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Thursday, 2 May 2013

McLoughlin Brothers Typewriter

The listing, at the starting price of a mere $9.99, of an 1884 McLoughlin Brothers typewriter on US eBay last week caused quite a stir. Not surprisingly, with the auction due to end tomorrow, there has been a flurry of 13 bids and the price has rocketed up to $US2025 ($A1951).
The McLoughlin, the subject of a lead article by Canadian typewriter collector Martin Howard in the December 2011 issue of ETCetera (No 96), is an intriguing machine. As far as I can tell, there was no known patent for it, but my research strongly indicates that it was almost certainly designed for the McLoughlins by the famous printing machine inventor Andrew Campbell. It has all the hallmarks of Campbell's work.
Martin Howard Collection
The McLoughlins' pioneering colour printing of children's books and games required the very best and most advanced printing technology - and that was invented and assigned to the McLoughlins by Campbell. In the mid-1880s, Campbell assigned a large number of his printing-related inventions to the brothers.
Andrew Campbell
What has added to the intrigue of this current eBay sale is that the name of another famous inventor, Charles A. Lieb, appears on it, suggesting that this particular McLoughlin was quite probably owned by Lieb


Cooper Union in the 1860s
Lieb was born in Newstead, New York, in 1856, and educated at the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in Manhattan. In the mid- to late 1890s, Lieb made his fortune through his ownership of the Georgetown and Tenallytown Railroad Company and a Washington DC electric lighting plant. Lieb devoted the later years of his life to inventing electric vehicles, wireless telegraph machines and a screw elevator.
In 1899, described as a "capitalist" by The New York Times, Lieb was part of a syndicate which took over the Corliss Steam Engine Works in Providence. Later that year he took part in the first run of the Automobile Club of America, driving an electric vehicle in New York.  At various times Lieb was a mechanical engineer with the Manhattan Transit Company and a manager for Western Union. In 1900 Lieb was joined by Oberlin Smith, who had invented magnetic recording, in the development of the telephonograph. Four years later Lieb was similarly approached by Nikola Tesla about an electric auto-bus. As an "expert" mechanical engineer connected with General Electric, in 1906 Lieb became a director of the United Wireless Telegraph Company, which attempted to merge the dominant Marconi and De Forest systems. 
Nikola Tesla
In early June 1911 Lieb gave $10,000 in bonds to assist building at his alma mater, the Cooper Union. He died three weeks later, on June 25, 1911.
John McLoughlin
Back to the McLoughlins. John McLoughlin was born in New York City on November 29, 1827, and began his working career as a wood engraver for Elton & Co, run by his father, John McLoughlin Snr, and Robert E.Elton. In 1852, John Jnr began the publication of illustrated books and five years later was joined by his brother Edmund (1834-1889). They operated under the name McLoughlin Brothers, with a factory in Brooklyn and head office on Broadway. Through Campbell, the company was able to pioneer the systematic use of colour printing technologies for children's books. John McLoughlin died in Connecticut on April 27, 1905, aged 77.
Campbell Country Cylinder Press
Finally, let's look at Andrew Campbell, who I feel certain designed the McLoughlin Brothers typewriter.  Campbell was born near Trenton, New Jersey, on June 14, 1821. In 1836 he left Trenton to become a driver on a canal. He moved to Alton, Illinois, where he constructed several labour-saving devices. In 1842 he removed to St Louis, where he built an omnibus called the Great Western, the first used in the city, carrying 48 passengers. In 1847, Campbell moved to Columbus, Missouri, where his inventive genius produced a machine for making match and pill boxes. He then devoted his attention to bridge building. He next went to New York City, where he started inventing printing presses.
Campbell became one of the world's most important inventors and manufacturers of printing presses. He was president of the Campbell Printing Press Company of Brooklyn. He invented the press-feeding machine in 1853, and was employed by A.B. Taylor & Co of New York. He built presses for Harper & Brothers and Frank Leslie, of New York, the first ever produced with table distribution, as well as the first automatics. In 1858 he engaged in business for himself; in 1861 he built the Campbell Country Press, which became widely used throughout the country by newspaper publishers. In 1866 he created the two-revolution book press and in 1868 an art press for fine illustrations. Campbell made the first press that printed, inserted, pasted, folded and cut in one continuous operation. He held 50 patents relating to press building. In 1880 he retired from active business but continued to design machines for the McLoughlin Brothers.
Campbell also invented various devices relating to hat manufacture, steam engineering, machinist's tools, lithographic machinery and electrical appliances.  Between 1858-89 he took out about 125 patents, including in the US, Britain, France and Belgium. His son, Andrew Chambre Campbell (1856-1926), was also a machine inventor.
Andrew Campbell died in New York City on April 13, 1890, aged 68.



