Yes, you can find just about any tune, which was ever recorded on
piano rolls, on a Wurlitzer Automatic Player Piano (APP) roll.  It
is difficult, however, to find well-known tunes.

Several collectors in the past have tried to put together some
answers about Wurlitzer rolls, and the numbering of these rolls.  I am
currently trying to put together a collection of 100 rolls to be recut
for collectors.  I am only looking for original 5-tune rolls, and this
posting concerns only the 5-tune roll.

The 5-tune Wurlitzer roll was made first for the early model coin
operated pianos that played five tunes, and later it was used on the
pianos equipped with the Wurlitzer automatic roll changer.  The
Wurlitzer automatic roll changer held six rolls and would play one roll
and then rewind the roll and play the next roll.  This allowed an
instrument to play 36 songs before a person would have to change the
roll.

It appears that the earliest Wurlitzer Automatic Player Piano roll
(known as APP roll) is number 1.  Wurlitzer continued to make rolls up
to the 2500 numbering range.  After 2500 the Wurlitzer company started
to preface the numbers with a zero, "0", such as roll number 010.

Ralph Tussing took over the production of rolls when Wurlitzer stopped
making rolls.  He arranged his rolls and used a numbering system that
also started with "0".

I need help in identifying rolls that Wurlitzer made versus the rolls
that Ralph Tussing made.  For example, number 0378 has some well-known
tunes, such as tune 1 which is "Alexander's Ragtime Band", but the roll
is a Tussing-arranged roll with short tunes.  Roll number 0351 is a
green paper Wurlitzer roll.

Unfortunately, some of the Ralph Tussing rolls are not marked with his
name.  You can identify these rolls because the label usually does not
have the name "Wurlitzer" on them, the tunes are short, and the paper
is usually a thicker white paper.  Wurlitzer also used white paper in
the teen years, but it is much thinner than Tussing's white paper.

The Tussing-made rolls usually have a large number stenciled on them.
Original Wurlitzer rolls in my collection do not have a large number
stenciled on them, but some have a rubber-stamped number with letters
about 3/8-inch tall.  The Tussing numbers are about one inch tall.

I would really appreciate anyone who has rolls with the "0" prefix
to send me their roll numbers and titles, with any comments about the
roll.  I would like to find out if there is any overlap of numbers used
and when the last Wurlitzer roll was made.

We have also noticed that, on rolls with bell arrangements, the first
tune on a roll may not have the bell arrangement but does have the bell
cancel holes in the roll.  We have noticed that the highest usage of
bell arrangements are on rolls in the 1700, 1800 and 1900 series.  Some
of the "0" series have bell arrangements and some do not.

It has been speculated that the "0" series with Q.R.S. arrangements
do not have bells, but the Wurlitzer-arranged "0" series rolls do have
bells.  Anyone with information of the Wurlitzer rolls please come
forward.  I need your help and so do other collectors.

There has been some super well-done arrangements found on Wurlitzer
rolls as well as some very poor arrangements.  I would really like to
put together 100 great rolls for this recutting project.  If anyone has
any rolls they are willing to loan me for recutting then please contact
me.

Don Teach