The Frank Luther Phonograph Babar and other Luther Storytime Characters     By Doug Boilesen, 2024 "Frank Luther (born Francis Luther Crow, August 4, 1899 – November 16, 1980) was an American country music singer, dance band vocalist, playwright, songwriter and pianist." (Wikipedia, extracted 8-12-2024). It was Frank Luther the storyteller for children's records, however, that is his legacy for Friends of the Phonograph which included the Decca 1950 Frank Luther Phonograph. Here's how Wikipedia summarized his recording career of children's records. Frank Luther's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame represents what was to become his chief claim to fame. Early in his recording career, he made some 7" shellac records for children. Several sets were made for Victor in 1933. In 1934, however, Jack Kapp signed Luther to record for the new 35-cent blue label Decca company. He began by making a series of hillbilly records, but did two 78rpm albums of songs for children a few months later. "Mother Goose Songs" and "Nursery Rhymes", the first two albums, featured Luther's tenor voice in brief interpretations of traditional children's tunes, tied together with gentle and pleasant narration. At one point in the Decca set, Luther introduced a lullaby by calmly saying, "Mother tucks you in, kisses you, and leaves you in the nice, friendly darkness. Mother's so wonderful, isn't she? Love her every day you live. She loves you so much." Two pediatricians told Luther that they had used his record to calm small children who feared being in the dark. Child psychologists began to endorse the Luther recordings. The first two albums sold in enormous quantities, and were pressed numerous times. Luther's country music days came to a halt, and he did fewer dance band vocal choruses. He was now in demand as Decca's performer of children's songs and stories. Selling even better were his recordings of Winnie-the-Pooh Songs based on A.A. Milne's books for children,[11] and Babar Songs and Stories based on Jean de Brunhoff's Babar the Elephant books.[12][13] A Luther-composed Alice in Wonderland album, a true-to-the-original album of songs from Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Tuneful Tales, Manners Can Be Fun, Raggedy Ann Songs, and hundreds more established Luther as the dean of children's recordings. Decca claimed, in 1946, that 85% of the records for young people sold in the English-speaking world were Luther's. (Ibid.) Luther would form his own record label and work "for a variety of educational record companies." He did a series for United Artists Records, some albums of songs adapted from the writings of various children's authors, and some narrations of children's books. These included Babar Songs and Stories, an LP of retellings of Jean de Brunhoff's Babar the Elephant series he recorded for Vocalion Records in the early 1960s. On this album he punctuated his narrations of The Story of Babar, The Travels of Babar, Babar the King, Babar and his Children, Zephir's Holiday and Babar and Father Christmas with snatches of song at various junctures in the stories. (Ibid.) Decca made their "Frank Luther" phonograph Model DP-47 circa 1950 and the following highlight that record player along with some examples of children's records made by Luther.   Frank Luther Record Player with Babar and children's storytime characters, 78 RPM, c.1950 Decca (FP0646)   Advertisement extract from The Billboard, December 9, 1950 showing Decca Model DP-47, Frank Luther Children's Phonograph   LISTEN to "Mother Goose Songs" told by Frank Luther, 78 RPM, 1946 Decca Records, Inc.   Frank Luther reading Raggedy Ann Songs and Stories, Vocalion - Decca Records VL 3665, LP, Stories ©1939 - 1940 - 1942 by The Johnny Gruelle Company.   Stories for Rainy Days, Frank Luther, Vocalion - Decca Records VL 73624, LP.                     Phonographia