My New Toy!

I call it "my new toy," but since "toy" implies that I'll be playing with it rather than just displaying it in my home, "toy" isn't really accurate. Nor is the term "new" really fitting, because it may be new to me, but the thing's even older than I am. In fact, it dates to the late 1940s, and definitely no later than 1948.

Oh, well, at least the "my" part is appropriate.

So, what is it? It's just the coolest television set I've ever owned.

The above two photos, taken in the seller's flea market booth, are a bit blurry. That's a combination of the crappy camera on my cell phone and my shaky hands. I placed an antique box of gelatin mix on top to give you an idea of the TV's size. The picture screen isn't much bigger than a videotape! (And speaking of the picture screen, if it looks like there's a bunch of junk inside, that's just a reflection of the stuff in the seller's flea market booth!)

This thing is so early, the actual brand name on it is "FADA Radio," although this, obviously, is not a radio!

But what's really cool about it is... well... When was the last time you saw a TV with channel one on its dial? That's right, this set has channels one through thirteen! The FCC took channel one away from TV broadcasters in 1948, but there were so many channels already in existence with higher numbers, it wasn't worth dropping them all down one digit, which is why old televisions usually have channels two to thirteen. However, the ad reproduced above mentions "full 12 channel coverage"  (emphasis mine) meaning my TV pre-dates the ad.

(And why does the preceding paragraph make me think of the "These [amplifiers] go to eleven" routine in the 1984 mockumentary, This Is Spinal Tap?)

Admittedly, the set doesn't work -- not that I care -- but I was advised by an expert on antique electronics not to plug in old TVs and radios anyway, because doing so may actually harm the appliance.

Just for ha-has, I did some research on eBay. The one shown below doesn't work either, and its cabinet is in fairly rough shape. Nevertheless, the seller was asking $200 for it. Note that part of the channel selector -- that's the dial in the lower right-hand corner -- is cracked off, too.

The next one shown is in much better shape (cosmetically speaking) than the previous one shown, but only a tad better-looking than mine... and it doesn't actually work, either. The asking price for this one was $599.

Furthermore, in all fairness, I should point out that neither one of these televisions sold for their minimum bid price. So as far as how accurate those asking prices were, who knows?

But needless to say, I think the $100 I paid for mine was well worth it, don't you?

Thanks for your time.