Top level categories in my notes<br /> by [[Richard Griffiths]] in Writing Slowly<br /> accessed on 2026-06-23T21:20:11

Trump may be mystery patient in odd case of 79yo getting experimental obesity drug<br /> by [[Beth Mole]] in Ars Technica<br /> accessed on 2026-06-23T21:06:22

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/northjersey/name/donald-bolander-obituary?id=24573183

Founded Career Institute and edited several of their books on English, spelling, synonyms, antonyms, etc.

See also:<br /> - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/trump-drives-across-lincoln-memorial-reflecting-pool-to-inspect-blue-coating-hes-adding <br /> - https://apnews.com/article/trump-lincoln-memorial-reflecting-pool-blue-visit-214814ea23ae9412093167e49bbc20e8?utm_source=copy&utm_medium=share

Trump Gave Out a No-Bid Contract to Turn D.C.’s Reflecting Pool Blue<br /> by [[David A. Fahrenthold]], [[Luke Broadwater]] in The New York Times<br /> accessed on 2026-06-23T11:12:35

Did driving across the Reflecting Pool cause the damage Trump is saying was vandalism?!?

https://raymondsofficemachinesandsupplies.com/<br /> Darwin Raymond, Raymond's Office Machines, 927 Grand Ave., Glenwood Springs, CO 81601. (970) 945-5872.

See also:<br /> - https://coloradosun.com/2019/04/24/vintage-typewriters-glenwood/ - https://gazette.com/life/from-underground-typewriters-rise-thanks-to-man-and-bird-colorful/article_c9bfab92-3ed1-11ea-8113-77af98cc4fa2.html

https://www.si.edu/object/archives/sova-nmah-ac-0260<br /> Railway Express Agency Records<br /> American History Museum

Celebrating Typewriter Day 2026 on a WORKING 1887 Hall (Salem) Typewriter <br /> by Dynamically Typed (aka Joel Berger)<br /> via https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1udalhf/comment/otd01ki/

The Best Turntables and Record Players https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-turntable/

https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/George_Stillman_Hillard

Apparently he wrote: “If liberty with law is fire on the hearth, liberty without law is fire on the floor.” — George Stillman Hillard<br /> source?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/137381943497

Sticker underneath lid of 3x5" card index (recipe-type) box:

Main section:

"Jogger 'Trade mark'<br /> No. 2<br /> 3 x 5 - closed<br /> Sectionets 'Finger-Tip' Office Systems<br /> Sectionuls Vertical Files of Big Capacity<br /> Sectionups Four Drawer Vertical Letter Files<br /> Shaw-Walker"

Advertising text:

"No matter how small your business you should have Shaw-Walker Systems and Filing Devices to help make it grow larger---systematically. When it is larger Shaw-Walker equipment will take care of it.

With Shaw-Walker Modern files your work is methodical and systematic; you obtain the best results in the shortest time; they are to your office what modern machinery is to your factory. Ask for our Big Catalog."

via photos at https://www.ebay.com/itm/137381943497 which sold for $25.00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPTqELTPh2Y

via SAS

https://www.reddit.com/r/math/comments/1ud2eoa/advice_for_amateur_mathematicians_from_an_amateur/

Advice on how not to be a crackpot.

Marjorie Taylor Greene Quits Republican Party Amid Trump Feud<br /> by [[Ed Mazza]] in HuffPost<br /> accessed on 2026-06-23T10:00:55

via https://www.axios.com/2026/06/22/tucker-carlson-quits-republicans-maga-fractures

Quoting from an episode of "Can't Be Censored"

Texas anti-ICE protesters convicted of terrorism charges sentenced to at least 50 years in prison | Trump administration | The Guardian<br /> by [[Sam Levine]]<br /> accessed on 2026-06-23T09:12:06

https://www.catawiki.com/en/s?q=typewriter

https://www.liveauctioneers.com/

https://www.proxibid.com/

https://hibid.com/

via https://old.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1ucvk38/i_pulled_my_old_smith_corona_put_of_the_attic/ <br /> u/pete1885 reports good success with o-rings from McMaster-Carr

Specs: 9452K191 3 3/4 ID; 4" OD; 70A durometer; black

https://www.instagram.com/p/DZ5Wv2kFGu7/

Portland Stamp Company perforated the typewriter stamps that Lou Spirito designed.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DLS_eretU9c/<br /> via Ames Museum

Tom Hanks' love of typewriters by [[CBS Sunday Morning]] by Lee Cowan

https://gramercytypewriter.com/<br /> Gramercy Typewriter Co.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-rea-03a67a6/

Northeast Typewriter Exchange is opening 2026-07-18

https://alex-ludwig.net/

Vol. 1, Hidden in Plain Sight: Film Music's 'Dies Irae'

Includes list of Dies Irae appearances in film as well as composer and timestamps in the films.

