[Circa 1920s - 1930s].
Price: $2,500.00
A collection of ephemera and photographs relating to Maurice J. Francill (1896-1974), “America’s Radio Wizard,” who traveled the country in the 1920s and 1930s giving exhibitions of his radio control technology on cars, trains, boats, and various industrial machinery. The group of items include more than a dozen photos of Francill’s exhibitions, along with assorted broadsheets, flyers, handbills, press releases, and newspaper clippings concerning his traveling demonstrations.
Born Francis Cowgill just outside of Marion, Ohio, in 1896, Francill’s early years were spent working for a local newspaper where he undoubtedly picked up a knack for publicity. He studied science as a teenager and later became an electrician as the age of radio technology blossomed. During the Depression he took his knowledge and developed a traveling exhibition displaying the wonders of radio control to the masses in fair grounds, exhibition halls, and theaters around the country. The act was apparently quite popular as the numerous newspaper accounts and crowd photographs document.
As clever as Francill was with technology, he appeared just as adept at marketing. He typically staged several demonstrations when his tour reached a new town, giving free public displays to create interest and to promote his paid theater appearances. He also attracted additional revenue through advertising and sponsorship deals with local businesses and chambers of commerce. He would integrate their products or services into his show, controlling by radio commands their particular brand of car, milking machine, factory machinery, or whatever local technology they wanted. This combination of technological talent and entrepreneurship also gave him some genuine insights into radio technologies; in one newspaper account from 1927, Francill predicted that advances would lead to night vision, guided missiles, and television.
An interesting collection of material from a forgotten Depression-era performer notable for his innovative use of radio technology and marketing.
Item #349803
