The PHILCO Phorum
Help identifying - Printable Version

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Help identifying - Davino - 11-20-2024

Greetings all,
I'm an editor penning captions for a book on mid-century architecture and seek to identify this console in a home, the Van Sicklen house, from 1952. Critically, the architect was known for designing built-in furniture and cabinetry that meshed seamlessly with the room and did not call attention to itself. Therefore, although to my knowledge, many console units from this era were encased in cabinets like this, I believe—and need to confirm—if this unit has been modified to exist within custom cabinetry. I must learn:

1. The specific make and model (I believe I see "PHILCO" on the tone arm when zoomed way in)
2. Is all of the original cabinet not visible and this is entirely a custom built-in; or, has surrounding word work been made to match and blend with the unit, but it's the unit's wood work/cabinet that we see on the outside?
3. Year 
4. I believe this is on the cusp of the Hi-Fi era, so can the unit be referred to as a "Hi-Fi console"?
5. Stereo yet? Separate woofer and tweeter yet?

Any assistance, greatly appreciated.

RE: Help identifying - GarySP - 11-20-2024

Welcome to the Phorum, Davino! Not much to go on from the above pictures. Would it be possible to take a photo or two of the inner workings? Include any labels you might see. Take care and BE HEALTHY! Gary

RE: Help identifying - Davino - 11-20-2024

Thanks for the welcome, Gary. There exists only one photo of the unit in the Richard Neutra-designed home. The photo (the close-ups are screenshots, zoomed in) is from the Julius Shulman archive at the Getty. Shulman is arguably history's most renown architectural photographer of the period. We have no way of gaining further info on the console outside the one historical photograph, unfortunately.

Do you see the PHILCO logo on the tonearm? Does the metal faceplate to the console look familiar to you or anyone? Would this be accurately described as a "Hi-Fi," albeit early, or is it too early for that?

Appreciatively - David