A Look at Billboard Magazine 100 Years Ago
Billboard, best known for their charts ranking the popularity of musical pieces, was originally launched in 1894 as a publication for billposting (advertisements, basically). After launching their “Fair Department” covering carnival attractions often advertised on physical billboards, amusement-related ads became commonplace. Naturally, the “The Billboard Magazine” would evolve into a premier publication for the entertainment industry.
Today, most people probably have never read Billboard Magazine, but chances are they have heard of their charts. Billboard has heavily influenced how the entertainment industry operates today, and it’s pretty cool to see what their early issues looked like. Let’s take a look at how The Billboard Magazine looked 100 years ago!
The Billboard Magazine Cover - July 14, 1923 via worldradiohistory.com
The Billboard Magazine Page 3 - July 14, 1923 via worldradiohistory.com
Ad from The Billboard Magazine - July 14,1923 via worldradiohistory.com
Business Records from The Billboard Magazine Page 10 - July 14, 1923 via worldradiohistory.com
Booking in the entertainment industry looked much different 100 years ago!
The Billboard Magazine Page 18 - July 14, 1923 via worldradiohistory.com
The “William Todd Show” advertisement really encapsulates how different things were ethically in 1923.
The Billboard Magazine Page 29 - July 14, 1923 via worldradiohistory.com
The Billboard Magazine Page 48 - July 14, 1923 via worldradiohistory.com
The Billboard Magazine Page 80 - July 14, 1923 via worldradiohistory.com
The prices on some of these products seem unreal. Thanks, inflation!
The Billboard Magazine Page 85 - July 14, 1923 via worldradiohistory.com
Goodyear raincoats? I thought they made tires!
The Billboard Magazine Page 87 - July 14, 1923 via worldradiohistory.com
The “Letter List” helped connect performers, managers, promoters, etc. with each other long before the Internet.
The Billboard Magazine Page 116 - July 14, 1923 via worldradiohistory.com
You can find the entire July 14, 1923 issue of “The Billboard Magazine” at worldradiohistory.com!
Check out Billboard’s official website to see what they’re up to today!
