My thanks to Marc Sachnoff for his memories about a Melville Clark
Apollophone player piano.  Marc, I read your MMD contribution with
interest and misting eyes.

In the 1970s I was director of Yesteryear Museum, a museum of sound,
mechanical music and communication, near Morristown, New Jersey.  Our
collections included a wealth of Edisonia, about 150 music boxes of
various types and sizes, an equal number of talking machines, nine or
ten player pianos and organs, a Wurlitzer band organ, a 1920 Tangley
Calliaphone mounted on a 1920 Autocar truck, and items relating to the
history of radio, television, and early motion pictures.

Much of the mechanical music and other items came out of the brain of
our fellow New Jerseyan, Thomas Edison.  My father worked for him one
summer while on vacation from college.  I was fortunate to get to know
Mr. Edison's youngest son and daughter, Theodore and Madeleine.  Very
fortunate especially with Ted, as he and his wife Ann were wonderful,
kind and generous people who visited my home and asked me to visit
theirs -- a very special treat.

We had an Apollophone in magnificent condition.  Recently on YouTube
there was a scene in some Disney movie (I think from the 1950s) with
which I was not previously familiar, where kids are pumping away and
singing in front of just such a piano as yours and mine.  I doubt
they had any idea of the gramophone, as the door was shut.  They were
playing a word roll apparently made for the film.

I discussed my Apollophone in one of several trips to the QRS
headquarters with friends there and was aware of the roll-record
combinations.  I believe at the time I only knew of that situation
regarding Victor recordings, so thanks for the added information.
Like you, we never actually found such a roll, although I already
had a major record collection which included many of the "match-up"
records.  I always wondered how they managed to get the roll and
record synchronized, although if both were at the indicated speeds,
supposedly once matched up they would play through together.

I also owned another Melville Clark piano, which played 58, 65 and
88-note rolls and certain kinds of pin-end organ rolls.  I was a darn
fool to sell either one, especially the multi-type piano.  But once we
had the museum pulled out from under us it was a matter of space, and I
also gave up a Steinway Duo-Art, an Ampichron in a matching style walnut
plain case piano, and another match but smaller case Welte-Mignon.

Also the calliope truck rig, but not until we did hundreds of parades
all over New Jersey and surrounding states.  Had I known I would wind
up in Florida, I should have kept it, as we could do parades here all
year around, unlike in New Jersey.  Smooth-tread solid rubber tires and
freezing conditions are hard on antique, water-cooled trucks and their
passengers!

Eventually as we moved into decreasing size houses, my entire collection
had to go except some literature and Edisonia which I am selling off
piece by piece.  Drat.

Thanks for bringing back great memories.

Best to all,
Lee Munsick