View source for Fisher, Vories

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This page presents a biography of Franklin Vories Fisher, always known as '''Vories Fisher'''.

It is part of the site [[Classical 'Society' Records by Nick Morgan]].

From the early 1920s, Fisher worked as a stock broker in Chicago. He collected records, and wrote about them for British and US magazines.

In 1925, Fisher and his first wife, [[Fisher, Dorothy B.|Dorothy B. Fisher]], started hosting a private gramophone circle which became the [[Chicago Gramophone Society]]. Together with fellow-member [[Pollak, Robert|Robert Pollak]], Fisher was responsible for commissioning the USA's first known subscription records, issued by the Society in 1927.

In 1928 Fisher ceased writing about records. The Chicago Gramophone Society also disappeared from view.

In the 1930s, Fisher changed career and worked as a professional photographer until his retirement.

For dates of creation and latest update, please see 'Page information' in left sidebar.

==Life==
'''Born''' 23 May 1901, Chicago, Illinois, USA<ref>Biographical data for Fisher and family retrieved from birth, death, census, travel and other documents, accessed via <span class="plainlinks">[https://www.ancestry.co.uk/ ancestry.co.uk]</span>, except where noted; additional details of Fisher's early life, education and personality kindly supplied by Fisher's daughter, whose generous and patient help are very gratefully acknowledged (personal communications, June 2017)</ref>

'''Married''' 28 October 1924, [[Fisher, Dorothy B.|Dorothy Button]], Chicago

'''Divorced''' date unknown

'''Married''' 13 April 1943, Florence Gertrude Armstrong, Chicago

'''Children''' Daughter, born 12 September 1943 (still living); daughter, born 17 December 1944 (still living), both Chicago

'''Died''' 31 December 1969, Chicago

==Studies==
Fisher was the only child of George Franklin Fisher Jr. (1876-1942), manager of a laundry, later President of the Hyde Park Laundry Company and an officer of the Illinois Laundry Owners' Association,<ref>'Sober Is Head Of Laundry Owners', ''The Decatur Herald'' [Decatur, Illinois, Saturday 24 March 1928, p.24; 'George Fisher Pays $250,000 For Laundry', ''Chicago Sunday Tribune'', Sunday 19 May 1929, Part 3, p.2; 'Death Notices', ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Wednesday 18 November 1942, Section Two, p.28</ref> and Grace Elizabeth Vories (1877-1959), born into an affluent family prominent in the baking industry.<ref>'Week Of Weddings', ''The Sunday Inter Ocean'' [Chicago, Illinois], 12 June 1898, p.17; 'Harry F. Vories Funeral Rites To Be Tomorrow', ''Chicago Sunday Tribune'', 16 August 1931, Part 1, p.16; 'Death Notices', ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Wednesday 22 April 1959, Part 3, p.[12]</ref> The Fishers were reportedly conservative and not artistic; Vories' personality, artistic, altruistic and progressive, was in noted contrast to theirs.<ref>Information kindly supplied by Fisher's daughter (personal communications, June 2017)</ref>

Vories attended the <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Chicago_Laboratory_Schools University of Chicago Laboratory Schools]</span> in Hyde Park,<ref>I am grateful to Vories Fisher's daughter for sharing this information; private e-mails, 10 & 11 May 2021</ref> and then the University itself, from 1918 until 1922, when he graduated as PhB (Bachelor of Philosophy).<ref>'Alumni News', ''University of Chicago Magazine'', Vol.LXII No.4, January 1970, pp.36-44</ref> At the University, Fisher was very active in student drama: he was a member and officer of the Dramatic Club, appearing in many of its productions, directing some of them, and finally becoming its President.<ref><span class="plainlinks">[http://campub.lib.uchicago.edu/view/?docId=mvol-0004-1918-1108;#page/1/mode/1up/ 'Dramatic Club Elects Seven Candidates To Associate Membership']</span>, ''The Daily Maroon'' [University of Chicago], Vol.XVII No.23, 8 November 1918, pp.[1]-2; <span class="plainlinks">[http://campub.lib.uchicago.edu/view/?docId=mvol-0001-0027-0000;#page/226/mode/1up/ 'Dramatic Club']</span>, ''Cap & Gown'' (University of Chicago Junior Class yearbook), Vol.27, 1922, pp.210-13</ref> As well as acting in plays put on by other groups, in May 1922 Fisher played a reporter in <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bartlett_Cormack Bartlett Cormack]</span>'s highly successful ''Anybody's Girl'', mounted by the <span class="plainlinks">[https://www.lib.uchicago.edu/e/scrc/findingaids/view.php?eadid=ICU.SPCL.BLACKFRIARS Blackfriars]</span>, the student musical comedy society.<ref>Bird, Harry Jr. <span class="plainlinks">[http://campub.lib.uchicago.edu/view/?docId=mvol-0002-0014-0007;#page/18/mode/1up/ 'News Of The Quadrangles']</span>, ''University of Chicago Magazine'', Vol.XIV No.7, May 1922, p.256; see also 'Large Audience Applauds Plays by Chicago Authors', ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Tuesday 2 May 1922, Section One, p.25 (Fisher is not named in this report)</ref> His appearance in the role was captured in a contemporary photograph:<br /><br /><img src=http://storage.lib.uchicago.edu/ucpa/series4/derivatives_series4/apf4-03050r.jpg><br />
(University of Chicago Photographic Archive, <span class="plainlinks">[http://photoarchive.lib.uchicago.edu/db.xqy?one=apf4-03050.xml apf4-03050]</span>, Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library)

