The local guitar store was a Guild dealer, I was aware of John Denver, Jack Cassady, Paul Simon, and Buddy Guy. So, I was exposed to Guild pretty early on in my musical life. I got a Taiwan Yamaha FG-160 in 1973. I started working at that store in 1977, and happened to play a customer's F30R pretty early on in my tenure. I was hooked on small body guitars. I was a gigging bass player so money went into basses and amps. I also determined that there was no reason to make a partial step up from the FG-160 without going to what I knew I wanted, so for the 11 years I managed a guitar store my only acoustic was that $150 Yamaha (and for most of that time it was my only guitar as I didn't own an electric one). Then when I got out of retail music and got a job that paid real money, I was able to devote some cash to a good acoustic guitar. That was about 1995. There was no Guild dealer in town for a few years, and one day I saw an ad that a small local store was now a Guild dealer. I stopped in, talked the owner (a guy I'd known for years), and played a selection of dreadnaughts, D40, D55, etc. Then as I was about to leave, right next to the door was a weird Guild. It's dimensions were between a Martin OM and 000, but not the same contours. It had a decidedly non-Guild looking pickguard. It had beautiful snowflake inlays on a wide ebony fingerboard. It was a subdued antique sunburst, gold Kluson tuners and the appearance said "check this out". I picked it up, played an open Em chord and my ears said "that's the sound you've been seeking since that F30R back in '78!" I played it for about an hour. Went home, then went back and played it side-by-side with a Martin OM-28 and some other guitars. The A50 went home with me on my birthday that year.
Funny thing is that Larry wasn't even sure he'd get his opening order because a week after he signed the papers he got a letter telling him that FMIC was buying Guild effective Jan 1. My A50 has serial #3 that I bought mid December (and had been in the store for a week or so), and the "official" serial number list that's available says the first A50 was #5 and made in January the following year. That's her in my picture...