FONT FACTS NAME: Helvetica Helvetica CATEGORY: One of the world’s most Sans Neo-Grotesque widely-used fonts > DESIGNER: Max Miedinger FOUNDRY: g Haas Type Foundry G J K Q R a b DATE: 1957 j h o t 1 7 H HAAS TYPE FOUNDRY BRIEF HISTORY: After noticing a drop in sales, the director of the Haas’sche EXAMPLES OF USE: Express Stops Schriftgießerei commissioned Miedinger to create a new sans-serif typeface in 1956. 1832: Thorowgood issues Europe was moving away from the first lower-case sans- serif type post-war austerity and into a modern world. The next year, 1898: Berthold Foundry the Neue Haas-Grotesk face releases Akzidenz Grotesk was unveiled, only to change its name to Helvetica, to pander 1910: Helvetica creator Max to an international market in Miedinger is born 1960. Helvetica was used to the point of saturation in the 1960s 1956: Miedinger is hired to and 1970s and soon became develop new sans-serif the world’s most widely used typeface. 1957: Miedinger introduces MISCELLANEOUS FACTS: Haas-Grotesk • Helvetica is the Latin name for Switzerland. 1958: Roman version of • Miedinger designed Helvetica Haas-Grotesk is introduced based on Akzidenz Grotesk, which was created in 1898. 1959: Bold Haas-Grotesk • For months, Hoffman and makes its first appearance Miedinger traded drawings proofs and comparisons of old 1960: Neue Haas Grotesk grotesks. becomes Helvetica • The 1950s were a great revival period for the Grotesque 1980: Haas Unica is created types, with Helvetica and to correct misuses Univers, which was designed by Frutiger and had 21 1980: Miedinger dies in variations, in 1957. March in Zurich, Switzerland • Helvetica’s most distinctive features are its horizontal stroke 1983: Neutral typeface Neue terminals, large x-height and Helvetica is created extremely tight spacing..