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Tillie the All-Time Teller

Discontinued automated teller machine

Tillie the All-Time Teller

A screenshot of an advertisement for Tillie the All-Time Teller
Type	Automated teller machine
Inception	1974 (1974)
Manufacturer	First National Bank of Atlanta
Available	Discontinued

Tillie the All-Time Teller was one of the first ATMs,^[1] run by the First National Bank of Atlanta and considered to be one of the most successful ATMs in the banking industry. Tillie the All-Time Teller had a picture of a smiling blonde girl on the front of the machine to suggest it was user-friendly, had an apparent personality,^[2] and could greet people by name.^[3] Many banks hired women dressed as this person to show their customers how to use Tillie the All-Time Teller.^{[citation needed]}

History[edit]

It was introduced by the First National Bank of Atlanta on May 15, 1974. It started out at only eleven locations.^[4] They were in commerce starting May 20, 1974.^[5] Starting 1977, other banks purchased rights to use Tillie the All-Time Teller as their ATM system. By March 21, 1981, they were available at 70 locations,^[6] including on a college campus.^[7] On October 15, 2013, Susan Bennett revealed that she played the voice for Tillie the All-Time Teller, noting that she "started [her] life as a machine quite young."^[8]

Appearance[edit]

Tillie the All-Time Teller machines were red and gold to make them look more attractive.^[2] On the bottom left was the place to enter an "access card," which featured a cartoon character.^[2] Above that was a place to enter a "secret code" that the customer chose.^[2] On the bottom center was a picture of a cartoon blonde girl with china-blue eyes^[1] and a red hat. Above that was the place it handed out cash and coins. On the top right was the place to enter a desired amount of money.

How it worked[edit]

Customers could use Tillie the All-Time Teller by following these steps:

1. Inserting an "Alltime Tellercard"
2. Following instructions presented on its TV screen
3. Entering a "secret code" and entering a desired amount of money on the "money keyboard" ($200 was the limit)
4. The machine would automatically hand out the desired amount of money.
5. Entering a transaction envelope into the deposit slot

Advertising[edit]

There were a variety of advertisements made by the First National Bank of Atlanta in order to promote Tillie the All-Time Teller. These include:

• In one of the advertisements, a blonde woman that wore a red and white polka-dotted dress sang "I'm Tillie the All-Time Teller, I work for First National Bank" while standing beside the machine.
• In another advertisement, a balding, middle-aged man approached the machine singing "If You Knew Tillie" to the tune of "If You Knew Susie." The song went like:

Oh, if you knew Tillie like I know Tillie
Oh, oh, oh, what a girl!
She works to please me, to make life easy
Oh, oh, she makes my banking smooth and breezy
Day or nighttime, I don’t care
When I need money, I know my all-time teller’s there!
If you knew Tillie, like I know Tillie
Oh, oh, oh!

• For Tillie the All-Time Teller's third anniversary, the machine was featured in an advertisement where they sang "She's a Jolly Good Teller." It originally aired on KSEL-TV and KAMC.^[9]

In popular culture[edit]

The word "Tillie" has become a slang to describe any ATM.^[10]

References[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• Advertisement: I'm Tillie : Florida National's Alltime Teller, Page 10A, Lakeland Ledger - Oct 17, 1979
• "Tillie The All Time Teller" from Wells Fargo (from archive.org)