should
tell
everyone
who
is
selling
Wurlitzer
"pianos
and worked in the Auditing and Collection Depart-
added the Winter & Co. line to his Kimball agency
ment and after that was on the retail floor and later for you."
and now has a line of Winter fe Co. consoles and
on went into the wholesale department in which divi-
spinets.
sion he was a traveller for several years becoming, ANOTHER HOBBIE-GULBRANSEN LIST OF
later on, a general traveller and then assistant to the
PIANO SALES.
PEARSON STILL EXPANDING
then president, George J. Dowling.
Messrs. Hobbie Bros., Roanoke, Va., have just had
Mr. Billings managed retail stores for the Cable
The
big
Pearson Music House, Indianapolis, con-
Company at Miami, Fla., and Minneapolis, Minn. In printed another folder listing Gulbransen sales and
tinues to get bigger and bigger. This is Pearson's
which
bears
the
heading,
162
PROMINENT
OWN-
the flourishing days of the reproducing piano he
64th anniversary and in celebration of it they are
ERS O F GULBRANSEN PIANOS. This list shows adding about 30,000 square feet to their store space at
travelled all over the country for the Cable Company
Enhanced recitals
content © in
2008-2009
presented
by MBSI
The Musical Box increase
Society International
and the
International Arcade Museum (www.arcade-museum.com).
a - considerable
of sales (www.mbsi.org)
of Gulbransen
pianos
for two years giving
stores, and
public
halls,
128 (www.namm.org).
N. Pennsylvania St. by taking other floors in the
All Rights Reserved. Digitized from the archives of the MBSI
NAMM
- The or
International
the support
last from
issue,
a year
so ago. Music Products Association
churches in the
interest of the reproducing instru- since with
building; they occupy.
Additional enhancement, optimization, and distribution by the International Arcade Museum. An extensive collection of Presto can be found online at http://www.arcade-museum.com/library/
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