Washing Machine Museum - musical clothes dryer that plays the song: "How Dry I Am"

The "How Dry I Am" clothes dryer in Lee Maxell's Washing Machine Museum in Eaton, CO:
www.oldewash.com
Check out other videos in the Washing Machine Museum playlist:
• Washing Machine Museum

[@maynard7777]

We had this clothes dryer when I was a little boy in the 1960's. It's so cool to see one that still works. I remember when the dryer finally broke down, my father took out the little automatic xylophone inside, and we could make it play by hooking it up to the model train transformer.

[@italobambino43]

Amazing ingenuity, today we pride ourselves on how technically advanced we have become! Well, show me something made today that would compare to a dryer like that? If I'm not mistaken, Westi front load washers weighed your load of clothes via the lid, and then adjusted the water level and detergent accordingly! Sunbeam toasters that lowered the bread automaticaly, Proctor Silex coffee percolators with lights in side, appliances have become so boring today!

[@bluepearl9075]

Yeah! Meanwhile my generation is stuck with SMART THIS and SMART THAT, which are just wiretaps anyway.

[@yeksrub]

I'm from Mansfield Ohio where that was made. Dad workd there(Westinghouse) in the QC dept. Dad would talk about the How Dry I Am clothes dryer The chime bars were purchased from a outside source.The bars were sampled for the correct note with a Conn Strobotuner.That is the first time I ever heard one!

[@dude2meetu]

I was one of 5 boys growing up & my mom had this washer & dryer. We took turns opening/closing the door to hear the music. Mom took care of that with a “smack” on the . . . Well you know LOL 😆

[@CH67guy1]

My parents had this dryer in the 1960s. Also, when this dryer was running you could look inside and see the electric heating element glowing red! My mom used this dryer up through 1975! I remember the year because this is when we moved from upstate New York to southwestern Pennsylvania. We moved, but sadly, the dryer did not. I’m not sure whether it was not worth moving or perhaps it was because the farmhouse we were moving into had an old fuse box with just 60 amps of service!

[@italobambino43]

@ufoengines I recall my Grandmothers Brown 1965 Lady Kenore washer, I loved the fluorescent light on the top, the little..cycle indicator lights, the white porcelain basket and the black Roto-Swirl agitator with removable measuring cup! If that washer span out of balance, a buzzer would sound and the washer shut off. Nothing like that today! Oh, yeah they finally make them with a feature that redistributes the load, yipee! Took em how long for that?

[@DrDaveBilliards]

@maynard7777 That's a great story. Thank you for sharing it. Every time somebody reminds me about this video, I end up humming "How Dry I Am" the whole rest of the day. My wife loves it!! :)

[@DrDaveBilliards]

I think the song is even older than the 50s, but I'm not sure. The song is created by a music-box type mechanism. Dr. Dave

[@debbiesabel1321]

My mom is 92 and still remembers having this dryer in the 60's. I grew up with it in the house for at least 20years. It was fun to listen to!

[@DrDaveBilliards]

That's a great story. Thanks.

[@bratto14]

LOL - My mom had one of these - we used to driver her crazy opening and closing it just to hear it sing. 'How dry I am How dry I am nobody knows how dry I am'... when we got a little older we changed the words a bit 'how dry I am how wet i'll be if I don't find a place to p**'

[@debbiesabel1321]

This is how I learned the "changed" words- How dry I am, How wet I'll be, if I don't find, the bathroom key..... I found the key, I found the door, but it's too late, it's on the floor!

[@steve154life]

I haft neaver seen a drying macheine like that before and i would love to have a chime like that on a drying machine

[@DrDaveBilliards]

@Matthewsmollen4 Good summary! :)

[@ufoengines]

We had an old Westinghouse dryer that had a buzzer that sounded like the warning horn for the start of WW III. Ah... the 1960's When my dad had the thing hauled off, I was kinda sad to see it go.

[@DrDaveBilliards]

Funny! I bet you're right.

[@maplewoodsp]

My grandmother had this dryer. It was only made with a chime for one year according to the George Westinghouse video on KZbin at 1 hour and 52 minutes.

