Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
    Nostalgia Central
    • Home
    • Blog
      • Lists
    • Television
      • TV by Decade
        • TV – 1950s
        • TV – 1960s
        • TV – 1970s
        • TV – 1980s
        • TV – 1990s
      • Comedy
      • Drama
      • Kids TV
      • Variety
      • News & Sport
      • Advertisements
    • Music
      • Music by Decade
        • Music – 1950s
        • Music – 1960s
        • Music – 1970s
        • Music – 1980s
        • Music – 1990s
      • Artists – A to K
        • Artists – A
        • Artists – B
        • Artists – C
        • Artists – D
        • Artists – E
        • Artists – F
        • Artists – G
        • Artists – H
        • Artists – I
        • Artists – J
        • Artists – K
      • Artists – L to Z
        • Artists – L
        • Artists – M
        • Artists – N
        • Artists – O
        • Artists – P
        • Artists – Q
        • Artists – R
        • Artists – S
        • Artists – T
        • Artists – U
        • Artists – V
        • Artists – W
        • Artists – X
        • Artists – Y
        • Artists – Z
      • Artists – 0 to 9
      • Genres
      • Music on Film & TV
      • One-Hit Wonders
      • Playlists
      • Online Radio
    • Movies
      • Movies by Decade
        • Movies – 1950s
        • Movies – 1960s
        • Movies – 1970s
        • Movies – 1980s
        • Movies – 1990s
      • Movies – 0 to 9
      • Movies – A to K
        • Movies – A
        • Movies – B
        • Movies – C
        • Movies – D
        • Movies – E
        • Movies – F
        • Movies – G
        • Movies – H
        • Movies – I
        • Movies – J
        • Movies – K
      • Movies – L to Z
        • Movies – L
        • Movies – M
        • Movies – N
        • Movies – O
        • Movies – P
        • Movies – Q
        • Movies – R
        • Movies – S
        • Movies – T
        • Movies – U
        • Movies – V
        • Movies – W
        • Movies – X
        • Movies – Y
        • Movies – Z
    • Pop Culture
      • Fads
      • Toys & Games
      • Fashion
      • Decor
      • Food & Drink
      • People
      • Technology
      • Transport
    • Social History
      • 1950s Year by Year
      • 1960s Year by Year
      • 1970s Year by Year
      • 1980s Year by Year
      • 1990s Year by Year
      • Events
    Nostalgia Central
    Home»Pop Culture»Fads
    Fads Technology 2 Mins Read

    Boombox/Ghetto Blaster

    Share
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email

    A boombox (or Ghetto Blaster) – basically a large but portable cassette player with two or more loudspeakers – was first developed by Philips who released their ‘Radiorecorder’ in 1969.

    Soon every Japanese electronics manufacturer had one in their product range and flooded the European boombox market, continuing to innovate with size, form factor and technology, introducing such advances as stereo boomboxes, removable speakers, inbuilt TV receivers and, later, inbuilt CD players.

    The boombox was introduced to the American market during the mid-1970s and became popular due to the relatively compact size matched with impressive sound quality – fusing the booming sound of large home stereo systems with the portability of small personal cassette players.

    The devices exploded onto the streets of American cities and the desire for louder and heavier bass led to bigger and heavier boxes. By the 1980s some boomboxes had reached the size of a suitcase.

    The bigger the better – and if there were multi-coloured lights that flashed in time to the beat then you ruled supreme!

    The boombox quickly became associated with urban society, particularly African American and Hispanic youth, hence the (originally derogatory) nickname “ghetto blaster”.

    Cities began banning boomboxes from public places and they became less and less acceptable on city streets. Finally, Malcolm McLaren picked them up in a big way and the fad died overnight.

    Related Posts

    • Silly String
      Silly String
      No one knew what it was made of - in fact, people still don't know what it's made of! Certain…
    • Avon Ladies
      Avon Ladies
      "Ding Dong, Avon Calling" The most successful door-to-door makeup enterprise in history, Avon has been bringing front door service to…
    • Talkboy
      Talkboy
      "The Talkboy" was originally a cassette recorder and non-working prop designed and built for the 1992 blockbuster Christmas film Home…
    • Atari
      Atari
      Californian Nolan Bushnell created a game called Pong in 1971. The following year -  with $250 of his own money and…
    • 8-Track
      8-Track
      This was the first practical way to play recorded music in your car and was invented by Bill Lear and…
    • Video Games
      Video Games
      Encouraged by the success of Atari, other companies tried dipping their joysticks into the home video game market in 1976. Coleco…
    • Walkman
      Walkman
      The technology behind the Sony Walkman - a portable personal device for listening to cassettes - might never have developed without…
    • Transistor Radios
      Transistor Radios
      When the transistor replaced the bulky and unreliable vacuum tube in amplification units, transistors did the job better and were…

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email
    Previous ArticleAutomatic Teller Machines (ATM’s)
    Next Article Café-Bar

    Comments are closed.

    Follow us
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    • Instagram
    You May Also Like
    • Challenge for Robin Hood, A (1967)
      Young Norman nobleman Robin de Courtenay (Barrie Ingham) is […]
    • God Told Me To (1976)
      New Yorkers commit a series of motiveless murders – a […]
    • Cookery Lesson
      1 9 5 0 (UK) 12 x 30 minute episodes Introduced by the bearded, […]
    • Krays, The (1990)
      Gary and Martin Kemp of Spandau Ballet starred in this account […]
    • Mary Poppins (1964)
      One of Disney’s most delightful tales, Mary Poppins featured the […]
    • Waterloo (1970)
      In one bloody day of death and slaughter – 18 June 1815 […]
    Twitter Feed
    Please note


    Nostalgia Central covers the period 1950 to 1999 and contains some words and references which reflect the attitudes of those times and which may be considered culturally sensitive, offensive or inappropriate today.
    Popular Tags
    1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1975 1976 Action Figures Amicus Arcade games Australia Beach movies Beatles Blaxploitation Board games Britpop Canada Crime Disco Disney Doo-Wop Elvis Presley Girl groups Glam Goth Hammer Heavy Metal Irwin Allen Labels Merseybeat Mod revival Motown New Romantic New Wave NWOBHM Oi! One-hit wonders Power Pop Pub rock Punk Radio Scotland Ska Soul music Surf music
    Search Nostalgia Central
    Copyright © 1998, 2022 Nostalgia Central
    • About
    • Contact
    • FAQ

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.