It was possibly through the Blackfriars that Fisher met [[Pollak, Robert|Robert Pollak]], who was closely involved in its 1923 and 1924 productions (although Fisher is not known to have joined the society). Later, they would be fellow-members of the [[Chicago Gramophone Society]] and co-sponsors of its two recorded issues. In 1924, after graduating, Fisher acted in the University's annual Christmas 'Revels', put on by the faculty <span class="plainlinks">[http://quadclub.uchicago.edu/about_us/history Quadrangle Club]</span>;<ref><span class="plainlinks">[http://campub.lib.uchicago.edu/view/?docId=mvol-0002-0016-0003;#page/9/mode/1up/ 'Alumni Affairs']</span>, ''University of Chicago Magazine'', Vol.XVI No.3, January 1924, pp.87-90</ref> Pollak contributed to the Revels for several years, although his early involvement is not yet documented. Fisher also belonged to an unofficial student society, the 'Green Chalybeate', whose 'Supreme Calyb' was Fisher's friend <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Gunther John Gunther]</span>; Pollak witnessed some of their antics and later chronicled them.<ref>Pollak, Robert <span class="plainlinks">[http://campub.lib.uchicago.edu/view/?docId=mvol-0002-0031-0003;#page/10/mode/1up/ 'Continental Footnotes']</span>, ''University of Chicago Magazine'', Vol.31 No.3, December 1938, pp.8-9, 20; id <span class="plainlinks">[http://campub.lib.uchicago.edu/view/?docId=mvol-0002-0060-0001;#page/8/mode/1up 'Those Were the Days']</span>, ibid., Vol.60 No.1, October 1967, pp.4-7</ref> Finally, Fisher was a member of the Score Club, a sophomore honour society.<ref><span class="plainlinks">[http://campub.lib.uchicago.edu/view/?docId=mvol-0004-1919-0514;#page/1/mode/1up/ 'Score Club']</span>, ''The Daily Maroon'' [University of Chicago], Vol.17 No.108, 14 May 1919, p.[1]</ref>

Fisher did not study music, academically or privately, and did not learn or play an instrument. According to his daughter, he 'could not carry a tune', but he had attended orchestral concerts in Chicago as a child, and became a life-long lover of classical music and opera.

==Early employment==
After completing his studies in the summer of 1922, Fisher sailed for Europe on a cattle boat with friends, including <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Gunther Gunther]</span>, later author of the celebrated ''Inside—'' books.<ref>Krebs, Albin 'John Gunther Dead; Wrote 'Inside' Books', ''New York Times'', Saturday 30 May 1970, New York edition, p.1</ref> Together, they visited several European countries. On his return, Fisher found employment in Chicago's financial sector. He reportedly did not enjoy this work, and had to rein in his bohemian tendencies. Years later, he told the ''Chicago Sunday Tribune'' that
 'he shaved the beard he had grown while traveling to Europe with John Gunther [...] "In the financial world then one just didn't wear a beard!"'<ref>Page, Eleanor 'Does a Beard Add to Manly Charm?', ''Chicago Sunday Tribune'', Vol.CXIII No.39, 20 July 1958, Part 7, p.4</ref>

It is not known which firm or firms Fisher initially worked for. Possibly he went into business on his own account (see [[#Later employment|below]]). He may also have met his [[Fisher, Dorothy B.|future wife]] at work: in 1927, his business address was given as 208 South LaSalle St., where the Chicago branch of H.M. Byllesby and Co. Investment Securities had had its offices until late 1924.<ref>In November 1924, H.M. Byllesby and Co. Investment Securities moved to 231 South LaSalle, see 'Tax-Exempt Investments Yielding 4.25% to 5.25%' (advertisement), ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Wednesday 12 November 1924, p.36, and 'Investors in Municipal Bonds' (advertisement), ibid., Tuesday 25 November 1924, p.27</ref> Dorothy Button had been working for Byllesby since 1922;<ref>'Class Catalogue', ''Bulletin of The University of Kansas Lawrence Alumni Catalogue'', Vol.XXIII No.4, 15 February 1922, pp.17-206 (on p.<span class="plainlinks">[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015076382848;view=1up;seq=125 123]</span>)</ref> admittedly, many firms had their offices at 208 South LaSalle, but the coincidence is striking. After they were married, the Fishers apparently enjoyed a reasonable income: Vories Fisher was able to afford to buy a large number of records, some imported from abroad, and to travel again to Europe with his wife.

==''The Gramophone''==
Fisher's interest in recorded music is first documented in the British magazine ''<span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gramophone_(magazine) The Gramophone]</span>'', to which he was probably an early subscriber (although he never specifically described himself as such). In 1925 and 1926, it published three contributions from him:
*'Polydor Records' [letter], ''The Gramophone'', Vol.III No.1, June 1925, p.40
*(with Dr. Kenneth E. Britzius) 'List of Recorded Music of Richard Strauss', ibid., Vol.III No.4, September 1925, p.183
*(with Dr. Kenneth E. Britzius) 'Recorded Music of Debussy', ibid., Vol.III No.12, May 1926, p.563
The letter was written in response to a request from the Editor for readers' opinions of orchestral works issued on Polydor, the export label of Germany's Grammophon company, which had recently begun to be distributed in Britain.<ref>'The Polydor Catalogue', ''The Gramophone'', Vol.II No.10, March 1925, pp.373-74</ref> Fisher had to import Polydor records to the USA, presumably at considerable expense; but he did not let this affect his judgement, offering perceptive, honest and trenchant evaluations of them. His other two contributions are remarkable as early efforts at discography, compiled jointly with a collector from Minneapolis.<ref>Fisher later credited the Tulsa architect <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Goff Bruce Goff]</span> with having compiled a discography of Debussy, which may have formed the basis of the list submitted to ''The Gramophone'' by Fisher and Britzius, see [Fisher,] Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_5/1_5#page/n24/mode/1up 'Recorded Remnants']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.5, February 1927, p.215</ref> Fisher was an admirer of Richard Strauss's music, and probably owned many of the numerous records he listed, again including several imports.<ref>[Fisher,] Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_6/1_6#page/n34/mode/1up 'Recorded Remnants']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.6, March 1927, p.274</ref> These contributions confirm Fisher's later claim that he had been collecting records for some time, possibly since 1922 or so.<ref>Fisher, Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_12/1_12#page/n23/mode/2up 'S.K., my silence has not been (...)'] [letter]</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.12, September 1927, pp.511-12</ref>

