My Brief Typewriter Biography
I started out in my youth swiping a small ultra-portable from my older brother so frequently that my parents got me a cheap, plastic PETITE 400 sometime about 4th grade. It really wasn’t up to snuff, so they later picked up a used Smith-Corona Clipper around 5th or 6th grade for me to use.
Later on, that ceded way to a Panasonic word processor that got me through to early college before being superseded by a variety of computers. In my first few post-college jobs, I had occasional use of an IBM Selectric II whose primary use was for typing out envelopes, though I did retype a full draft of a book on one once.
In Spring of 2023, I recovered the old Smith-Corona Clipper from my parent’s basement and began noodling around with it again, and all the old touch memory for all of its functionality came flooding back.
Since March of 2024, I’ve begun collecting and repairing a small segment of manual typewriters. I’ve got enough now that it’s probably worth having a page I can point to with a list of what’s in my collection. I’ve written about many of my machines, their cleaning, repair, and even some use along with lots of photos.
My Typewriter Collection
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- 1948 Smith-Corona Clipper
- 196X Smith-Corona Galaxie Deluxe
- 1965 Smith-Corona Classic 12 (cleaning)
- 1957 Remington Rand Quiet-Riter
- 1985 Brother Charger 11 Correction (needs parts)
- 196X Remington Streamliner
- 1949 Royal Quiet De Luxe
- 1955 Royal Quiet De Luxe
- 1949 Smith-Corona Clipper (case)
- 1950 Remington Rand All New
- 1951 Smith-Corona Skyriter
- 1953 Smith-Corona Silent
- 1948 Royal Quiet De Luxe
- 1958 Olympia SM3
- 1955 Royal HHE
- Perkins Brailler (awaiting parts, but functional)
- 1952 Smith-Corona Silent
- 1958 Olympia SM3 (green; math keyset)
- 1940 Corona Zephyr
- c1931 New Orga (Privat 5)
- 1968 Remington Ten Forty
- 196X Remington Streamliner
- 1968 Remington 666
- 197X Smith-Corona Electra 210 (needs a new belt and servicing)
- 1952 Royal Quiet De Luxe with Vogue typeface
- 1958 Royal Futura 800 (currently servicing)
- 1950 Royal KMG
- 196X Royal 440 (parting out?)
- 1956 Remington Standard
I also keep a profile with some of my collection documented at the Typewriter Database.
Typewriter Resources
Some of my favorite additional typewriter information and resources:
Typewriter Articles
Articles I’ve written about particular typewriter-related topics including cleaning, maintenance, and restoration:
- On colloquial advice for degreasing, cleaning, and oiling manual typewriters
- Learning Typewriter Maintenance and Repair
- Adding to My Typewriter Toolset
- Typewriter Tools Upgrade: A new bag and some specialty typewriter tools
- Collective Nouns for Typewriters and Typists
- Photos of Typewriters for the Typewriter Database
- Aggregated Resources and Playlist for a Crash Course on the Olympia SM3 Portable Typewriter
- Mr. Typewriter, a Royal 660 Electric Typewriter, as inspiration for Stanley Kubrick’s HAL 9000?
- What typwriter-related project(s) are you working on this weekend?
- Repairing the Drawband on an Orga Privat 5 Typewriter
- Users of the early Henry Dreyfuss Royal Quiet De Luxe Portable Typewriters
- Bulk Order of Typewriter Ribbon from Baco Ribbon & Supply Co.
- 1949 Smith-Corona Clipper Black Wooden Case Restoration
- Typewriter Backing Sheets for Index Cards
- Typecasting with IndieWeb Building Blocks
- Typecast orientation
Typewriter Books, Movies, etc.
- A. C. Van Sant. The Van Sant System Of Touch Typewriting For Smith Premier (Book), 1902. http://archive.org/details/TheVanSantSystemOfTouchTypewriting-ForSmithPremier.
- Ackerman, Peter. The Lonely Typewriter. Illustrated edition. Boston: David R. Godine, Publisher, 2014.
- Adler, Michael. Antique Typewriters: From Creed to QWERTY. Schiffer, 1997.
- Adler, Michael H. The Writing Machine: A History of the Typewriter. George Allen & Unwin Ltd, 1973.
- Allan, Tony. Typewriter: The History · The Machines · The Writers. 1st ed. New York: Shelter Harbor Press, 2015.
- Atkinson, Annelise. Typewriter SOS: The DIY Guide to Fixing Common Problems with Typewriters, 2014.
- Auster, Paul, and Sam Messer. The Story of My Typewriter. 1st edition. New York: D.A.P./Distributed Art Publishers, Inc., 2002.
- Beeching, Wilfred A. Century of the Typewriter. First American Edition. London: St. Martin’s Press, 1974.
- California Typewriter. Documentary. Gravitas Pictures, 2016.
- Casillo, Anthony, Bruce Curtis, and Tom Hanks. Typewriters: Iconic Machines from the Golden Age of Mechanical Writing. Illustrated edition. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2017.
- Flint, Woz. The Distraction-Free First Draft. One Idea Press, 2023. https://www.oneideapress.com/product-page/the-distraction-free-first-draft.
- Hanks, Tom. Uncommon Type: Some Stories. Knopf, 2017.
- House, Clifford R., and Samuel Skurow. Typewriting Style Manual with References to Century 21 Typewriting. Cincinnati, OH: South-Western Publishing Co., 1977. http://archive.org/details/typing_202007.
- Lyons, Martyn. The Typewriter Century: A Cultural History of Writing Practices. Studies in Book and Print Culture. Toronto ; Buffalo ; London: University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division, 2021.
- Maintenance Of Office Machines. 16 mm. Vol. MN-1513. United States Navy Training Film, 1943. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocdxgkxKAKo.
- Marty (Costa Mesa). Gregg Typewriting For Colleges (Complete Course), 1964. http://archive.org/details/greggtypewritingforcolleges.
- Monk, Theodore. “1954 Smith-Corona (SCM) Typewriter Type Styles and Keyboards Catalog.” – To Type, Shoot Straight, and Speak the Truth… (blog), February 3, 2023. https://munk.org/typecast/2023/02/03/1954-smith-corona-scm-typewriter-type-styles-and-keyboards-catalog/.
- Pearce, H. G. Complete Instructions: How to Repair, Rebuild, and Adjust Underwood Typewriters With Handy Reference for Locating Trouble Quickly. Bridgeport, CT: Typewriter Mechanics Publishing Co., 1920. https://johnesimmons.com/Typewriter/Articles/Manualpdf/Underwood_Repair_Manual.pdf.
- Polt, Richard. The Typewriter Revolution: A Typist’s Companion for the 21st Century. 1st ed. Woodstock, VT: Countryman Press, 2015.
- Robert, Paul, and Peter Weil. Typewriter: A Celebration of the Ultimate Writing Machine. 1st ed. New York: Union Square & Co., 2016.
- Smith-Corona, Inc. Type Styles and Keyboards for Smith-Corona Office Typewriters. Syracuse, NY: Smith-Corona, Inc., 1954. https://munk.org/typecast/2023/02/03/1954-smith-corona-scm-typewriter-type-styles-and-keyboards-catalog/.
- Vangool, Janine. The Typewriter: A Graphic History of the Beloved Machine. UPPERCASE publishing inc, 2015.
@chrisaldrich I spy a couple of SCM portables!
@chrisaldrich Nice looking family!