Gisela Fieber Obituary - Hemet/San Jacinto, CA<br /> by [[Press Enterprise]]<br /> accessed on 2026-06-22T11:45:56

Arthur Fontaine Obituary (2018) - Riverside, CA - The Press-Enterprise<br /> by [[Legacy]]<br /> accessed on 2026-06-22T11:43:09

According to Bob Marshall, Mr. Fontaine owned and operated Arcade Typewriter Co. until around 2014.

@argusc3310 suspects that Gisela Fieber and her husband Fritz may have had a shop prior to that in the area.

Typewriter Muse Shop Tour<br /> [[Joe Van Cleave]]

Bob Marshall has an assembly line set up in his typewriter repair shop that consists of four people: - Bob: intake/quotes/repair/adjustment/platens - Jonny: front desk, showroom, QC - Grace: wash station, cleaning (alcohol)<br /> - Abraham: Repair/adjustments/oiling; rubberwork, rollers

Machines usually sit for a few days to a week in QC to ensure there are no issues.

Typewriter Muse offers 3-way shipping.

Typewriter Muse is moving through about 12 typewriters per week between repairs and sales.

Bob told me in person that the mix is about 2/3rds repair and 1/3 sales.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DZz9tE2B2Rd/

Dies Irae motif in:<br /> Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin<br /> Frozen 2

[Why this creepy melody is in so many movies}(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3-bVRYRnSM)<br /> on YouTube by Vox

Dies Irae in motion pictures: <br /> Metropolis (1927)<br /> It's a Wonderful Life (1940)<br /> A Clockwork Orange (1971)<br /> The Omen (1976)<br /> Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)<br /> Star Wars: A New Hope (1977)<br /> The Shining (1980)<br /> The Mission (1986)<br /> Big Trouble in Little China (1986)<br /> Home Alone (1990)<br /> Batman Returns (1992)<br /> Jurassic Park (1993)<br /> The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)<br /> The Lion King (1994)<br /> Mars Attacks (1996)<br /> Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)<br /> Attack of the Clones (2002)<br /> Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)<br /> The Ring (2002)<br /> Indiana Jones 4: The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)<br /> Wreck it Ralph (2012)<br /> Iron Man 3 (2013)<br /> Game of Thrones S5 E1 (2015) Crimson Peak (2015)<br /> 10 Cloverfield Lane (2015)<br /> Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)<br /> Colossal (2016)<br /> Pirates of the Caribbean 5: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017) <br /> The Good Place S1, E11 (2017)<br /> Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

https://www.youtube.com/live/biGALFxtits?si=Ho_8f94REtZ5SAiD&t=3889

Advice for type-ins

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6zwGHwRIwmVNbsCTpu283R0PbygqioUx

LIVE: Joe Van Cleave at Typewriter Muse

Attended in person 2026-06-13 at Typewriter Muse in Riverside, CA

via https://www.classictypewriter.com/underwood-no-5-desktop

reply to u/patsy_dragon at https://reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1ucl6lx/is_this_typewriter_seller_legit_plz_help/ re: classictypewriter.com

It's Steven Budden, Jr. out of North Carolina who has been in the space for several years. I suspect that his prices are higher than most because it looks like he's offering a higher level of (bespoke) service than the blow and go C/O/A that many repair shops are offering in the $350-550 range. It looks more like he's doing actual restorations rather than simpler refurbishments with a clean, oil, and adjust. Prior to buying, I'd want to have a direct conversation about what level of service he's offering to these machines? Is it a full restoration? Or just refurbishing with all new rubber? The metal work and brights on his machines seem to indicate he's doing way more work than one typically sees in the overall space. (See: https://typecast.munk.org/2023/04/24/how-to-properly-describe-the-condition-of-a-typewriter/)

I'm vaguely concerned that he's not got himself listed on Polt's repair list at https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/tw-repair.html, but as he looks like he's mostly doing higher end custom work, he may be trying to avoid the drive by day-to-day repair work and ribbon swaps that is the bread and butter of most shops. His socials seem to indicate this is a side job and he has another career(s).

