The idea of using the phonograph to record a telephone conversation was re-invented many times in the early 20th century, but no commercial telephone recorders appeared on the market (at least in the United States). These inventions were quietly patented, or sometimes loudly announced, but all faded into obscurity almost instantly. For example, in 1925 inventor Truman Stevens (shown here) demonstrated his automatic answering machine, based on cylinder dictation technology. The story was picked up by Popular Science Monthly and other popular magazines, but the product did not succeed.