Rock-Ola Celebrates 90th Birthday
It’s WOW Time at Rock-Ola With Special Anniversary Jukebox
When you think of all the beautiful jukeboxes Glenn Streeter has designed and produced over the years, from his Antique Apparatus days to Rock-Ola, it’s virtually impossible to think he could outdo himself. But just wait until you see his latest!
To celebrate Rock-Ola’s 90th anniversary, Glenn combined some ideas he’d had rattling around in his head for a bit. He had been inspired by some metal work he’d seen in a magazine and had been exploring using clear plastic for about a year and a half, he explained. The result of putting them together is nothing short of extraordinary. But if you want this piece of history, you’ll need to act fast. There will only be 100 built (they’ll be consecutively numbered) in the buyer’s choice of either the Digital Music Center or CD model.
RePlay spoke to Streeter shortly after his return from the BCA Summit (billiards and home rec room show) in Las Vegas where the new machine debuted to enthusiastic response. “Dealers would come up and just stare, completely awestruck at the look of it,” he said.
It really is a sight to behold: The cabinet, front door, keyboard and mech boards are all in brushed aluminum. All of the metal trim is gold colored (brass and lacquer), with other trim details in black. The bulk of the plastics are clear so you can see the moving parts, and Streeter even added a fifth color cylinder to the bottom of the machine with the colors flowing out and up the sides. There’s a LED-lit back mural behind the mech that simulates fireworks, which is seen through the glass with a gold historic logo etched into it.
If that’s not enough, Streeter said they’ve added special title strips along with a serial numbered tag on the right of the keyboard. (The purchaser is also given a second brass serial number tag, along with a signed certificate of authenticity, which would look great framed, said Streeter.)
“It’s got a very retro modern look, which is very much in style,” he said. “People love that mid-century, ’50s/’60s/’70s look with chrome, lights and color.
“The response has been overwhelming,” Streeter continued. “At the BCA show, I had a dealer with four large retail locations come up wanting one for each store, and then decided to get a second jukebox for his St. Louis store! Another person told me that it was the most beautiful jukebox he’d seen in his life. You know, I turned 73 this past Sunday (Aug. 6), but I still feel like a kid about this stuff!”
At this writing, Streeter said he’s sold almost 30 of the Rock-Ola 90th Anniversary Jukeboxes, which will start shipping later this month. “I think it’s going to sell out really quick,” he said. If you want to order one, call Rock-Ola at 310-328-1306 (ask for Donna). (Here at RePlay, we can’t help but wonder what David C. Rockola would think of his old company’s latest music machine.)