If you're concerned, call him up and see what's going on beyond the website. You can also comparison shop using Richard Polt's repair list as well.

https://boffosocko.com/research/typewriter-collection/#Typewriter%20Market

https://www.northeasttypewriter.com/

Neil Howe says the 4th turning is here. What does that mean for America in a moment of crisis?<br /> by [[Peter O'Dowd]] for [[NPR]]<br /> accessed on 2026-06-08T15:42:14

Trump has one chance to save face: Resign now<br /> by [[Brian Karem]] in Salon<br /> accessed on 2026-06-19T17:19:03

Utterly Absurd Contractor Behind Reflecting Pool Renovation Disaster<br /> by [[Rachel Kahn]] in The New Republic<br /> accessed on 2026-06-19T13:06:37

It was so important for Trump to have the reflecting pool be blue that they stupidly hired "Greenwater Services" with a no-bid contract.

https://www.reddit.com/r/classicfilms/comments/1u8bdi0/will_hays_to_warren_doane_hays_wants_to_censor/

2 page Typewritten letter from Will Hays to Warren Doan on July 10, 1926, on the letterhead of the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America, Inc.

Aphorism? included in the letter: <br /> "Liberty is fire on the hearth -- License is fire on the floor."

Interesting how he frames duty and morality as well as responsibility, but appears to be protecting the business versus using film as an art form to create discussion...

Evidence of plays featuring nudity in the mid-1920s while Hollywood endeavored not to show any nudity at all.

Is JD Vance stealing his book titles from bell hooks?<br /> by [[Brittany Allen]] in Literary Hub on April 3, 2026<br /> accessed on 2026-06-18T10:39:03

What JD Vance really believes in his new Catholic conversion memoir Communion<br /> by [[Christian Paz]] in Vox<br /> accessed on 2026-06-18T10:09:24

https://www.reddit.com/r/Screenwriting/comments/1u7dtnr/variety_article_backrooms_sends_hollywood_to/

Sydney Sweeney and other examples

Trump Calls Obama a “Son of a B*tch” After Disastrous Iran Deal Leaked<br /> by [[Edith Olmsted]] in The New Republic<br /> accessed on 2026-06-18T09:16:08

Angry and Rattled, Trump’s Fox Allies Blurt It Out on Live TV: He Lost<br /> by The Daily Blast With Greg Sargent on The New Republic<br /> accessed on 2026-06-18T09:13:10

https://app.recentreborn.com/search/instagram?hashtag=typewriterrevolution&feed=posts

THE HUMOURS OF WHISKEY<br /> by [[Marc Gunn]], Celtic Bard accessed on 2026-06-17T11:52:28

https://www.facebook.com/groups/825366750922687/

Trump disputes $300 billion reconstruction fund for Iran<br /> by [[Elliott Davis]]<br /> accessed on 2026-06-15T22:22:29

Trump administration can't get their story straight

JD Vance Confirms Iran Will Get Jaw-Dropping Sum Under Trump Deal<br /> by [[Hafiz Rashid]] | The New Republic<br /> accessed on 2026-06-15T22:20:13

So somehow this (on top of all the losses and multiple billions in costs of the war and economic problems) is better than the Obama nuclear deal? WTF?

Secret Memo Exposes Trump Team’s Debate on Suspending Constitution<br /> by [[Hafiz Rashid]] | The New Republic<br /> accessed on 2026-06-15T22:08:12

America has lost its war with Iran<br /> by [[Editorial]] | The Independent<br /> accessed on 2026-06-15T22:04:21

https://menofthrift.com/front-page/instagram-thrift-stores

https://www.typepals.com/Sys/PublicProfile/94299685/5746348

Ranganathan, S. R. 1931. The Five Laws of Library Science. 1st ed. Madras, London: The Madras Library Association; E. Goldston. https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/001661182 (June 15, 2026).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_laws_of_library_science

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1u6k2pn/smith_corona_electra_120_with_modern_motor_and/

reply to u/pricklypearssoda at https://reddit.com/r/Screenwriting/comments/1u3hp5q/should_i_drop_99_on_student_discounted_access_to/

Should I drop $99 on student discounted access to Final Draft for industry standard formatting?

Why buy into a "system", much less one with recurring costs? Formatting a script is the lowest bar in the space. A third grader could easily do this.

