ABSTRACT
A firm established on 19 Oct 1896 by Frank Seaman, in New York, succeeding his New York Gramophone Co.; in advertising it was styled the National Gram-o-phone Co. It was eventually succeeded by the National Gramophone Corp., another Seaman firm established in March 1899. Seaman had contracted personally with Berliner Gramophone Co. for U.S. sales rights-except for Washington, D.C.—to Berliner products, and he set up the National Gramophone Co. to handle sales. After an unsuccessful first year, business improved greatly. In 1897 the firm was advertising the “Gram-o-phone Zon-ophone”—in fact a Berliner gramophone-and the “Improved Gram-o-phone Zon-ophone.” Sherman, Clay & Co., San Francisco, was the Pacific Coast agent. Sale price of the record player in an October 1898 advertisement was $25.00. Records were selling at $0.50 each. The April 1899 catalog of the firm included material by the Sousa Band, the Banda Rossa, Cal Stewart, Albert C. Campbell, Vess L. Ossman (banjo), W. Paris Chambers (cornet), Henry A. Higgins (cornet), and George Graham (humorist). F.M. Prescott was noted as the “sole export agent.” However, there were legal problems, as American Graphophone Co., led by Philip Mauro, brought litigation over alleged infringement of its Bell-Tainter patents. There was also a dispute between Seaman and Berliner, based on Seaman’s failed effort to have Berliner take on more cheaply made gramophones. Seaman finally stopped ordering gramophones in October 1899. Berliner
refused to supply Seaman with discs, so National Gramophone Co. had no Berliner products to sell and was phased out of business. Seaman’s second firm, National Gramophone Corp., was left to deal with the American Graphophone Co. litigation. [Wile 1991.]
FRANK ANDREWS
A British firm established in London, in 1911, certificated to do business as of 3 Aug. Directors were P.J. Packman, James Albert Corey, Walter Amelius Cloud, Robert Crawford Lees, and Walter Hansen Rawles. After some litigation brought by the National Phonograph Co., Ltd., over the prior use of the name “National” in Britain, the plaintiff firm determined to withdraw its complaint and change its own name to Thomas A. Edison, Ltd. (August 1912). Nevertheless the National Gramophone Co., Ltd., decided not to go ahead with plans to issue a disc labeled “National,” and advertised (for the first time in July 1912) one named Marathon Record. This was a narrow-grooved vertical cut record with longer playing time than typical discs of the time. A new company was created on 2 Jan 1913, named the National Gramophone Co. (1913), Ltd. It took over Marathon Records and Marathon record players. Business was excellent in 1913, but there was a financial crisis in early 1914, and the firm went into receivership in March 1915. The last additions to the Marathon Records catalog came in March 1915. Apparently the Orchestrelle Co., Ltd., of London, acquired some or all of the national assets. [Andrews 1987/4.]
Frank Seaman, who had been operating the National Gramophone Co. since 19 Oct 1896, established a second firm on 10 Mar 1899. The purpose of the National Gramophone Corp. was to be the sales agency of the new distinctive Zonophone disc players being developed by L.P. Valiquet and manufactured by the Universal Talking Machine Co. The first Zonophones were merely clones of the Berliner Gramophone, and Seaman knew that he could not carry on indefinitely with that product. As it happened, problems developed with Berliner in 1899 and came to a head just at the time (late 1899) when the new Zonophone products-record players and discs-were ready. The early firm, National Gramophone Co., was phased out, and Seaman concentrated his plans on the new corporation. Frank J. Dunham was its president, Orville La Dow its secretary; Seaman was treasurer. The patent conflict with the Columbia interests (American Graphophone) remained to hinder sales of the new Zonophones. Seaman’s strategy was to admit infringement of the Columbia patents, but to devise a cross-licensing agreement whereby
he could continue to make and sell the new Zonophones, and Columbia (which did not yet have its own disc machines) could also handle them. With the cross-licensing agreement in effect, from May 1900, Columbia was able to drop the Vitaphone line of machines and discs that had been operating under Columbia protective licensing. Advertising by the National Gramophone Corp. in November 1900 promoted the “Zon-ophone (substituted for our Gram-o-phone which is abandoned).” All these machinations came to a dismal end for Seaman, for the Zonophone venture did not prosper, and by March 1901 the National Gramophone Corp. was in difficulties from which it could not recover; it was put into liquidation in September 1901. In 1903 the Zonophone tradename and the Universal Talking Machine Co. assets passed to the Victor Talking Machine Co. [Wile 1991.]
FRANK ANDREWS
A vocal group that recorded for Edison Diamond Discs in 1924-1927. Members were Clarence da Silva, tenor (replaced in 1926 by Arthur Hall); Lloyd Wiley, tenor (replaced in 1926 by John Ryan); Harry Jockin, baritone; and Harry Donaghy, bass. The group’s best record was “Yankee Rose” (#51967; 1927). Another popular disc was “Bye, Bye, Blackbird”/“Honey Bunch” (#51758; 1926).
