When was the first voicemail? Long before you think.

February 13, 2023
by RJ Hamster

HOW WAS THE FIRST VOICEMAIL SENT? IN AN ENVELOPE.

Monday, February 13, 2023

In today’s newsletter, we learn the not-necessarily romantic origins of Valentines Day, discover the original voicemails, travel to where polar bears outnumber people … and stumble upon a frightening, 30-foot, um, jellyfish.

PHOTOGRAPH BY REBECCA HALE

On the voicemail, the man plays a violin, reads a lullaby, and then says: “Sleep, sleep my darling girl. It’s getting late.”

The message wasn’t on an iPhone. It was on a record. It also was from the 1940s. In many ways, the world’s first voicemails aren’t that different from those of today. (Above, a Soviet-era “happy birthday” greeting.)

But how was the message delivered? Did soldiers send these audiograms of love before a battle? Are these messages still around?

Read the full story here.

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PHOTOGRAPH BY SULZER, RDB/ULLSTEIN BILD/GETTY IMAGES

Leave a message at the tone: At-home devices and public recording booths (like the Voice-o-Graph booth, above) were among the ways people recorded “voice mail.”Read more.

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IN THE SPOTLIGHT

PHOTOGRAPH BY ALEXEY SIZOV, EYEEM/GETTY IMAGES

How Valentine’s Day began: Well, it wasn’t always about love. Per se. Historians say the inspiration for tomorrow’s holiday may have been a festival celebrating fertility—or the execution of a martyr, Sydney Combs writes. (Pictured above, a heart-shaped hot air balloon soars over snow-covered land.)

I HEART YOU

PHOTO OF THE DAY

PHOTOGRAPH BY @REUBEN WU

Not UFOs: On the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen, huge radomes making up the Svalbard Satellite Station seem to hover in the mist. From a series of images documenting the unearthly beauty of the ground station, which supports orbiting satellites. Here’s how to reach this land where polar bears outnumber people.

BRRR AND GRRR!

LAST GLIMPSE

PHOTOGRAPH BY ANTONY GILBERT

A 30-foot what? The rare sighting of a giant phantom jellyfish in chilly Antarctic waters came about because of tourists using private submersibles. Areas below 150 feet have rarely been explored in the Antarctic, but the submersibles can go down 1,000 feet. Here’s what we know about these giant deep-water invertebrates.

A RARE GIANT

Today’s soundtrack: Inspiration Information, Shuggie Otis

Today’s newsletter was curated and edited by Sydney Combs, Jen Tse, and David Beard. Have an idea or link to a story you think is right down our alley? Let us know at david.beard@natgeo.com. Happy trails!

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RJ Hamster

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When was the first voicemail? Long before you think.

When was the first voicemail? Long before you think.

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