Wurlitzer

English

Wurlitzer 3500 "Zodiac" Juke-box (1971)

Etymology

Borrowed from German Wurlitzer; the jukebox is named after Franz Rudolph Wurlitzer (1831-1914).

Proper noun

Wurlitzer (plural Wurlitzers)

1. A surname from German.

Statistics

• According to data collected by Forebears in 2014, Wurlitzer is the 208022^nd most common surname in the United States, belonging to 96 individuals.

Noun

Wurlitzer (plural Wurlitzers)

1. A jukebox manufactured by the Rudolph Wurlitzer Company.
   • 1971, Joni Mitchell (lyrics and music), “The Last Time I Saw Richard”, in Blue:

     He put a quarter in the Wurlitzer, and he pushed / Three buttons and the thing began to whirr

   • 2004, Sam Nelson, The Addict, page 75:

     Frenchy was dancin' over by the jukebox, the old Wurlitzer with the neon-type lights that wrapped in an arc over the top and down almost to the floor. Well, it's an old Wurlitzer now but it was pretty new then.

Further reading

• Hanks, Patrick, editor (2003), “Wurlitzer”, in Dictionary of American Family Names, volume 3, New York City: Oxford University Press, →ISBN.