Nearly two years ago I wrote an article about a pair of Mahogany telephones made by Western Electric. About a year later I was lucky enough to come upon another example of this color—one that is not commonly found in a set of this vintage.

From my collection is this brown (Mahogany) Model 500 made by Western Electric.

1957 Mahogany Western Electric

The first of the plastic color Model 500’s were made in 1953.  Those colors were Ivory, Moss Green, Dark Gray (Oxford Gray) and Cherry Red.  In 1954 colors that were introduced were Mediterranean Blue, Pastel Yellow, Dark Beige (Rose Beige) and Mahogany.  These brown sets were discontinued in 1957, making a very short run of three years for this color.  A while ago I came upon an example of a Mahogany Western Electric that had lived a rough life.  Come with me as I take you along on my journey to refurbish this great piece of American history. Read the rest of this post »

As December rapidly brings 2009 to an end, it is time to reflect.  This past summer the media made mention of  significant events that had taken place in our nation’s past.  July 2009 marked the fortieth anniversary of both the Apollo 11 moon landing and the Woodstock Rock Festival.  Fifty years ago this year Mattel’s Barbie Doll made it’s first appearance while Alaska and Hawaii became our 49th and 50th States, respectively.  Much less notable was the end of production for Western Electric’s  “soft plastic” telephones. Read the rest of this post »