Alva F. Allen
 Melomite, the Magic Crystal

 
Alva F. Allen
 

 
Alva Allen Advertisement
 
In the 1940s and 1950s, Alva Allen placed ads in magazines advertising novelty and magic catalogs, letterheads, envelopes and business cards, money making formulas, and used US Signal Corps headphones, but by far the greatest number of advertisements were for crystal sets.

Note: It seems his main business was Alva Allen Industries, which manufactured one and two ton punch presses. The business was begun by his father and continued by his son, all three of whom were named Alva Franklin Allen. Along with his father, he was also the owner of Alva Allen Chevrolet, and sold thousands of new cars between 1937 and 1955. Ironically, the elder Alva Allen was killed in an automobile accident in 1946.
 

If you responded to the crystal set ad, shown below is what arrived in the envelope.
Click on any image for a larger version in .PDF format
.
 
Alva Allen
Alva Allen
Alva Allen
Alva Allen
Envelope Instructions Radio supplies Order form
 

 
 
The Magic Crystal
 
The Magic Crystal
 
  1945   1950  
"The Magic Crystal." Four pages in newspaper format. Click on image for .PDF.

 
Melomite
The Melomite Magic Crystal!
 
Melomite
Melomite
This is copyright 1932, the same year MRL began. Click for full size
 
Melomite
 
The "Melomite crystal detector" sold by Alva Allen was manufactured by the Melomite Company of Kansas City, Missouri. The Melomite Co. began in 1932, the same year Allen began selling their crystals under the label "The Magic Crystal."

This was no "kitchen table" operation. In 1947 Alva Allen Radio Parts was one of several companies honored by the Clinton, Missouri Chamber of Commerce. A newspaper article from 1955 refers to Alva as "the radio crystal king."