IX- 3
significant improvements the machine, including fitting a
spring motor. Johnson began, like Edison, running small
machine shop. The Victrola became the phonograph
of the twentieth century. 1901 the
Victor Talking Machine Company was formed the Berliner and
Johnson patents and the latter became the driving force the
new entrant into the industry.
It embodied several improvements phonograph design, not the
least which was the tapered arm which carried the sound from
the sound box and reproducer. Johnson turned
the gramophone into serious competitor Edison.
While cheap disc machines competed with the Edison
cylinders for the low end the market, the Victor company
introduced machine that was aimed the more affluent
phonograph buyers. Its horn was enclosed the cabinet which gave it
a completely different look. was Johnson's masterpiece. His modified Berliner
machine became the Trade Mark model 1896 and later
produced smaller version, the Toy, 1900. The Victrola was introduced the Victor
Talking Machine Company 1906. went become major inventor and
entrepreneur the phonograph industry. determined the development of
talking machines for the forty years after its introduction,
when many people came call any phonograph "Victrola". The Victrola was remarkable
innovation which combined technological and aesthetic
innovations. Its
spring operated disc mechanism was fitted inside handsome