This ad for a Meissner “remote control” appeared in Radio Retailing magazine 80 years ago this month, September 1938. It promises pushbutton tuning and volume control for any receiver.

The device appears to be a complete radio receiver of its own, which rebroadcast the desired signal at a blank spot on the dial of the radio it was controlling. The giveaway is the fact that the “remote control” is connected by 15-foot cable to the antenna and ground connection of the receiver, and that it requires its own power connection.

The remote was certainly smaller than the receiver though, since its handsome light walnut cabinet measured only 4-1/2 inches high.