Some little-known typewriters (A-C)
It occurred to me that one of the mystery machines I showed you a couple of posts ago is very similar in principle to the Kent, one of the never-yet-found rarities of typewriter history. The Kent was...
View ArticleSome little-known typewriters (D-F)
The Dactylette Model I (was there ever a II?) is a rare Italian index typewriter.On the other extreme of complexity in the world of Italian typewriters is the Dattilomusicografo music typewriter. It...
View ArticleSome little-known typewriters (G-I)
The G&O (Graf & Oertel) portable is a minor German make that was marketed with a variety of really obscure names, such as Bajnok, Cawena, Mercurius, Mirina, Rex, and Standard.I believe this is...
View ArticleSome little-known typewriters (J-L)
Jolux is the name for a line of French children's typewriters. Here we have the Super Major (odd name for a three-bank machine) and the Electric 600, which uses a unique system in which a plastic...
View ArticleMore little-known typewriters (M-O)
What is a Marilla? All I knew until today was this partial photo of a dirty machine, with a QWERTZ keyboard and a shift key reading "Dole [?] Litery."Then I decided to check the Typewriter Lexicon in...
View ArticleEven more little-known typewriters (P-R)
A glimpse of a glimpse of a Pagina typewriter is all I have when it comes to this obscure name variant of the Meteor.Pearls turn up so rarely that only hard-core collectors are aware of them.The Peha...
View ArticleStill more little-known typewriters (S)
If you look closely at this rare Sampo from Sweden, you'll see that it's even rarer: it has a Cyrillic type cylinder.My only evidence for the existence of the Samtico Typewriter is this illustration...
View ArticleAnother pile of little-known typewriters (T-V)
The Tachotype is a really cute Dutch stenotype. I had one for a while.The products of Talleres Alonso in Valencia, Spain include the Andina Nova, Alondra, Talbos, and Sabater. More information in...
View ArticleThe last few little-known typewriters ... for now (W-Z)
Here's the conclusion of my series of images of little-known typewriters. Of course, this hasn't been anything like an exhaustive list of weird or obscure writing machines. I just tried to select some...
View ArticleMechanographical melody motivates me
Something was calling me to the antique mall on Friday morning ... some faint mechanographical melody.And yes! It was a worthwhile trip. Can you guess which 4 typewriters I came home with? You may need...
View ArticleThe takeaways
Congratulations to ZetiXÂ for guessing the four winners from Friday's typewriter safari!1. This Adler J4 was an obvious choice at just $29.99. It's an uncommon and well-made portable with interesting...
View ArticleStreet typists around the world
Just a few examples of street typists I've seen on Instagram recently:Party Poet in Fort Worth, Texas:Shannon Monaghan at Burning Man ...... and in Portland, Oregon:Ary Katz in Los Angeles (photo by...
View ArticleGuest post: Top ways to promote the Typewriter Insurgency
Thanks to Linda Smith for this guest post that's full of great ideas!
View ArticleGuest post: Sonnet-upon-Typewriters
cartoon by Max RudiariOr else he might rewrite one of his sonnets:Thank you, Oliver!(In 2013 I visited Stratford-upon-Avon and made some typewriter discoveries.)
View ArticleSiamese twin typewriters
In my recent series on little-known typewriters I included this photo of a double IBM unit.Such machines were used when one set of characters was not enough. Maybe the typist needed two different...
View ArticleThe Typewriter Revolution in Auburn, CA, Oct. 27
I have several big events coming up. Next weekend is Herman Price's yearly Chestnut Ridge Typewriter Rendezvous in West Virginia. On October 27, I'll be in Auburn, California. And on November 3 there's...
View ArticleThere will be no typewriter emoji
A few years ago I kvetched about the lack of a typewriter emoji and even started a letter-writing campaign.Well, there is a formal and elaborate process for requesting a new emoji. And since nobody...
View ArticleExtravaganza in Auburn
On the heels of another amazing weekend at Herman's (which has been chronicled in the typosphere here, here, here and here), I flew out to California at the invitation of Gary Moffat, to participate in...
View ArticleBonanza in Carmichael
The day after the extravaganza in Auburn, I stopped in Carmichael, next to Sacramento, to visit a large office machine store. It has been closed for about a decade, and the family is now trying to...
View ArticleCold Hard Type: a call for submissions to a new anthology
PDF version of this call for submissions
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