''The Gramophone'' almost certainly gave Fisher the ideas of forming a gramophone society, of using 'contests' as a form of market research, and possibly of commissioning private recordings. The magazine's first number included an article on 'How To Start A Gramophone Society', and two pages of reports of the activities of existing societies in London, Glasgow and on Tyneside;<ref>Rogers, Wm. J. 'How To Start A Gramophone Society', ''The Gramophone'', Vol.I No.1, April 1923, pp.10-11; (various authors) 'Gramophone Societies' Reports', ibid., pp.11-13</ref> it carried these reports in almost every issue for several years.<ref>''The Gramophone'' suspended its regular society reports between early 1927 and June 1935, see Mackenzie, Compton 'December Records', ''The Gramophone'', Vol.IV No.8, January 1927, pp.[314]-22 (on pp.321-22); 'Correspondence and Gramophone Society Reports', ibid., Vol.XIII No.145, June 1935, pp.41-44</ref> In the fourth number, the Editor, <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compton_Mackenzie Compton Mackenzie]</span>, mooted a subscription record scheme, which was successfully launched by the end of 1924 as the [[National Gramophonic Society]] (N.G.S.).<ref>On the background, launch and early months of the [[National Gramophonic Society]], see Morgan, Nick ''The National Gramophonic Society'', Sheffield: CRQ Editions, 2016, §2.4, pp.51-60</ref> Like the magazine itself, this innovative venture quickly attracted subscribers in the USA, some of whom were named in the Society's reports and notices in ''The Gramophone''.<ref>'[...] records are already being sent to America, China, Australia, South Africa, Egypt, and even Turkey.': 'National Gramophonic Society Notes', ''The Gramophone'', Vol.II No.8, January 1925, p.294; among early US members of the N.G.S. was Fisher's fellow-discographer, Dr. Kenneth Britzius of Minneapolis, see e.g. 'National Gramophonic Society Notes', ''The Gramophone'', Vol.III No.2, July 1925, p.80</ref> Fisher was not among those named, and clear evidence for his membership of the N.G.S. is lacking, but he later acknowledged the Society as a source of inspiration.<ref>'We are very proud in Chicago of the first set of privately made records that is soon to be issued; we will always look upon The National Gramophone [sic] Society in London as one of the really important movements in modern phonograph activities'; [Fisher,] Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_6/1_6#page/n34/mode/1up 'Recorded Remnants']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.6, March 1927, p.274</ref> He probably also took inspiration from ''The Gramophone'' for the various contests which he oversaw in the magazine's first US imitator (see [[#Contests|below]]).

In 1927, Fisher and his wife called at the London offices of ''The Gramophone'', and met its London Editor, Christopher Stone, who was also the N.G.S.'s [[Stone, Christopher|Secretary]]; in an enthusiastic <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_11/1_11#page/n17/mode/2up account]</span> of the visit, Fisher relayed a hopeful rumour that 'in the not too distant future the N.G.S. records will be made available in this country.'<ref>[Fisher,] Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_11/1_11#page/n17/mode/1up/ 'Recorded Remnants']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.11, August 1927, pp.462-63<br />National Gramophonic Society issues had been available to North American members of the N.G.S. from the Society's launch in late 1924, but Fisher was clearly hoping for local retail distribution; this was not realised until the opening in April 1928 of the first North American retailer to import N.G.S. records, The Gramophone Shop in New York City, see Johnson, Axel B. <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_7/2_7#page/n5/mode/1up 'General Review']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.II No.7, April 1928, pp.241-44 (on p.244), <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_7/2_7#page/n23/mode/1up 'The Gramophone Shop']</span> [advertisement], ibid., p.262, 'Trade Winds and Idle Zephyrs', ''The Gramophone'', Vol.V No.12, May 1928, pp.511-12 (on p.512)</ref> He later sent a copy of the Chicago Gramophone Society's [[Chicago Gramophone Society 50016-P, 50017-P|first issue]] to ''The Gramophone''; it was acknowledged in the magazine but not reviewed.<ref>'Trade Winds and Idle Zephyrs', ''The Gramophone'', Vol.5 No.4, September 1927, pp.171-72 (on p.172)</ref>

==''The Phonograph Monthly Review''==
In the autumn of 1926, a publisher in Boston, Massachusetts, launched a new magazine. Clearly and closely modelled on ''The Gramophone'', ''<span class="plainlinks">[http://arsc-audio.org/blog/2016/10/27/phonograph_monthly_review/ The Phonograph Monthly Review]</span>'' aimed to emulate the British magazine's role as an independent intermediary between US consumers and producers of recorded music. Like its predecessor, the newcomer was enthusiastically received by record-buyers and collectors, and became a forum for their opinions and ideas, as well as an advocate for a local [[Gramophone, Phonograph and Record Societies|phonograph society movement]], publishing regular reports from new groups (Boston's own shared personnel with the ''Review'', effectively its official organ<ref>Axel B. Johnson, Managing Editor of ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', was for a brief time secretary of the Boston Gramophone Society, see 'Boston G.S.' in 'Trade Winds And Idle Zephyrs', ''The Gramophone'', Vol.III No.11, April 1926, pp.519-20 (on p.520); by late 1926, the post had been taken over by his assistant and staff writer Robert D. Darrell, see Darrell, Robert Donaldson 'Boston Gramophone Society', in <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_2/1_2#page/n31/mode/2up 'Phonograph Society Reports']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.2, November 1926, pp.33-35 (on pp.33-34); Frank B. Forrest, Business Manager of the ''Review'', was also a charter member of the Boston Gramophone Society, see Johnson, Axel B. <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n29/mode/2up 'Topics of General Interest']</span>, ibid., Vol.1 No.1, October 1926, pp.29-30 (on p.29)</ref>).

