Of Men, Monsters and Machines: A Case-study on the Business-model of American Type Founders (ATF) Tobias Holzmann Introduction 11 Hot Metal for the Typographic Scene 1. On Designing Typefaces at ATF 15 Source Material at ATF or the Idea of a National Printing Library Excursus: The Tragic Case of the Haas Unica The Library’s Position on the Research Market 2. Type Manufacturing at ATF 25 Technological Refinements Ahead of Their Time 3. What Makes a Good Salesman 31 New Guidelines and New Investments Frederic W. Goudy, the Deliberate Outsider The Right of the Mighty Design Decisions, Education and Working-class Heroes — An Attempt at Conclusion 4. Type design Today — A Democratic Profession 43 Historical Background: Digital Type in its Infancy Type 1 — Formula of Success for Individual Type Designers New Clients on an Old Market Excursus: Beyond the Western World Transversality in the 21st Century There is nothing Left But to Wait Appendix 59 “ What the heck are you doin’? Hanging out on the Internet all day long? I need to make a f… living!” Earl Kallemeyn, 2011. INTRODUCTION The prior quote originates from Earl Kallemeyn, letterpress printer in Brooklyn, New York, with whom I used to work back in 2011. It reflects the necessity of the present essay in its clearest way: how can a type designer in the 21st century sell his work and more urgently, how can former type foundries such as American Type Founders Company (ATF) help and inspire future type designers, to set up a successfully running business? First of all, we should not expect finding a universal answer to the question. Espe- cially in the case of ATF, we are dealing with a very complex story and rolling back in time, pointing out the important details, is a difficult task. But where does the formula of success actually lay in? This inquire will examine the quite unique business model of ATF and its different departments within the company. Furthermore, the question arises, which role played educa- tion for the typographic scene on the verge of the 20th century in the United States. The second part of this essay will deal with the present situation of the type industry and examine the influence of ATF in times of digital culture: how did the profession of the type designer change and what could be his future tasks? Hot Metal for the Typographic Scene Before diving deeper into the field, we should shortly hold in and go back in history to when everything started, 11 in order to set up some basic knowledge of the American be fundamentally due to Benton’s prior invention: the typographic scene, ATF itself, and why it eventually became Monotype System by Tolbert Lanston (1897), the Ludlow so important. Typograph by William I. Ludlow (around 1912) or the In the 19th century, the Industrial Revolution of the Intertype Linecasting Machine by Herrmann Ridder (1917). printing industry finally arrived in the United States. News- The Industrial Revolution of the printing industry paper printing through cylinder presses had already described herein had also a strong influence on the typo- met the standards in Europe about 80 years earlier, even graphic scene and thus the formation of ATF. Since though it was still very expensive and time consuming. the manufacturing process improved, more and more Inspired by James Olivie Clephane’s idea of a mechani- foundries entered into business with the result of an over- cal writing machine, the German immigrant Ottmar production of type and consequently dumping prices.5 Mergenthaler developed a band machine, which was able The latter as well as the impact of the Linotype machine to print aligned bars of metal letters in line. Despite diffi- resulted in the consolidation of 23 American type foun- culties while trying to improve his invention, in 1886, dries in 1892.6 With the financial means of the MacKellar, Mergenthaler could finally present the “Linotype”, an auto- Smiths & Jordan foundry, the pantograph of Benton & matic line casting machine for newspaper, magazine and Waldo Company as well as another important tech- poster printing.1, 2 Clephane’s role is worth being mentioned nical invention, the Barth Automatic Type Setting Machine here, since he provided the necessary financial means (1888) by the Cincinnati Type Foundry, it did not take for the work of Mergenthaler. ATF long to monopolize the typographic scene in the Uni- There had been earlier versions of automatic compos- ted States. ing machines in the middle of the 19th century, none of Over the first three decades of the 20th century, the them having been entirely successful. Mergenthaler’s ma- merger dominated the market until economic recession, chine would probably have met the same fate if Linn Boyd inter alia, derogated this successful episode. During Benton would not have invented his pantographic punch- their period of prosperity, ATF was not only able to produce cutting machine in 1885.3 The latter could accurately type in