Comments on: Invented Earlier than You’d Think – Pt. 2 – Answering Machines http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2008/06/16/invented-earlier-than-youd-think-pt-2-answering-machines/ Yesterday's tomorrow, today. Fri, 10 Feb 2012 20:39:58 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.4 By: Mike Brown http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2008/06/16/invented-earlier-than-youd-think-pt-2-answering-machines/comment-page-1/#comment-1057110 Mike Brown Wed, 18 Jun 2008 13:37:04 +0000 http://blog.modernmechanix.com/?p=4629#comment-1057110 Believe it or not, Valdemar Poulsen of Copenhagen, Denmark, got a US patent on a telephone answering machine in 1900 - twenty four years earlier than the Popular Mechanics article. It was number 661,619, and used a wire recorder - "by providing a suitable apparatus in combination with a telephone, communications can be received by the apparatus when the subscriber is absent, whereas upon his return he can cause the communications to be repeated by the apparatus." Believe it or not, Valdemar Poulsen of Copenhagen, Denmark, got a US patent on a telephone answering machine in 1900 – twenty four years earlier than the Popular Mechanics article. It was number 661,619, and used a wire recorder – “by providing a suitable apparatus in combination with a telephone, communications can be received by the apparatus when the subscriber is absent, whereas upon his return he can cause the communications to be repeated by the apparatus.”

]]> By: jayessell http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2008/06/16/invented-earlier-than-youd-think-pt-2-answering-machines/comment-page-1/#comment-1057094 jayessell Tue, 17 Jun 2008 23:57:17 +0000 http://blog.modernmechanix.com/?p=4629#comment-1057094 At the end of the 1975 "Doc Savage: Man of Bronze" movie there's a teaser for "Doc Savage II". The team is away from the penthouse but the 1936 era answering machine (presumably built by Electrical engineer Major Thomas J. "Long Tom" Roberts. ) takes a message: <b>"Your voice is being recorded mechanically. Speak now."</b> <i>Doc! Millions are going to die! Acck!</i> (Thanks for nothing IMDB memorable quotes!) The machine had both outgoing and incoming message disks, acoustically coupled to the phone because THE PHONE COMPANY frowned on modifications to their equipment. At the end of the 1975 “Doc Savage: Man of Bronze” movie there’s a teaser for “Doc Savage II”.

The team is away from the penthouse but the 1936 era answering machine (presumably built by Electrical engineer Major Thomas J. “Long Tom” Roberts. ) takes a message:

“Your voice is being recorded mechanically. Speak now.”

Doc! Millions are going to die! Acck!

(Thanks for nothing IMDB memorable quotes!)

The machine had both outgoing and incoming message disks, acoustically coupled to the phone
because THE PHONE COMPANY frowned on modifications to their equipment.

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