''The Phonograph Monthly Review'' was a natural home for Fisher. The first number <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n24/mode/1up introduced]</span> him to readers in glowing terms: 
 'Mr. Fisher [...] is a phonograph and musical connoisseur of long standing all over the country. One of the leading phonograph enthusiasts and delightful personalities in the Middle West, we are proud to have him for our Chicago representative and for the Chairman of our Contest Committee. No better man could be selected to conduct this significant and important contest.'<ref><span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n24/mode/1up 'Is Your Favorite Work Recorded Coming Contests Conducted by Vories Fisher']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.1, October 1926, p.23</ref>
The number included two contributions from Fisher himself - a <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n36/mode/1up record review]</span> and a <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n32/mode/1up preliminary report]</span> on [[Fisher, Dorothy B.|his wife's]] and his gramophone society - and from then on until mid-1928, he appeared regularly in its pages. His contributions to the magazine over that period were of six types:
*'[[#Contests|Is Your Favorite Work Recorded?]]', a series of reports on the work of the magazine's Contest Committee
*'[[#'Recorded Remnants'|Recorded Remnants]]', a regular column of personal observations and musings
*[[#Reviews|Record reviews]]
*[[#Miscellaneous articles|Miscellaneous, free-standing editorial articles]], including contributions to the magazine's 'forum'
*[[#Phonograph society reports|Phonograph society reports]]
*[[#Letters|Letters]]
These are considered in more detail below.

===Contests===
As the <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n24/mode/1up article]</span> quoted above explained, under Fisher's direction ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'' Contest Committee would oversee two contests:
 'Both will have far-reaching and valuable results and cannot fail to be of great interest to all music lovers and phonograph enthusiasts. The first will give our readers the opportunity of selecting a work to be recorded and the second, to be held early next spring, will be a comparative test of instruments.<ref><span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n24/mode/1up 'Is Your Favorite Work Recorded Coming Contests Conducted by Vories Fisher']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.1, October 1926, p.23</ref>
Neither of these contests came to fruition.

The second was never mentioned again. The first was introduced by Fisher in November 1926, in an <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_2/1_2#page/n26/mode/1up article]</span> which set out the contest's aims in greater detail;<ref>Fisher, Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_2/1_2#page/n26/mode/1up 'Is Your Favorite Work Recorded']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.2, November 1926, pp.28-29</ref> but subsequent articles did not materially advance it.<ref>Fisher, Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_3/1_3#page/n24/mode/1up 'Is Your Favorite Work Recorded?']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.3, December 1926, pp.119, 122; id. <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_4/1_4#page/n33/mode/1up 'Is Your Favorite Work Recorded?']</span>, ibid., Vol.1 No.4, January 1927, pp.177-78; <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_5/1_5#page/n26/mode/1up 'Is Your Favorite Work Recorded?']</span>, ibid., Vol.1 No.5, February 1927, p.218</ref> Only several months later were detailed rules for the contest and a voting form promised, though neither materialized.<ref>Fisher, Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_6/1_6#page/n13/mode/1up 'Is Your Favorite Work Recorded?']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.6, March 1927, p.252</ref> In April or May 1927, Fisher and his wife left for a tour of Europe. In his absence, management of the contest was delegated to the Contest Committee's Assistant Chairman, George S. Maynard of the <span class="plainlinks">[https://www.bpl.org/bpl-history/ Boston Public Library]</span> (the only Committee member, besides Fisher, to be named or alluded to in the ''Review'').<ref><span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_7/1_7#page/n12/mode/1up/ 'Is Your Favorite Work Recorded?']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.7, April 1927, p.299</ref>

Two months later, a new contest was <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_9/1_9#page/n26/mode/1up launched]</span>, titled 'The Sacrifices I Have Made To Obtain Good Records'.<ref><span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_9/1_9#page/n26/mode/1up 'As announced in the April issue...']</span> [notice], ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.9, June 1927, p.396</ref> Once home from Europe, Fisher resumed duty as Contest Committee chairman, but from now on he wrote only, and rather briefly, about the new 'Sacrifices' contest.<ref>Fisher, Vories et al. <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_11/1_11#page/n26/mode/1up 'Prize Contest']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.11, August 1927, pp.472-73; eid. <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_12/1_12#page/n19/mode/1up 'Prize Contest']</span>, ibid., Vol.1 No.12, September 1927, pp.506-07</ref> By now, the Chicago Gramophone Society had issued its [[Chicago Gramophone Society 50016-P, 50017-P|first recording]], and in October Fisher made the first, tentative <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_1/2_1#page/n10/mode/1up announcement]</span> of a second;<ref>[Fisher,] Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_1/2_1#page/n10/mode/1up 'Recorded Remnants']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.2 No.1, October 1927, pp.9-10 (on p.10)</ref> it seems he had given up on the contest and transferred his private recording project to the Society. The following month brought the last <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_2/2_2#page/n17/mode/2up article]</span> on the original contest, unsigned and possibly written by Maynard rather than Fisher. Ominously, it observed that
 'Recent releases from the domestic and foreign manufacturers have diminished the list of the most desired recordings and re-recordings by no inconsiderable measure [...] It seems almost unfair to ask for more works, now that so many works of the highest class are being issued so liberally; indeed, suggestions are no longer requests, they are coming to be merely hints as to the paths future progress is to take, and also an indication of the wishes of the record buying public.'<ref><span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_2/2_2#page/n17/mode/2up 'Is Your Favorite Work Recorded?']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.2 No.2, November 1927, pp.56-58</ref>
In the same month, an <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_2/2_2#page/n25/mode/1up interim report]</span> on the 'Sacrifices' contest stated that it would be judged by record company employees, although Fisher remained 'the court of final decision'. This was the last mention of Fisher in this capacity.<ref><span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_2/2_2#page/n25/mode/1up 'Prize Contest']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.2 No.2, November 1927, pp.65-66</ref> In December 1927 the Editor <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_3/2_3#page/n4/mode/1up/ announced]</span> that the original 'Favorites' contest would be dropped:
 'after counting up the recent releases of major works, it begins to look as if there was hardly anything left to "contest" about any longer!'<ref>Johnson, Axel B. <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_3/2_3#page/n2/mode/1up/ 'General Review']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.2 No.3, December 1927, pp.[81]-84</ref>
The 'Sacrifices' contest remained open, but adjudication was considerably <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_6/2_6#page/n5/mode/1up delayed]</span>,<ref><span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_6/2_6#page/n5/mode/1up 'Prize Sacrifice Contest']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.2 No.6, March 1928, p.204</ref> and the winner was only <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_8/2_8#page/n12/mode/1up announced]</span> many months later, in May 1928.<ref><span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_8/2_8#page/n12/mode/1up 'Prize Contest Awards']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.2 No.8, March 1928, p.292</ref>

