Emerson Through the Years
In 1915 Victor Hugo Emerson, who was an early recording engineer and executive, established the Emerson Phonograph Co. in New York City and offered the last of the external-horn phonographs and Universal Cut Records. By 1922 the company was handed over to brothers Benjamin Abrams and Rudloph Kanarak, two phonograph and record salesmen who renamed the company Emerson Radio & Phonograph Corp. Emerson introduced the first radio-phonograph combination sold in the United States.
In 1932, in the depths of the Great Depression, Emerson continued to succeed by introducing the pocket size Peewee radio about 8.5 inches long and 6 inches wide. Of the 500,000 radios sold between the beginning of December 1932 and the end of May 1933, 300,000 were peewees, and Emerson made half of these. Emerson led in the production and sale of this class of radio in 1938, having by then sold more than a million.
In 1943 Emerson Radio & Phonograph became a public corporation and its first postwar product was a television set in 1947. The unquenchable hunger for television enabled Emerson Radio & Phonograph to reach $74.2 million in sales.
The Emerson 888 series was one of the most popular and attractive coat pocket radios in the market. They were produced from the 1950's to the 1960's. Emerson released several models in this series in 1960 such as the Vanguard, Pioneer, Explorer, Satellite and Atlas – all named after various U.S. space programs
Video gaming reached mainstream popularity in the 1970s and 1980s, when video arcade games and gaming consoles using joysticks, buttons, and other controllers were introduced to the general public.
In 1982 Emerson manufactured the Arcadia 2001, the most well-known of the "Emerson Arcadia 2001" second-generation 8-bit game console variations. The Arcadia is much smaller than its contemporary competitors and is powered by a standard 12-volt power supply so it can be used in a boat or a vehicle. It also has two outputs (or inputs) headphone jacks on the back of the unit, on the far left and far right sides.
The system came with two Intellivision-style controllers with a 12 button keypad and 'fire' buttons on the sides. The direction pads have a removable joystick attachment.
Emerson Radio Corp.’s long history of reliability makes us the consumer’s trusted guide in this new and constantly changing world of consumer electronics. Our continued customer commitment is expressed through our total accountability for satisfying our customer’s electronics and appliance needs. We currently sell Microwaves, Toaster Ovens, Wine Coolers, Home Security, Health & Beauty, Clock Radios and more.