Even a vintage typewriter with a pica typeface will allow you to set margins, a few tabs, and you're on your way. It's the writing that's the tough part. Spend your time and energy on this part where it really belongs. Software isn't going to suddenly add creativity, emotion, or verve to your work. The "industry standard" of unsold and unproduced screenplays is the one you really want to worry about.

Preston Sturges, Billy Wilder, Charlie Chaplin, Orson Welles, William Golding, Woody Allen, Francis Ford Coppola, Paddy Chayefsky, Robert Towne, Frank Pierson, and Steve Tesich all have something in common: they won Academy Awards for best original screenplay without using screenplay software. Why couldn't you? Why shouldn't you?!?

reply to u/someblokeonhere at https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1u4ftix/which_typewriter_had_the_best_font/

The vast majority of typewriters were sold with a traditional mono-spaced Courier-like face in either pica or elite pitch (often with incredibly generic names like "Royal Pica" or "Royal Elite". Usually for about $5 (on what was often a $100 purchase which is about $1,000 in today's money), you could custom select an alternate face which was often marketed as a way to make your correspondence more personalized. They tried to make it a selling point, but I suspect it wasn't much of one in actual practice, particularly at that mark up. Many companies sold an "Executive" typeface that was often in italic as a means of differentiating typewriters meant for executives rather than the standard faces secretaries used.

Lots of alternate faces were manufactured for specific purposes like banking, accounting, speechwriting, and schools and those were sold as selling points for those markets. Other related features like keysets and special characters were marketed at pharmacists, doctors, engineers/mathematicians/scientists, and libraries.

If you create an account on the typewriter database you'll see options in the main menu for downloading full versions of a variety of typographical catalogs. Ted Munk also has (lesser) photo scans of some of these on his blog.

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1u4gbul/its_working/

I suspect they meant 6mm width on the fabric ribbon?

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1u4gbul/its_working/

To create an account on the typewriter database, visit https://typewriterdatabase.com/register-today.php (Ted Munk manually approves new accounts within a day or two.)

Joe Van Cleave has a good intro video on using the database: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5K5m1W7KNW8

And you'll find some notes on photos for the TWdB here: https://boffosocko.com/2024/10/24/photos-of-typewriters-for-the-typewriter-database/

https://youtu.be/ZXlYNEej9t0?si=gDN_6cDPn2N7fVB6&t=211

Ben Kingsley used a Continental typewriter in Schindler's List. It's housed at the Amblin Film Archive.

Typewriter repair people on r/typewriters:

• Lucas Dul of Typewriter Chicago: u/Lucasdul2 #
• Kirk Jackson of Nashville Typewriter: u/NashvilleTypewriter
• Scott Connnors of Stephentown Typewriter: u/scottconnors #
• Typewriter Justice of Keller, TX: u/TypewriterJustice
• TB Writers plus LLC: u/Dangerous-Ratio6448

https://itch.io/jam/36wordrpgjam/entries

Opinion - A Defense of a Liberal Arts Education in the Age of A.I.<br /> by [[Ross Douthat]], [[Victoria Chamberlin]], [[jennSophia Alvarez Boyd]] - The New York Times<br /> accessed on 2026-06-11T16:57:08

leisure vs. entertainment vs. work vs. occupation vs. labor

Is Douthat aware of the broader background and playing a bit of devil's advocate here?

Douthat buys into the idea that you have to be "smart" to appreciate the humanities or the great books.

Didn't Mortimer J. Adler spend a large chunk of his life trying to convince "everyman" that they could appreciate Plato and Aristotle?

One of the same front, Catholics seem to be big in America behind the Great Books and classical education, yet also seem to be a large group of conservatives behind MAGA/Trumpism.

Nazis despite a humanistic education....

Is the link that Douthat a real one?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killian_documents_controversy

https://archive.org/details/Tytell_Typewriter_Company_COL_761

An Archive of a Different Type<br /> by [[Jason Scott]] on Internet Archive Blogs accessed on 2026-06-11T10:58:48

Ron's Typewriter - YouTube<br /> by [[Parks and Recreation]] <br /> accessed on 2025-10-06T22:09:41

Parks and Recreation S3, E5 "Media Blitz" aired 2011-02-17<br /> https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1636241/

reply to u/Beloved-21 at https://old.reddit.com/r/Zettelkasten/comments/1u2bw2s/index_cards_vs_digital_note_app/

There are a handful of affordances you get with paper over digital.

