MOOG Meets Taco Bell and Goes to Church

I'm currently reading "Analog Days" by Trevor Pinch and Frank Trocco. You can find the book in the Synth Books section on the right of this site. I just got to the part were the Minimoog Model D finally came into fruition in 1970. According to the book, it was first introduced to music stores by David VanKoevering. David was putting on a show with a theremin when he first met Bob Moog. Bob went to his show and invited him to come see Gershon Kingsley perform at Carnegie Hall with the MOOG modular. Soon after, David ended up picking up a MOOG Model 10 according to this site. What was particularly interesting was how David first began to promote MOOG.

"Like a traveling medicine show, Van Koevering moved thousands of Minimoogs by using innovative marketing techniques. In Florida, he hooked up with Taco Bell, handing out free coupons to the restaurant, and then showing up later in the evening to play to diners. He promoted the "Island of Electronicus," an artificial land mass connected by a causeway to the Florida coast, where a Moog concert was scheduled. The radio ads announced, 'Where is the Moog synthesizer? It's here now ... to stimulate your feelings, thought, and your love for your fellow man.'"

Yes, this Taco Bell. :)

The above quote comes from this article from the San Antonio Current. BTW, I couldn't find an image of the Taco Bell flyer although there is one pictured in Analog Days. If anyone knows where I can find one online, feel free to comment. The image in this post is of David's "The Island of Electronics" which he formed shortly after. You can also read more about this on VOTAGE::MAIN where I found the image. Be sure to check out all the links in this post for more of the fascinating story and of course "Analog Days."

David later repackaged the Memorymoog as the "Sanctuary Synthesizer" and sold them to a number of churches. I wonder how many are still sitting in storage... (image via this post)

Note: according to some on AH and other sites there are inaccuracies in the book, "Analog Days." I haven't discovered a comprehensive list. If you know of such a list, please comment. If you know of the inaccuracies also feel free to comment. If there is enough interest I could create the list with a sticky post for us. Regardless, the book is a great read. It is well written and a fascinating story of the birth of MOOG, and it touches on Buchla.

Update via marr in the comments:

"There's a scan of the flyer on moogarchives...
http://moogarchives.com/vako2.jpg
http://moogarchives.com/vako3.jpg"