The Hoop Introduces Tel-Autograph Ordering – Oct. 1956

Ordering food at a drive-in back in the 1950s usually meant sitting in your car and waiting for a carhop to come take your order.

By the 1960s, technology had evolved so that it was possible to sit in your car at the drive-in and place the order through a speaker system; then, when your food was ready, it was brought out to you. The A&W Drive-in in Vermilion had a system like that.

But during the time period in-between these two scenarios, there was a unique option for drive-in restaurant owners  – and that’s the subject of today’s ad. The ad for the Hoop Drive-in on Henderson Drive ran in the Lorain Journal on October 2, 1956 and announced the restaurant’s new Tel-Autograph system of ordering.

So what was the Tel-Autograph? Much as its name implies, it was a machine that electronically transmitted messages in the sender’s own handwriting. It was invented in the late 1870s, and was the precursor to the modern fax machine.

Tel-Autograph technology seemed to be perfect for the restaurant business.

So how did it work at the Hoop? As the Journal ad noted, the drive-in customer drove by several menu boards (much like today’s drive-through lanes) before placing their order at the Tel-Autograph booth, where the "courteous attendant” took the order and transmitted it to the kitchen.

It was all very high-tech and modern for 1956.

I’m not sure how long the Tel-Autograph lasted in the drive-in world. But it's fascinating to look back and see that competition for customers was just as fierce more than sixty years ago as it is today, forcing restaurant owners to try every gimmick they could to increase sales.