greater quantities and less time, but to recognize produce the needed matrices for the Linotype machine.4 the clients’ exigencies. This can be referred to key players Benton and Mergenthaler agreed on a leasing and thus hot like Robert Wickham Nelson, who took over the general metal type became standard in the printing industry in direction in 1896, or Morris Fuller Benton, son of the earlier 1889. In the following years, further composing machines mentioned engineer Linn Boyd, who became the chief came up and in the majority of cases, its success would type designer for the company in 1900.7 1 Robin Kinross, ‘La Typographie moderne’, Un essai d’histoire critique, Paris: Éditions B42, 2012 (first publish- ed in 1992 as ‘Modern typography’, An essay in critical history, London: Hyphen Press.), p.37. 2 An entirely working model if the Linotype machine had only been presented in 1890 (cf. Patricia A. Cost, ‘The Bentons’, 2011, p.71). 3 Patricia A. Cost, ‘The Bentons’, How an American Father and Son Changed the Printing Industry, Rochester: Cary Graphic Arts Press, 2011, p.67. 4 The production of a metal piece of type back then consisted of three preliminary steps: A reversed letter 5 Theodore L. De Vinne, ‘The Century’s Printer on the Century’s Type’, in Century Magazine 51, no.5, 1896, p.795. was hammered into a piece of copper to create the matrix, which in turn would become one component 6 A complete list with all the foundries that took part in the merger can be found in the Appendix. 12 of the mold. From this mold, individual pieces of type could be cast (cf. Glossary). 13 7 Morris Fuller Benton already joined the company in 1986 (cf. Patricia A. Cost, ‘The Bentons’, 2011, p.103). 1. ON DESIGNING TYPEFACES AT ATF Inquiring the legacy of a type foundry (or should we rather say type “business”) like ATF might be quite obvious: the essential idea is that future designers learn from their mistakes. Especially when considering its very dynamic evolution, from rise to fall. Naturally, this would be too sim- plified as well as too focussed on the economical part. As to ATF, learning does not only mean to approve or to deny, but also to take their model as a sort of inspiration for future type foundries. And a closer look reveals that especially the practiced methods at ATF as well as the con- servation of resources are providing plenty of reasons to get inspired, may it be in a positive or negative way. In equal measure, one should keep in mind that ATF became inspired as well, adopting methods from Europe. Source Material at ATF or the Idea of a National Printing Library First and foremost, creating a new typeface for ATF intends designing something that “sells itself”. As a valid example within our focus we might consider the “ATF Garamond” fa- mily by Morris Fuller Benton. In 1914, when Benton started to work on his Garamond revival, he did not conceive the idea on his own.1 It was ac- tually Henry Lewis Bullen who convinced him to start deve- loping one of the most ambitious type design projects at ATF. The latter had also been involved in the organization of 15 1 Patricia A. Cost, ‘The Bentons’, 2011, p.217. the in-house library in 1908.2 The purpose being to perpe- his own legacy.7 If we assume the latter, one should not tuate the history of printed matter and other related mind inquiring how come that Benton also had access to arts for future professionals, for the time being type de- specimens from the Imprimerie Nationale in Paris, the signers working at ATF. On first sight, Bullen provided so-called “Caractères de l’Université”? According to Patri- the inspiration while Benton spent several years on study- cia A. Cost, the same type models had been used as ing specimens in the archive, before he drew his own a guideline for Benton during his design process.8 Hence, interpretation, which eventually was launched in 1917.3 the question arises to which extent Benton used the docu- Now, one might think that it is due to Bullen that ments furnished by his own company? To go one step Benton adopted the method of studying historical docu- further, one could also compare the design process of ments (and also the importance of collecting them). But in ATF’s Garamond revival to the one of the copy of the Fren- the end, Bullen’s impact was much less self-initiated than ch foundry Deberny & Peignot, which came out in 1926. it is communicated through the major writings on him Ironically, the research on the latter revival started in 1914 and the American type design scene.4 He also had his own as well, but their version only came out nine years after master in the company, Robert Wickham Nelson, the back the one of ATF and it was much less successful.9 then director at ATF.5 Furthermore, the money he inves- What is interesting here is not only the fact that the ted in buying new documents to expand the collection idea of setting up an in-house library was not necessarily came directly from ATF.