The Classic Typewriter Page.

June 25, 2002 11:16 AM

The Classic Typewriter Page. A gorgeous site to behold (and informative). Everything and anything you ever wanted to know about the classic typewriter. Before you ask, What's a typewriter?, check out this site.
posted by jacknose (10 comments total)

Holy Carriage Return! Amazing link. Farewell, MetaFilter, I'll be here for the rest of the day.

(you know, office supply freaks like me DREAM of links like this)
posted by ColdChef at 11:21 AM on June 25, 2002

Since my school couldn't afford it (some of our buildings still had bullet holes from the Pearl Harbor attack) I learned to type on a manual typewriter. Students rotated for a turn on one of three light-touch electrics. I couldn't stand it and traded my weekly slot for an early lunch release pass. Probably why I like clicky keyboards. And early lunches.

Anyway, that's my tangental way of saying thanks for the link!
posted by Tacodog at 11:40 AM on June 25, 2002

I just got back from a flea market where I purchased an old Olivetti for 2.00. It's disgustingly filthy, but it works. Thanks so much for this link - the old typewriters pictured are so beautiful, and there's so much info to plow through.
posted by iconomy at 11:45 AM on June 25, 2002

By far, my favorite typewriter is the Rem-Blick (aka Baby Rem). Portable, functional, a badass machine.
posted by jacknose at 12:01 PM on June 25, 2002

gotta a Sears 300. Early LED is cool. Has that dot effect upon the white sheet. great link. I think a neat search would be typewriter art. reguts and mismatched contraptions. movie examples. some Kerouac rolls and old spy stuff. video of the worlds fastest typists.

"...that's typing"

poor jack.
posted by clavdivs at 12:09 PM on June 25, 2002

Back in ye olde Seventies, before we ever dreamed of changing font color with the flick of a wrist (and before we even knew what "fonts" WERE), a typewriter with one of those ribbons that could type in black AND red was an unvarnished joy. Thanks for the memories!
posted by GaelFC at 12:55 PM on June 25, 2002

I write on a Hermes 3000, circa 1965. It's a retro-styled green machine (lime green keys!), fully portable.

I used to visit the typewriter page, a couple of years ago when I still bought typewriters. They seem to scorn the postwar models, which is a shame. The birth of the manual-portable was the best thing ever for typewriters.
posted by rocketman at 1:36 PM on June 25, 2002

Beautiful, beautiful. When I was a kid I used to play on my grandfather's old Underwood, pretending I was writing something serious and academic. I still associate these old things with knowledge and learning which is just beyond my reach.
posted by vacapinta at 1:49 PM on June 25, 2002

As long as I can remember, I've wanted an old Underwood. I come from a long line of newspaper folks and I those were in the backgrounds of a lot of family photos. (Hell, when I started in a newsroom, just after high school, the paper had only just replaced their Selectrics with computers.)

Thanks to 15 years on a computer, my typewriter typing skills are a little rusty, but I sure do love the feel of those keys. Great link, jacknose.
posted by aine42 at 3:20 PM on June 25, 2002

I've always wanted to collect vintage typewriters (soon they'll all be vintage, I guess) but never knew exactly how to amass them all in one place - I don't have a lot of display space.

Is there anyone who could walk past a beautiful old typewriter with a fresh piece of white paper in it, without banging on a key or two, or wanting to sit down to churn out the first sentence of the next great novel? I didn't think so.
posted by iconomy at 4:12 PM on June 25, 2002