Furniture
Rare Art Deco Philco RadioBar with Decorative Wood Veneers and Bluetooth
Rare Art Deco Philco RadioBar with Decorative Wood Veneers and Bluetooth
This rare American Art Deco Philco RadioBar combines the pleasure of a fully appointed cocktail bar with a restored vintage radio equipped for Bluetooth streaming. Play music from your iPhone, smartphone or computer through the radio’s original tube circuitry, enjoying your favorite recordings with the warm sound of a period entertainment cabinet. Stream Apple Music, Pandora or your own playlists while serving cocktails from a piece designed for precisely this kind of gathering. A fitted 1/8 inch audio input also provides a wired connection for compatible equipment. Finding, restoring and outfitting these remarkable RadioBars has long been a specialty of ours.
Dating to circa 1936, this elaborate model expresses Art Deco luxury through decorative veneer work, combining figured and burl woods. The carefully arranged wood patterns give the cabinet depth and character, while its stepped profile establishes a strong architectural presence. Opening the lid and side doors reveals an illuminated mirrored cocktail interior with fitted glassware racks, decanter compartments and folding serving shelves. Etched mirror details, decorative Bakelite radio knobs and opening center doors distinguish this more elaborate design. The radio chassis has been thoroughly tested and restored.
The supplied collection comprises forty nine pieces: forty glasses in four sizes, six labeled decanters for gin, vermouth, whiskey, brandy, scotch and bourbon, one cocktail shakers, one rare bitters bottle and one large mixing decanter. The extensive cocktail service, expressive cabinet woods and Bluetooth equipped radio make this an Art Deco centerpiece ready for entertaining today.
We have a copy of the original brochure, which says it best:
"RadioBar provides the nucleus for formal and informal entertaining…hosts proclaim it, guests thrill to it…for the RadioBar with Philco is all things in one! The 1936 models, all exclusively equipped with Philco radio receivers … are ideal for the living room, the den, the library, and the "rumpus" room. Radiobar provides the host or hostess with a convenient and superbly appointed means of entertaining! The Radiobar is not a "cellarette" to hide, but a magnificent piece of exquisitely designed furniture!"
In addition to the high-style design and the uniquely amusing combination of a radio and a bar, the Radiobar is featured in many movies of the period as an iconic symbol of luxury. You'll find it in the Bogart/ Cagney film "Angels with Dirty Faces" and taking center stage in" Gold Diggers of 1933″ when Joan Blondell and Warren Williams meet in her stylish Art Deco Flat. Catch another glimpse of it in the 1935 Alfred Hitchcock thriller "39 Steps" with Robert Donat.
One of the Full Catalogs