• Most in the space of embodied cognition would indicate that you will have better retention by writing things down physically versus typing them out.
• studies indicate that the presence of screens/phones reduces the level and quality of the conversation in the room, even when the device is sitting on the table nearby
• people react more at ease with paper note taking, especially in interviews where they tend to be more guarded if you're recording everything
• The act of filing your notes forces you to engage with them multiple times. It's not just re-reading the current note to decide where to place it, but re-reading older notes to decide where the current one fits in. This gives you the benefits of spaced repetition as well as encountering the value of serendipity, synergy, and syzygy
• you're forced to be more concise and selective about what you capture versus digital where it's easier to be a hoarder of material you don't "own" or even understand.
• index cards are just as easy to carry in your pockets as any other device
• physical cards are easier to layout, arrange, and re-arrange in various orders than any of the clunky methods for doing this in the digital space where solid user interface for this sort of affordance is almost entirely lacking.
• paper forces you to slow down and engage with notes in ways that digital notes typically don't
• physical cards actually "get in your way" in a sense while digital cards are always "hidden"

I'm sure you'll find various others hiding in a digital version of my notes: https://hypothes.is/users/chrisaldrich?q=tag%3A%22note+taking+affordances%22

The real question at the end of the day is what works best for you?!? Try them both out for a few weeks or a month or more and chose the version that works best for your modes of thinking. Experimenting is the only way to answer this question for yourself. You may find other affordances that don't apply to others' work.

https://typecast.munk.org/2011/04/24/1964-nomda-blue-book-olivetti-font-styles/

Olivetti type styles from the 1964 NOMDA Blue Book<br /> - Olivetti Bulletin (5 pitch, 3 lines/inch)<br /> - Olivetti Giant Primer (alternate) (5 pitch)<br /> - Olivetti Comet (10 pitch)<br /> - Olivetti Distinctive Pica<br /> - Olivetti Distinctive Pica Heavy Face<br /> - Olivetti Elite Gothic Heavy Face (10 pitch)<br /> - Olivetti Elite Correspondence Gothic (10 pitch)<br /> - Olivetti Esquire (10 pitch, 5.4 lines/inch)<br /> - Olivetti Pica Gothic Shiftless Alphabet<br /> - Olivetti Pica Victoria<br /> - Olivetti Stymie<br /> - Olivetti Wide Elite Victoria (10 pitch, 5.4 lines/inch)<br /> - Olivetti Distinctive Elite<br /> - Olivetti Distinctive Elite Heavy Face<br /> - Olivetti Elite Stymie<br /> - Olivetti Elite Italic<br /> - Olivetti Elite Stymie Heavy Face<br /> - Olivetti Stymie Heavy Face<br /> - Olivetti Stymie Gothic<br /> - Olivetti Universal Pica<br /> - Olivetti Monza (10 pitch), script<br /> - Olivetti Esteem Pica<br /> - Olivetti Pica Gothic<br /> - Olivetti Elite Victoria<br /> - Olivetti Esteem Elite<br /> - Olivetti Financial Gothic<br /> - Olivetti Financial Gothic Heavy Face<br /> - Olivetti San Serif Elite<br /> - Olivetti Universal Elite #468

https://marvac.com/search?type=product%2Carticle&q=NOT+tag%3A__gift+AND+vcr+belts*&product_type=

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1u0xflk/what_was_anthony_bourdain_typing_on/

see also: https://www.reddit.com/r/AnthonyBourdain/comments/gz92rj/did_anthony_bourdain_ever_have_a_typewriter/

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1u0y12f/ink_stained_wretches_ringside/

via u/BlindAssassin111 at https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1u19nbi/1960_optima_super/

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1u06wh4/duplex_jewett_no_1/

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1u03qli/hermes_3000_2nd_gen_made_new_knobs_3d_printed_but/

Robert Caro Reveals Details of His Final Lyndon Johnson Biography<br /> C-SPAN's Book TV

Caro outlines the entirety of his book before he starts writing. He puts his outline onto paper which he tacks up onto cork boards across his office wall.

Caro writes everything in longhand first then types/revised it on his Smith-Corona Electra 210.

Caro only gave Gottlieb a piece of his LBJ bio draft when he ran out of money and needed an advance. Otherwise, he doesn't give his editor material until he's done.