[@MoskitoGirl]

All of the Super Smash Bros. Brawl newcomers watched this video.

[@michaelridenour2113]

Very cool! This feature cost the purchaser of the dryer an additional $35.00. Thanks for posting

[@orangie84]

It is much much older.. And seems to have a strange history.. Google search it.. But as for what I know its from a song actually called "The Near Future" by Irving Berlin which he wrote in 1919.. (But according to wikipedia it could be earlier..) You also heard it a lot in cartoons from that era

[@homargc]

My father-in-law told me about having, as a kid (he's 72) a clothes dryer at home that played "How dry I am", once it would finish its task. I was inclined to take his claim with a grain of salt, in view of our pragmatic, plain, and aiming for silence modern appliances. I just found this clip, and he was elated at seeing the old musical Westinghouse machine. He feels vindicated!

[@DrDaveBilliards]

Thanks for the info. I'm glad you finally got to hear one.

[@italobambino43]

@yeksrub Mansfield Ohio for Westinghouse and Bridgeport Connecticut for G-E were both very busy places for the Appliance industry! I have ran across other small appliances that were made in Mansfield Ohio to!

[@gusbaker4u]

I heard Amy Winehouse has one of these in her home.

[@Michael-Archonaeus]

Rip...

[@DrDaveBilliards]

Lee might know. You can contact him via the link in the video description.

[@peugteobike]

I would Love to have one of these

[@jasonnabors8605]

We made things better back then.

[@anaverageamount8693]

Did the washer play a song

[@Hardworkwork777]

I want that song for my doorbell. Westinghouse was a great man.

[@lisahooven-corp904]

my grandma had one!

[@uofmrebel]

Proof of how far manufacturing has gone down. Today's dryers are not built this good and for sure aren't going to have nifty feature like this. Everything is made so cheaply.

[@michaelridenour2113]

But not sold cheaply

[@SpiritMusician]

Cool, my parents just showed me our (old~) wine bottle that kind of looks like an oil lamp that sings how dry i am everytime you pick it up to pour (after you turn the key, that is) I'm hoping to do my business project on it.

[@sandyn4870]

Oh wow I love this!

[@imperiallebaron2391]

Only Westinghouse would have thought of that.

[@amandinehasi-dim5531]

love it

[@ALANSWEETIES99]

WOW amazing is America style of dryer-machine! That's Very Wonderful.

[@GeekBoy03]

Actually they are.

[@HunterMann]

Did you ever sell this dryer? I'll be driving my van through Ohio this summer and would like to see it. I guess summer is clothesline weather anyway, huh? -Hunter Mann

[@poppylover2586]

Nobody Knows How Dry I Am

[@Renatodonadio]

It has the same chords of "By the rivers of Babylon" by Bob Marley

[@Stardude78]

Not Bob Marley, but the Melodians.

[@willoconnor8934]

I should be revising

[@Matthewsmollen4]

@DrDaveBilliards thanks

[@peugteobike]

How many of these did maytag make ?where can I find one

[@W7DSY]

My brother-in-law Arly (Arly's Appliance, Shafter CA) gave me one of these chimes and I am modifying it to install in my modern Whirlpool dryer.

[@poppylover2586]

How Dry We Are How Dry We Are. Nobody Knows, How Dry We Are. Hooowwww Dryyyyyy Weeeeeeeee Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaare.

[@Shane1163]

oh wow I never seen one like that before, I think that would get pretty annoying if you can't turn that off..

[@debbiesabel1321]

It only plays the song at the end of the dry cycle-instead of a buzzer. If I remember correctly, it played the song twice and stopped.

[@추범식-u1z]

좋아요!

[@Grasshopper80s4ever]

I love it ! . I wish my new dryer have that option. My dryer makes an annoying buzzing sound .

[@genomekender8471]

Interesting hobby

[@poppylover2586]

I love this song

[@rickhyde2777]

My Grandmother had this dryer

[@Matthewsmollen4]

How Dry I Am. How Dry I Am. Nobody Knows, How Dry I Am. Hooowwww Dryyyyyy IIIIII Ammmmm.

[@Matthewsmollen4]

Nice.