If the recording contest was ultimately abortive, it surely played a part in shaping the [[Chicago Gramophone Society]]'s recording programme. Not only had the contest thrown up the first work to be issued by the Society,<ref>Fisher, Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_4/1_4#page/n33/mode/1up/ 'Is Your Favorite Work Recorded?']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.4, January 1927, pp.177-78</ref> it may also have confronted Fisher with the drawbacks of planning by plebiscite - the difficulty of pleasing everyone, and the indecision brought on by unfettered, free choice. It was perhaps no coincidence that, for the Society's [[Chicago Gramophone Society 50016-P, 50017-P|first issue]], Fisher and [[Pollak, Robert|Robert Pollak]] adopted a diametrically opposite policy: one artist, one work, no choice.

==='Recorded Remnants'===
This column was Fisher's most extensive contribution to ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'': from <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_5/1_5#page/n24/mode/1up February 1927]</span> onwards, eleven instalments were published. At the start, Fisher made it clear that these were his personal musings and reactions to news, trends, gossip and rumours in the music world and recording business.<ref>[Fisher,] Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_5/1_5#page/n24/mode/1up 'Recorded Remnants']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.5, February 1927, p.215</ref> They add up to a valuable self-portrait of an early gramophile, voraciously curious, a little obsessive (by his own admission), opinionated but open-minded and observant. The series ended in <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_8/2_8#page/n18/mode/1up May 1928]</span>, with what would prove to be Fisher's last words in ''The Phonograph Monthly Review''.<ref>[Fisher,] Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_2_8/2_8#page/n18/mode/1up 'Recorded Remnants']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.II No.8, May 1928, p.298</ref>

===Reviews===
''The Phonograph Monthly Review'' published just one <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n36/mode/1up review]</span> by Fisher, of the US issue of Beethoven's <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symphony_No._9_(Beethoven) Symphony No.9 in d Op.125]</span>, conducted by <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felix_Weingartner Felix Weingartner]</span> and recorded in London by Columbia.<ref>Fisher, Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n36/mode/1up 'Beethoven's Ninth Symphony...]</span> (review), in 'Analytical Notes and Reviews', ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.1, October 1926, pp.34-47</ref> Fisher's capabilities were many and varied, but reviewing records, a specialised task which entails considerable drudgery, seems not to have been congenial to him. His effort was probably judged not to have been a success, and rightly so; the magazine had a better reviewer on its roster, Robert Donaldson Darrell (1903-1988), who would become one of the USA's most respected record critics.

===Miscellaneous articles===
''The Phonograph Monthly Review'' published a <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_2/1_2#page/n25/mode/1up submission]</span> by Fisher to its planned 'Open Forum' for <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n24/mode/1up 'Suggestions to the Manufacturer and Dealer']</span>.<ref><span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n24/mode/1up 'Suggestions to the Manufacturer and Dealer']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.1, October 1926, p.23; V[ories].F[isher]. <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_2/1_2#page/n25/mode/1up 'Suggestions to the Dealer']</span>, ibid., Vol.1 No.2, November 1926, p.27</ref> It stimulated a lively, at times acrimonious debate, and is considered with Fisher's [[#Letters|letters]], below. The ''Review'' also planned to publish an article by Fisher on the life and music of <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modest_Mussorgsky Modest Musorgsky]</span>. This did not materialize, probably because Fisher used it as the basis for a talk to the [[Chicago Gramophone Society]] which was <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_6/1_6#page/n29/mode/2up printed]</span> in the magazine, seemingly in its entirety, although the planned article would probably have included a discography.<ref>Harris, L.F. [sic, ''recte'' L.J.] <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_6/1_6#page/n30/mode/1up 'Chicago Gramophone Society']</span>, in 'Phonograph Society Reports', ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.6, March 1927, pp.269-74</ref>

===Phonograph society reports===
The first issue of ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'' included a <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n32/mode/1up preliminary report]</span> by Fisher on what would become the [[Chicago Gramophone Society]];<ref>Fisher, Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n32/mode/1up 'Chicago Phonograph Society']</span>, in 'Phonograph Society Reports', ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.1, October 1926, pp.32-34 (the title of this report was probably an error)</ref> thereafter, the duty of writing the Society's reports fell to the Secretary, [[#L.J._Harris|L.J. Harris]]. One <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_5/1_5#page/n31/mode/2up report]</span> was left unsigned.<ref><span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_5/1_5#page/n31/mode/2up 'Chicago Gramophone Society']</span>, in 'Phonograph Society Reports', The Phonograph Monthly Review, Vol.1 No.5, February 1927, pp.224-27</ref> Another contained a substantial piece of writing by Fisher: a <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_6/1_6#page/n29/mode/2up talk]</span> of nearly 4,000 words on the life and music of <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modest_Mussorgsky Modest Musorgsky]</span>, illustrated with named recordings of excerpts from the opera ''<span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Godunov Boris Godunov]</span>''. It was given at a [[Chicago Gramophone Society#Third open meeting|meeting]] of the [[Chicago Gramophone Society]] on 18 January 1927, and was reportedly based on an article originally intended for ''The Phonograph Monthly Review''.<ref>Harris, L.F. [sic, ''recte'' L.J.] <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_6/1_6#page/n30/mode/1up 'Chicago Gramophone Society']</span>, in 'Phonograph Society Reports', ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.6, March 1927, pp.269-74</ref>

