He owed his longevity to cheap Scotch and and strong tobacco.

[3930dave]

For eight decades, Manson Whitlock repaired typewriters.....

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/08/nyregion/manson-whitlock-typewriter-repairman-dies-at-96.html?smid=pl-share&_r=2&&_r=3&

That would have been an interesting shop to visit.

I remember reading an article not long ago, from somebody who had been using a portable typewriter in public - it was a challenge to get something done, as so many people were coming up to him to talk about the machine.

Turntables are still being sold, perhaps typewriters may make a comeback....

RIP Mr. Whitlock.

Rgds, D.

 

[Bird]

For filling out the blanks in different forms occasionally, or for occasionally addressing an envelope, I still think the typewriter beats the computer printer. Of course I took typing in high school on manual typewriters; Underwood if I remember right. And in later years, I really liked my Penncrest electric; made by Smith Corona and sold by J.C. Penney.

But some years before I owned an electric typewriter, I'll never forget the day I was happily patrolling my beat in the squad car when the dispatcher told me to report to the captain's office. The captain had a secretary and a clerk typist; one of them had been promoted and transferred and the other had resigned. So they had gone through personnel records, found I could type (not real well, but fair), and I got stuck with the jobs of both those girls for a month or so, until they hired new ones. Now it wouldn't have been quite so bad, except at that time I'd never used an electric typewriter and what I had to use was an old worn out IBM Selectric and that captain measured pages with a ruler to make sure the spacing was exact top to bottom and side to side. No corrections were permitted. Any kind of error meant the whole page had to be re-typed. I sure was glad when I finally got relieved of that job.

 

[3930dave]

Wow Bird, that's military precise typing, that wouldn't have been much fun.

Going through school, I was usually able to sweet talk my sister into typing my big school reports. At the time I didn't think much of the bit of typing that was still taught here in grade school (70's), but after a refresher years later I appreciated how much keyboard time it saved me on a computer.

I'm interested in most things mechanical. As probably the most complex consumer product of it's era, I always liked typewriters for what they were, even if I wasn't crazy about using them at the time.

Rgds, D.

 

[Bird]

Dave, in the police academy, we each had to take notes in the classes, then type (or have them typed) to make a typewritten notebook. I had a cousin who went through the academy and his wife typed his notes and make the notebook. I had to type my own.:laughing: As with other things, they were graded and your class ranking was made public. I graduated #1 of 29 overall, but my notebook was ranked #2.:laughing: And yes, typing classes in high school did help in many ways, including using a computer.

 

[Dr_Zinj]

I prefer my tombstone say that I owed my longevity to cheap women and strong Scotch.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

I prefer my tombstone say that I owed my longevity to cheap women and strong Scotch.

How is that working out for you so far?

Loved the article too.

 

[k0ua]

I wrote many a Sheriff's report on an IBM Selectric (my favorite typewriter) And typed up many ID tag's for telephones on a variety of machines. In the old days (1970's and 1980's) every office some of them. I guess I haven't touched the keys on a typewriter now in a bunch of years..

James K0UA

 

[Bird]

James, there's no doubt the IBM Selectric was a fine machine, but it was 1967 when I got stuck with that job, and the particular IBM Selectric was probably one of the first ones made in 1961 and had been used by all 3 shifts, by a lot of different individuals, 7 days a week. Instead of firmly pressing keys, you only had to barely touch them; those keys did not have even close to the range of motion of this computer keyboard I'm currently using. So it was a matter of learning to use something that was very different from what I was accustomed to.

 

[hawkeye08]

I probably have a few ribbons and character sets if you want some for your mantle..

 

[tcreeley]

Carbons, white out, corasible bond paper that you could erase- did a lot of typing in college. The IBIDs and footnotes were the killer!- Olivetti, Royal, Smith Corona.
My first typewriter for school was a small thing purchased with S&H green stamps! It got me through!

 

[Bird]

Carbons, white out, corasible bond paper that you could erase- did a lot of typing in college. The IBIDs and footnotes were the killer!- Olivetti, Royal, Smith Corona.
My first typewriter for school was a small thing purchased with S&H green stamps! It got me through!

Yep, for some things you had to use carbon paper between layers of your regular paper, but I also used to have to use as many as 7 "onionskins".

 

[Larro Darro]

I still see old typewriters in the thrift stores I shop in. But most of them are not in very good shape. I think Margie had a portable one. It would be in one of our sheds, I guess.

 

[RoyJackson]

He owed his longevity to cheap Scotch and and strong tobacco.

Boy, if that's the case, I should make it to 106 at least!

 

[3930dave]

Went looking, and found...

Free hand-typed letter ｫ Universal Babel Service - Babeler Universal Babel Service Babeler

Typewriter Serial Number Database

Digital Future - Home

That last one was fun to play with. I don't twit or fb, so I need to change to a different pc to check the final output.

Good vintage fun...

Rgds, D.

 

[tcreeley]

Yep, for some things you had to use carbon paper between layers of your regular paper, but I also used to have to use as many as 7 "onionskins".

You need a light touch- the paper was so flimsy and light to handle. I used to get frustrated trying to hold it steady and feed it into the carriage when I was making a copy. Xerox was a real miracle machine back then.

7 onionskins - that is saying something!:thumbsup:

 

[3930dave]

Some interesting variations....

Antique Typewriters - The Martin Howard Collection: Visual Index

Rgds, D.

 

[Bird]

Dave, even as old as I am, I don't recognize any of those typewriters.:laughing: But it made me think of the first adding machine I ever used in 1956; a Burroughs. I'm not sure this picture is the same model we used but it appears to be.

 

[300UGUY]

Dave, even as old as I am, I don't recognize any of those typewriters.:laughing: But it made think of the first adding machine I ever used in 1956; a Burroughs. I'm not sure this picture is the same model we used but it appears to be.

Back in 1954 - 57, my mother worked at Burroughs, it was located in Plymouth, Michigan. They evolved into a company that made computers, and eventually, scanners for grocery stores. When she worked there, it was making thousands of small parts for different machines.

 

[3930dave]

Dave, even as old as I am, I don't recognize any of those typewriters.:laughing: But it made think of the first adding machine I ever used in 1956; a Burroughs. I'm not sure this picture is the same model we used but it appears to be.

That collection shows quite a range of designs, many I'd never seen before. I like the Blickensderfer 6 in aluminum.

Aside from running the farm, an uncle of mine used to do the taxes for many people around the village. He had an adding machine of a similar vintage to your Burroughs. It was passed along to a family member when his estate was settled, AFAIK it is still working.

I wonder how many laptop computers will be working at 100+ years old ?

Rgds, D.

 

[3930dave]

Back in 1954 - 57, my mother worked at Burroughs, it was located in Plymouth, Michigan. They evolved into a company that made computers, and eventually, scanners for grocery stores. When she worked there, it was making thousands of small parts for different machines.

There was a bad recession around that time, but you raise a good point - this amazing private collection of typewriters represents many thousands of local jobs. A different time indeed.

Rgds, D.