At a recognition ceremony in 1928, Thomas Edison operates the first tinfoil phonograph he invented.

Thomas Edison with his original tin foil phonograph (recording and playing device), that was produced in December 1877. Edison stands near a NBC microphone and shows operation of his tinfoil phonograph, also referred to in press of the late 1800s as a Talking Machine. This footage was shot on the occasion of a recognition ceremony for Edison on October 20, 1928, where he was also presented the Congressional Gold Medal by President Calvin Coolidge. This original tinfoil phonograph had been given by Edison in 1880 to a representative of the English Patent Office who visited the Menlo Park lab. The machine had been exhibited in England. It was repatriated for this 1928 event by the South Kensington Museum in London. British diplomat Ronald Ian Campbell, partially visible on the left in this footage, presented the phonograph back to Edison. Today it is on display at the Edison National Historic Site in West Orange, New Jersey.

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