===Letters===
Fisher's passion for his hobby could land him in hot water. The second number of ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'' included a <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_2/1_2#page/n25/mode/1up submission]</span> by Fisher to its 'Open Forum' for <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_1/1_1#page/n24/mode/1up 'Suggestions to the Manufacturer and Dealer']</span>. Comparing record shops and their sales personnel with booksellers, highly unfavourably, Fisher claimed that when he could not find something in a bookshop, 'where the emphasis is laid on the more worthwhile literature of all nations [...] the intelligent salesman' would know of it, would order it for him, and might recommend something else in the meantime. On the other hand,
 'The shop handling recorded music seems to have no interest in any records aside from those on their shelves. No interest? Let me say no knowledge. The person who waits on you may know a particular catalogue, but only as such; he will never know it as to the Debussy records contained, as to the Brahms that is available. [...] I should be able to go into a shop and ask, for example, "What has been recorded from Boris?" "What Beethoven Quartets are made?" and I should get at once a complete answer. The record collector is not interested in only the Victor records from Boris but rather all those available.'<ref><span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_2/1_2#page/n25/mode/1up 'Suggestions to the Dealer']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.2, November 1926, p.27</ref>
Fisher was clearly unaware of the very different distribution models prevalent in the book and record trades. Towards the back of the same issue was a measured but heartfelt <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_2/1_2#page/n44/mode/1up open letter]</span> from 'A Dealer', to whom Fisher's tirade must have been shown before publication:
 'Dear Enthusiast: [...] There is one thing that you are prone to forget, – that is, that I am in business to make a living. Records are not simply things to enjoy for me (although I do get enjoyment from them as well as you) but they are my stock in trade. If I don't sell them, I don't eat, to put the matter in its crudest light. Yet you and others, through thoughtlessness alone, I am sure, often hurt me financially.'<ref>'A Dealer' <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_2/1_2#page/n44/mode/1up 'An Open Letter to a Phonograph Enthusiast']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.2, November 1926, p.46</ref>
Three issues later, the magazine printed a more combative <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_5/1_5#page/n22/mode/1up response]</span> from 'S.K.', a retailer in New York:
 'As usual, it seems to be we dealers who come in for all the blame. I have been in the game for many years and [...] always the dealers were at fault for everything wrong in the eyes of the so-called enthusiasts. It sounds fine to talk about keeping all these wonderful things in stock [...] but it doesn't make any money. [...] the few of my customers who really like the classical stuff certainly do keep coming back for more. But [...] the "jazz-hounds" are the ones that keep me alive. They may throw their records away after a week or two but that's none of my business. There are enough of them to keep me busy.'<ref>'S.K.' <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_5/1_5#page/n22/mode/1up 'Open Forum']</span>, ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.5, February 1927, p.213</ref>
Perhaps unwisely, 'S.K.' added a jibe at those who claimed to like 'Strangle-insky', drawing a <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_6/1_6#page/n19/mode/1up passionate rejoinder]</span> from Fisher the following month.<ref>Fisher, Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_6/1_6#page/n19/mode/1up 'Having only looked over...']</span> (letter), ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.6, March 1927, p.258</ref> Others joined the fray and the correspondence dragged on, somewhat inconclusively, with Fisher making one further, <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_12/1_12#page/n23/mode/2up conciliatory contribution]</span>, months later.<ref>Fisher, Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_12/1_12#page/n23/mode/2up 'S.K., my silence has not been...']</span> (letter), ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.12, September 1927, pp.511-12</ref>

In Britain, ''The Gramophone'' had headed its correspondence column with the Latin tag '<span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_gustibus_non_est_disputandum De Gustibus Non Est Disputandum]</span>', as early as its sixth issue.<ref>'Correspondence', ''The Gramophone'', Vol.I No.5, October 1923, pp.117-19</ref> This did not prevent spats between readers, which the Editors often had to put a stop to. (The parallel with modern internet '<span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flaming_(Internet)#Flame_war flame wars]</span>' is striking.) As it happened, Fisher would be proved right: his original 'Open Forum' submission and subsequent letters effectively argued for more specialization and segmentation in retail, for more and better information for sellers and buyers, and for better-trained salespeople. In ''The Gramophone'', British record-buyers clamoured for exactly the same things; and the trade responded positively on both sides of the Atlantic.

Again, as with ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'' [[#Contests|contest]], this episode may have helped to convince Fisher that it was not possible, or at least very time-consuming, to achieve consensus in the intensely personal world of musical taste.

''The Phonograph Monthly Review'' published one other <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_8/1_8#page/n25/mode/1up letter]</span> from Fisher, providing a fellow-reader with information about recordings made by the German pianist <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Gieseking Walter Gieseking]</span> for Germany's <span class="plainlinks">[http://www.aprrecordings.co.uk/apr2/showentry.php?id=161 Homocord]</span> label.<ref>Fisher, Vories <span class="plainlinks">[https://archive.org/stream/PMR_1_8/1_8#page/n25/mode/1up 'I am glad to be able to help...']</span> (letter), ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'', Vol.1 No.8, May 1927, p.353</ref>

==[[Chicago Gramophone Society]]==
Fisher's involvement with the Chicago Gramophone Society lasted from 1926, when it was [[Chicago Gramophone Society#Formation|officially formed]] by [[Fisher, Dorothy B.|his wife]] and him, until its [[Chicago Gramophone Society#Decline|sudden disappearance]] in mid-1928. It is examined in detail on the [[Chicago Gramophone Society|relevant page]] of this site.

