Cash Box magazine

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Cash Box magazine was a weekly publication devoted to the music and coin-operated machine industry. It published from July 1942 to November 16, 1996. The publication has been revived as an internet-only magazine.

1 History
2 Scandal
3 Revival
4 References
5 External links

[edit] History

It was one of several magazines that published charts of song popularity in the United States of America. Cash Box's most prominent competitors included Billboard and Record World (known as Music Vendor prior to the April 18, 1964, issue). Unlike Billboard, Cash Box initially combined all currently available recordings of a song into one chart position. Artist and label information was shown for each version, alphabetized by label. Originally, no indication of which version was the biggest seller was given. Beginning October 25, 1952, a star was placed next to the names of the most important artists.

Separate charts were presented for juke box popularity, record sales and radio airplay, similar to Billboard's methodology prior to August 1958, when it debuted its Hot 100, which attempted to combine all measures of popularity into one all-encompassing chart. In addition, chart data were presented for specific genres such as country music.

[edit] Scandal

In the 1980s, the management of Cash Box sold chart positions for cash. According to record producer Robert Metzgar, "The minimum amount for six to seven weeks on the chart was $2,500." When a 23-year-old Cash Box employee named Kevin Hughes threatened to reveal this, magazine management had him killed.<ref>Music Row murder trial gets underway,Amanda Wardle, Nashville City Paper, September 24, 2003</ref> In 2005, former Cash Box magazine employee Richard "Tony" D’Antonio was sentenced to life in prison for the crime.

[edit] Revival

In 2006, new owners revived Cashbox magazine on the Internet. While the web site is still under construction, it does feature music industry news, music charts and music reviews.