tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34128825.post3840104081444847129..comments2024-02-12T06:10:14.590-08:00Comments on Culture Shock: I Sing the Body Selectric *culturejockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14263465772349376129noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34128825.post-74116898692329738302008-12-05T17:01:00.000-08:002008-12-05T17:01:00.000-08:00Also, I completely concur with Bob's sentiment tha...Also, I completely concur with Bob's sentiment that a computer is a vastly more useful tool for writing. I can't imagine going back to the old-fashioned typewriter, though I wonder if it forced one to COMMIT faster -- rather than dithering around with word choices and order, etc.<BR/><BR/>I'm also reminded of footage from the Pennebaker documentary on Bob Dylan, with shots of Dylan in a hotel room or backstage banging out lyrics on a manual typewriter. Or thinking about Kerouac typing out "On the Road" on a single long, roll of paper.MightyToyCannonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14523823158706838012noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34128825.post-58513889616602078952008-12-05T16:58:00.000-08:002008-12-05T16:58:00.000-08:00Stan Foote just found two typewriters on Craig's L...Stan Foote just found two typewriters on Craig's List that he plans to use as props for the Oregon Children's Theatre production of "Click Clack Moo" in January. (My boat anchor was fine for the photo shoot, but too heavy for practical use on stage). One of them looks to be a mid-century Smith-Corona in a green shade that makes me suspect it was Army issue for typing orders in the field. As younger folks played around with it, they all noticed that it is missing a "1" key and an exclamation point. I had forgotten that a lower-case L served as the numeral 1, and an exclamation point was created by combining a period with an apostrophe. What a pain!MightyToyCannonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14523823158706838012noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34128825.post-65587816044711468142008-11-30T21:26:00.000-08:002008-11-30T21:26:00.000-08:00Oh, man, I'd love to have one of those old clacket...Oh, man, I'd love to have one of those old clackety-clacks again. I used to have three or four, but they were all lost years ago in various moves. I love the emphatic splat of hitting those keys, although the computer's a MUCH better tool for writing, rewriting and editing.<BR/><BR/>On the rifle association, which I'd never thought of: A few years ago I had dinner with one of my favorite architecture and design writers, Witold Rybczynski, and his wife, who's Canadian. The subject of shotgun houses, those long narrow Southern working-class houses that are so-named because you could shoot a blast in the front door and have the shot go out the back door without ever hitting a wall, came up. Rybczynski's wife broke into a raucous laugh and said, "Americans! Who else would think of naming a house after a GUN!"Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13765688465211717384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34128825.post-5806217089335802492008-11-30T10:55:00.000-08:002008-11-30T10:55:00.000-08:00Ah, Olivetti -- the typewriter that sounds like a ...Ah, Olivetti -- the typewriter that sounds like a pasta dish. If you spot a cherry red Olivetti Valentine (designed by Ettore Sottsass), let me know.MightyToyCannonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14523823158706838012noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34128825.post-51518198091792005612008-11-30T10:01:00.000-08:002008-11-30T10:01:00.000-08:00I just saw an Olivetti Lettera32—very sexy little ...I just saw an Olivetti Lettera32—very sexy little manual portable at a vintage store on Hawthorne. . .if you had that you'd feel like a Mastroanni (sleek, modern and oh-so desirably continental)<BR/>TdRTimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10702995092362702496noreply@blogger.com