Caro lives on the corner in Central Park West

Caro was on the 22nd floor (of 29) at 250 W. 57th Street for 22 years and wrote 3 books in a one room office. Joseph Heller had an office there as well.

https://www.reddit.com/r/vintageads/comments/1to1lwe/thorazine_1950searly_1960s/

Royal Futura 800 Case Handles<br /> https://www.tbwritersplus.com/product-page/royal-futura-800-case-handles

via https://www.reddit.com/r/Typewriter_parts/comments/1t1y9a2/royal_futura_800_case_handles/<br /> Originally offered on May 2, 2026

The plastic handles on Royal Futura Cases are almost always broken and/or missing. TB Writers Plus began offering a plastic replacement handle in May 2026 for $35.00.

https://www.reddit.com/user/Dangerous-Ratio6448/<br /> TB Writers plus LLC is u/Dangerous-Ratio6448

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fourth_Turning

Nithya Raman Overtakes Spencer Pratt in Race for L.A. Mayor<br /> by [[Shawn Hubler]] The New York Times<br /> accessed on 2026-06-07T22:50:31

reply to u/Away-Lavishness-4853 at https://reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1tykizl/which_platens_are_interchangeable/ Which platens are interchangeable?

You're really asking either the wrong question or a moot one.

Platens are generally good for about 24-40 years and then need to be recovered. Some machines had exchangeable platens for office use to have different levels of hardness for specific uses, but finding a machine with an extra these days is pretty much non-existent.

For most people if you had a parts machine for which you could "swap" a platen out you'd have to search far and wide for someone who may have gotten a recovered one in the late 80s or maybe early 90s to hope for something passable. Then there's the cost of buying and potentially shipping that machine. I've collected over 70 machines and only one of them had a platen that I would even consider "passable".

Ultimately for $90-150 to recover your platen via J. J. Short, it's much cheaper to just get your platen done and have something that'll last you a few decades.

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1tyory1/in_desperate_need_of_royal_quiet_deluxe_keycaps/

Someone destroyed their plastic keys by soaking them in a water/rubbing alcohol mixture.

Tom Hanks visited 90-year-old Berkeley Typewriter on Thursday<br /> by [[Kasia Pawlowska]] for San Francisco Gate<br /> accessed on 2026-06-05T16:30:33

“He tried pretty much everything in the store here, and actually walked away with a 1930s Royal standard typewriter,” Alexander said. “He really liked the touch on it.”

reply to u/Solid-Theme-6653 at https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1txfdst/is_this_lc_smith_typewriter_the_real_deal/

Rebuilt was a legal term back in the day to mean that a typewriter's condition was equivalent to that of a brand new machine: https://typecast.munk.org/2023/04/24/how-to-properly-describe-the-condition-of-a-typewriter/

Typewriters from that era will have wildly different conditions, and often be in very poor condition. https://boffosocko.com/2026/01/08/on-purchasing-typewriters-condition-is-king-context-is-queen/ Usually they start in the $20 range and often, but not always top, out in the $500 range. With only the pictures to compare these, I might place the first at $25 and the second at $120. (Putting my hands on the machine and inspecting it would obviously dramatically change my evaluation.)

Pretty much no one rebuilds machines anymore, they either service and/or refurbish them (relatively inexpensive $200-400) or they restore them ($500-2000+). I could imagine a well restored version of one of these machines selling for over $2,000, but it would have to be truly stunning and this would be tremendously rare.

More examples to look at and compare: https://typewriterdatabase.com/L.C.+Smith.8.143.bmys

@tomp your experience of finding the book binding text while searching for something entirely else is often called "serendipity". The way books are shelved in libraries helps to increase the chance that even if you don't find the thing you're looking for, along the way you might find other things of potential interest. Modern digital search often decreases this effect which was more common in the analog spaces of card catalogs and library books on shelves.

This experience is some of the unseen or elusive "magic" that Luhmann was referencing in his card “Geist im Kasten?” ZKII 9/8,3. You have to have the experience of searching for things and either finding or not finding them and running into entirely different ideas along the way to appreciate this sort of serendipity which is facilitated by physical zettelkasten practice. Otherwise it all seems very mundane. It's hard to see or demonstrate serendipity, and so people only see the papers and boxes and leave disappointed.

See also:<br /> - https://boffosocko.com/2022/10/22/the-two-definitions-of-zettelkasten/#Does%20Spirit%20hide<br /> - https://forum.zettelkasten.de/discussion/2408/on-note-9-8-3-ghost-in-the-box

reply to https://forum.zettelkasten.de/discussion/3483/findability-searching-and-creativity

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_David_Norman

https://www.reddit.com/r/serialkillers/comments/1smfbtr/john_normans_20000_pink_index_cards_1978/