“Put in a quarter / Turn out the light / Magic Fingers makes you feel all right.” Jimmy Buffett

Sorry but I have to write this post. John Houghtaling, the inventor of the Magic Fingers vibrating bed has passed away. For anyone out there under the age of 40 I apologize for this bit of nostalgia.

The Magic Fingers was a staple of Holiday Inns and other mid-priced motels in the last century. You dropped a quarter in the box on the bed table and the vibrator would shake the beejesus out of you.

I remember begging my Dad for a couple of quarters the first time I understood what it was all about. My siblings and I crowded onto the bed and most certainly didn’t use the device for its intended purpose. Our fifty cent ride was mostly taken up by laying on our backs, finding great humor in the different sounds we could make courtesy of the vibrations to our lungs.

I couldn’t resist this bit of reminiscing. God speed Mr. Houghtaling. You will be remembered for awhile by a few of us and thanks to Mr. Buffett probably have a bit more enduring fame than most.

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