[78-L] MUST see staory and video - Chocollate REcords

[Benno Häupl]

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These youtube pictures are very old. I had published on this 78-L  list about Mr. Lardong's 
chocolate records back when the German newspapers were full of reports about this man in Berlin. 
Of course, he uses the very hard glazing chocolate (70% cocoa), and not the one for chocolate bars (30% - 45%). 
You can see on youtube how much effort it takes to scrape the hard glazing chocolate from a bloc to 
get enough material for melting. 

According to a news report, Lardong produced 60,000 singles (45rpm) in the 1980's and 90's together 
with a local chocolate manufacturer in Berlin. After a lapse of about 15 years, he started producing again
in 2006, now with his own company in Berlin, 'Wohlfahrt Schokolade'. 

The German EDISON-STOLLWERCK chocolate records from around 1903 (!) that were to be 
played on 78rpm kiddyphones were also made from 'Kuvertüre' (glazing chocolate). About 3, 
or maybe 5, of these original 78rpm chocolate records have survived. Last time I saw one offered 
for sale was about 5 years ago on eBay. 

Thomas A. Edison and chocolate manufacturer Ludwig Stollwerck met each other at the 'Wold Columbian 
Exposition' in Chicago, 1893.  
In 1895 they created a joint venture, the 'Deutsche Edison Phonograph Compagnie' with head office in Köln, 
Germany ('Cologne' in English). This was also the seat of the Stollwerck chocolate factury. 

The first gramohone models for chocolate records were sold in 1902, but a newer improved model, 
the 'Eureka' was the children's craze for Christmas 1903. 
A hand driven apparatus cost 1 Mark, and a spring-driven model was at 6 Mark, while a record cost 0.60 Mark. 
There was a selection of 100 different tunes available. 

As from 1904 the Stollwerck kiddyphone was able to play usual hard-rubber discs as well. See this link: 
http://www.montanaphonograph.com/gallery/stollwercks.html 

Or the Stollwerck gramophone in this auction (scroll this short page down to # 175):
http://spielzeugauktion.de/index.php?page=Archiv&auktion=20&kategorie=1&seite=7 
 
As the chocolate records were packaged in a rather thick tin foil, with all the embossed grooves and 
pictures/logo well visible (they looked like a medal or large coin), I assume that the records were to be played with 
a steel needle in the tinfoil grroves, and NOT directly touching the chocolate.  

Mr. Lardong's recent chocolate records, however, are to be played with a regular pick-up, after you cooled the 
45rpm disc for 10 minutes in the fridge (as by his instructions). 

Benno