==Later employment==
By 1928, Fisher had his own securities and investment firm in Chicago, Vories Fisher & Co.<ref>'We are pleased to announce...' (notice), ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Monday 17 September 1928, Section Two, p.32</ref> His workload may have contributed to the lessening of his interest in and time for record-collecting.

Fisher's firm survived apparently survived the 1929 Crash.<ref>'Business Personals', ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Friday 14 March 1930, Part Two, p.25, and Thursday 4 February 1932, Section Two, p.26</ref> By 1932 it had taken on a new partner, becoming Vories Fisher, Marr & Co.,<ref>'Hartley Rogers Investor House Extending Field', ''The Los Angeles Times'', Thursday 22 December 1932, Part I, p.11</ref> but it seems to have been dissolved soon afterwards.<ref>'Vories Fisher, who was formerly head of the Vories Fisher & Company, one of the well known Chicago trading houses...': 'Opens Chicago Trading Office', ''The Los Angeles Times'', Sunday 30 June 1935, Part V, p.[1]</ref>

In January 1937, a new firm, Fisher, Schmick & Watts, Inc., 'an investment banking business', was formed, with Vories Fisher as Secretary.<ref>'Business Bits', ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Wednesday 20 January 1937, Section Two, p.29</ref> Within a year, the firm was effectively absorbed by another, and presumably ceased to trade.<ref>'We are pleased to announce...' (notice), ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Monday 3 January 1938, Finance Commerce section, p.24</ref>

At an unknown date, Fisher became a professional photographer. He perhaps pursued his new career in parallel with the old, building up expertise and contacts until he felt he could quit the financial world completely. 

In 1940, according to a later reminiscence, he
 'spent months photographing old southern plantations in Louisiana. He crept thru the bayous from New Orleans to St. Francisville snapping more than 35 ante-bellum mansions to be used in travel folders of the Illinois Central railroad. [...] "I felt strong about that plantation business," he said recently. "Those homes are representative of a way of life that was unique in this country."'<ref>Bach, Erwin 'Photographer Tells His Secret', ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Thursday 27 October 1960, Part 5, p.11</ref>

It was through photography that Fisher met his second wife, Florence, who was also a photographer, specializing in portraits. They were married in 1943. She later gave up her work to be a full-time housewife and mother.

From 1943, Fisher's work was regularly published in ''<span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life_(magazine) Life]</span>'' magazine.<ref> Fisher's earliest known credit is for one photograph in 'Farming For War', ''Life'', Vol.14 No.4, 25 January 1943, pp.81-89, on p.82, bottom left (picture credit on p.17); his latest known credit is for one photograph in 'A Vivid Moment in Time by Degas', ''Life'', Vol.39 No.19, 7 November 1955, p.119 (picture credit on p.2)</ref> In 1946, the ''Chicago Sunday Tribune'' reported that Fisher and three other photographers had remodelled a 'fine old mansion' on La Salle Street as 'a modern plant for their work'.<ref>Clark, Herma 'When Chicago Was Young', ''Chicago Sunday Tribune'', Sunday 7 April 1946, Part 7, p.10</ref> As well as working for corporate clients,<ref>'Vories Fisher Rites Are Set For Monday', ''Chicago Tribune'', Friday 2 January 1970, Section 1, p.16</ref> Fisher undertook assignments for the University of Chicago, photographing faculty members and scenes of teaching and student life; his images can be seen in the University's online <span class="plainlinks">[http://photoarchive.lib.uchicago.edu/db.xqy?show=browse8.xml|501 photographic archive]</span>. Fisher's work was also published in newspapers such as the ''The Cincinnati Enquirer'',<ref>Whole-page photograph captioned, 'Snooze Test. [...] Scene is the famous Sleep Laboratory', credited to Vories Fisher, in Lader, Lawrence 'Why Can't You Sleep?', ''The Cincinnati Enquirer'', Sunday 15 June 1947, ''This Week'' magazine section, pp.4-5, 22</ref> and magazines such as ''The Farm''.<ref>'Brown County Featured In New Magazine', ''Brown County Democrat'' [Nashville, Indiana], Thursday 18 April 1946, p.[1]</ref>

By 1949, Fisher was official photographer to the Chicago <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_of_Science_and_Industry_(Chicago) Museum of Science and Industry]</span>, a position he still held in 1960.<ref>Jones, Billie 'Early Fire Fighting Equipment Goes on Display at Science Museum Today', ''Chicago Sunday Tribune'', Sunday 9 October 1949, Part 3 (Metropolitan Section), pp.[1]-2</ref> That year, the ''Chicago Daily Tribune'' reported plans for a public exhibition of his 1940 photographs of Louisiana's ante-bellum mansions, many of which had been destroyed in the two intervening decades.<ref>Bach, Erwin 'Photographer Tells His Secret', ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Thursday 27 October 1960, Part 5, p.11</ref>

In the 1950s, Fisher gave lectures on photographic practice and technique at the Museum, the University of Chicago, the YMCA and other venues.<ref>e.g. 'Photography to Be Subject of Two Museum Lectures', ''The Chicago Heights Star'', Friday 4 September 1953, Part 2, p.14; 'Tell Programs Of U. Of C. Adult School In Loop', ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Thursday 13 March 1952, Part 3, p.2 S; 'Y Will Hold Talent Night In Hyde Park', ''Chicago Sunday Tribune'', 13 June 1954, Part 3, p.3</ref>

At an unknown date, Fisher became official photographer to Chicago's <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goodman_Theatre Goodman Theater]</span>, a position he reportedly held for 17 years.<ref>'Vories Fisher Rites Are Set For Monday', ''Chicago Tribune'', Friday 2 January 1970, Section 1, p.16</ref> In 1961, Fisher's photographs of ante-bellum mansions were again exhibited, at his place of work, the Museum of Science and Industry.<ref>'Close-Up of Camera Clubs', ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Thursday 16 February 1961, Part 5, p.11</ref> Later that decade, Fisher left the Museum to became head of the photography department of <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Luke%27s_Hospital_(Chicago,_Illinois) Presbyterian-St. Luke's Hospital]</span> in Chicago.<ref>'Memorial Service Held For V. Fisher', ''news rounds'', Vol.8 No.1, February 1970, pp.5-6</ref>

In the mid-1960s, Fisher very occasionally broadcast on Chicago's AM station <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WBBM_(AM) WBBM]</span>.<ref>e.g. 'Tie Line. Vories Fisher discusses cameras': 'Monday AM Choices', ''Chicago Tribune'', Monday 12 July 1965, Section 2, p.14</ref>

==Charitable and other activities==
Fisher was for many years actively involved with the Parent-Teacher Association of his alma mater, Hyde Park High School.<ref>Earliest known mention: Avery, Suzanne 'School Board Hears Groups' 'Space' Pleas', ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Thursday 24 December 1959, Part 2, p.2 S F; Fisher named as 1st Vice President, Hyde Park High School PTA: Quinn, Helen & Fisher, Vories 'School Board Appointments' [letter], ''Chicago Sunday Tribune'', 9 April 1961, Part 1, p.24</ref>

From at least 1960, possibly earlier, Fisher was a volunteer officer of Child and Family Services, a welfare organization in Chicago; he was later its president.<ref>Earliest known mention: 'Agency Marks Anniversary; Elects Heads', ''Chicago Sunday Tribune'', 29 January 1961, Part 8, p.12; Presidency: 'Memorial Service Held For V. Fisher', ''news rounds'', Vol.8 No.1, February 1970, pp.5-6</ref>

===Hobbies===
Fisher retained his love of classical music all his life. His daughters remember him conducting the broadcast performances which he listened to via Chicago's <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WFMT WFMT]</span> station. He did not remain a record collector; there were records in the Fisher household, but far fewer than at the height of his collecting craze in the early 1920s.

In the 1930s, Fisher and his first wife maintained a second home near <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nashville,_Indiana Nashville]</span>, Brown County, Indiana. Fisher took up hunting to hounds and was Master of Hounds of the Hunting and Kennel Club of <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gnaw_Bone,_Indiana Gnaw Bone]</span>, Indiana.<ref>'Locals', ''Brown County Democrat'' [Nashville, Indiana], Friday 14 October 1932, p.[4]</ref> One one occasion in 1934, he had 'charge of the [shooting] traps at which Kurt Vonnegut won the cup given by the M.F.H. [Master of Hounds]' (the winner was father of the writer <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurt_Vonnegut Kurt Vonnegut Jr]</span>.<ref>'The Stroller' 'What Have We Here?', ''The Indianapolis Star'', Saturday 17 November 1934, p.5</ref>). Fisher also reportedly managed Nashville's baseball team for a time.<ref>'Fun Finding Fisher Fails; 6 Men, 6 Hounds, 1 Rabbit', ''Brown County Democrat'' [Nashville, Indiana], Friday 16 November 1934, p.[1]</ref>

It was on holiday in Indiana that Fisher was fascinated by a loom used to make rag carpeting, leading to his greatest avocation in later life, weaving.<ref>Rannells, Elizabeth 'Have You Heard?', ''Chicago Sunday Tribune'', 26 September 1954, Part 7, p.4</ref> In a letter to the ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', published in 1955, he wrote
 'I have been a hand weaver for over 20 years. I have woven on all types of looms from the old Colonial clunker [...] to the most modern of Swedish and American foot power looms. I have woven all kinds of materials from simple rag rugs on two harnesses to complicated 16 harness damask and double faced twill. [...] Several years ago I was forced to give up weaving for the simple reason that I did not have the room to house the big floor looms [...] A couple of years ago I heard about this new tubular aluminum loom. I was frankly skeptical. [...] I have now used this modern tubular aluminum loom for some two years, and I can say without equivocation that I would have no other!'<ref>Fisher, Vories 'Weaver's Challenge' [letter], ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', Thursday 13 October 1955, Part 1, p.14 H*</ref>
After some years, Fisher decided to weave only woollen cloth and tweed for clothing, using hand-dyed yarn which he obtained from <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uist Uist]</span> in Scotland's <span class="plainlinks">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outer_Hebrides Western Isles]</span>.<ref>'Photographer Weaves a Hobby', ''Buffalo Courier-Express'', 20 November 1955, pictorial section(?), pp.32-33</ref> He dressed his wife and daughters in his cloth, and he supplied his tweed to Chicago outfitters, who made it up into men's suits.<ref>Rannells, Elizabeth 'Have You Heard?', ''Chicago Sunday Tribune'', 26 September 1954, Part 7, p.4</ref>

After his death, Fisher was described in a tribute as
 'a "rugged individualist", a "Renaissance man." [...] who could wear a corduroy suit, red flannel shirt and bow tie to an exclusive restaurant for lunch.'<ref>'Memorial Service Held For V. Fisher', ''news rounds'', Vol.8 No.1, February 1970, pp.5-6</ref>

==Images==
<img src=http://media.gettyimages.com/photos/circa-1945-headshot-of-a-man-wearing-glasses-and-a-bow-tie-smiling-picture-id3208001><br/>
'''Vories Fisher''', 1945 (<span class="plainlinks">[http://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/news-photo/headshot-of-a-man-wearing-glasses-and-a-bow-tie-smiling-news-photo/3208001#circa-1945-headshot-of-a-man-wearing-glasses-and-a-bow-tie-smiling-picture-id3208001 Getty Images]</span>)<br/>
(This photograph may have been taken by Fisher's second wife Florence, a portrait photographer)

==References==
'''Note''' ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'' underwent various name changes, detailed [[Chicago Gramophone Society#References|here]], but on this page and elsewhere on this site, the magazine is referred to in the text and footnotes as ''The Phonograph Monthly Review'' or, where appropriate, the ''Review''.

<references/>

[[Category:Chicago Gramophone Society]]