Found: The Remington Typewriter Heiress Alive and Well

Throughout the long hours and days I put in last November to bring together the incredible story of Remington typewriter heiress Gamble Benedict, I constantly hoped for two things: first, that I would find Gamble was still alive and well; second, that someone close to her would stumble across my blog post and contact me to confirm this.
Those wishes came true this week when George Michael GallagherGamble's son by her first husband, Romanian-born chauffeur Andrei Porumbeanu, contacted me through this blog to say, "Thanks for doing this post. It is fun to read about my mother's past." Gamble, 72, now lives in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Goodness, won't it be fabulous to meet her and talk to her about her fascinating life?
Gamble and her brother Doug were the main beneficiaries of the fortune amassed by Remington typewriter pioneer Henry Harper Benedict. After her headline-grabbing three-year marriage to Porumbeanu ended in 1963, Gamble married New York cop Thomas F.Gallagher.
Henry Benedict was president of Wyckoff, Seamans & Benedict from 1895 and president of the Remington Typewriter Company from 1902 to 1913. Until his death in 1935, he remained the largest stockholder in Remington.
His grand-daughter, Gamble Benedict Sharpe, was born in New York on January 15, 1941. Porumbeanu (born January 27, 1925) meet her in May 1959.  In the early hours of December 27, 1959, Gambi escaped her "gilded cage" in Manhattan and on New Year’s Eve she and Porumbeanu boarded a Norwegian freighter headed for Antwerp. In Paris on January 22, 1960, Gambi was taken into police custody and the next day faced a juvenile court and was flown back to the US.
Yet again Gambi managed to elude her minders and she and Porumbeanu were married in Hendersonville, North Carolina, on April 6, 1960. On April 2, 1961, Gambi gave birth to George Michael in Montclair, New Jersey. But on October 7, 1964,  Gambi was granted an annulment. Gambi and Gallagher  were married on July 1, 1965. Porumbeanu died in New York in 1988.
CORRECTION: George Gallagher pointed out that Cortney (correct spelling) Gallagher is his sister. I had been led to believe Gamble had given birth to four sons, two by Porumbeanu and two by Gallagher.

Wednesday, 1 May 2013

Typewriter Bits & Pieces Come & Go

How the day dawned, as seen from my balcony, May 1st. Canberrans traditionally pride themselves in resisting turning on a heater until Anzac Day, April 25. But almost a week later we still haven't used heating here. Keep it up, Canberra.
Dusk this evening, taken a few minutes ago. In between these spectacular skies, it has been a very interesting day, with typewriter bits and pieces arriving from various parts of the globe. First, from Cincinnati, Ohio, came this intriguing package. Charlie the typewriter guard cat checks it out before allowing me to open it. More on his day later.
A typewritten address label, no less! Even a bit of red type. Inside were some real typewriter "goodies". Sender Richard Polt had alerted me there would be, and I was delighted to sift through what he'd been kind enough to send. The package was to contain just platen knobs for an Underwood Noiseless 77, but Richard thankfully and thoughtfully couldn't resist filling in some spare space with a few odds and ends:
A ribbon from Spitzfaden Office Supplies. Wow! I can almost reach out and touch the place. I will be able to in October. And how's that Cincinnati Army Knife? Apart from pliers, it has every Australian male's dream tool, a screwdriver that doubles as a beer bottle opener. Plus a blade, file, scissors - and it's a key ring. Ideal for on-the-spot typewriter repairs. 
Also in this treasure box: A ruler from the Baco Ribbon & Supply Co, plastic type cleaner from AW Faber and another typewriter ribbon. And oh, yes, the embarrassing bits, the platen knobs:
Embarrassing because it was only after Richard's package arrived that I realised I'd asked him for the wrong thing. What I actually needed was the platen itself. Oh well, we live and learn!
This is still in America ...
Anyway, another package arrived from Neil Wiltshire - a decidedly English-sounding name for a chap living in the Czech Republic. But he's obviously a man after my own heart. Have a look at the clever recycling of the Shreddies box:
Inside was this pennant from the Consul typewriter company:
These are the sorts of things I associate with European soccer in the 1950s and '60s, when opposing captains used to shake hands and exchange club pennants before matches. I wonder if Consul had a company soccer team?
Another package contained this bit of typewriter-related artwork, printed on the page of a dictionary:
Inside the case of a typewriter which arrived from the US was this 1951 sheet for a Self Typing Instructor ("No schools, no books"). I imagine this originally came with cardboard hand cutouts:
If it had been used in schools, maybe this would have been the scene:
At the end of the day I had to go over to the post office to pick up another typewriter, this one from Germany. Hats off to sender Silvia Kuvecke of Bardowick in Lower Saxony for the best packing of a typewriter I have ever seen - outside of Richard Polt, that is. Silvia restores one's faith in eBay typewriter sellers and their appreciation of the value of a typewriter - and the need to protect it and that value in transit. Here is the manual for the machine in question, one I will post on shortly:
I almost forgot: there was also some movement in the other direction - that is, outward mail. I got some typewriter parts ready to post to Scott Kernaghan in Brisbane. These are for machines I gave Scott at the Brisbane Type-In in March, both of which came from Museum Victoria's ScienceWorks in Melbourne:
Finally, Charlie the typewriter guard cat. I said I'd get back to him. After checking out Richard's package and giving it the all-clear, Charlie spent the rest of the day basking in the sun and indulging in a bit of light typewriter book reading:

Typewriter Update, April 2013

'ARGO' MUSEUM
About the time Ben Affleck's movie Argo was deservedly winning three Academy Awards, Japanese national newspaper The Asahi Shimbun was checking out what had become of the real former United States Embassy in Tehran, where much of the action in Argo was set. The image above is part of what The Asahi Shimbun found. It is the so-called "Forgery Room", where CIA operatives created false documents and passports  -including passports for Australia and Canada.
The former embassy is now a museum. It was at the centre of the hostage crisis in which 66 captives were held by Iran's revolutionary students for 444 days between 1979 to 1981.
Alan Arkin and Ben Affleck in Argo
Argo is about the "Canadian Caper", in which CIA "exfiltration specialist" Tony Mendez (Affleck) led the rescue of six US diplomats. The movie won Oscars for Best Film Editing, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Picture. 
CRANDALL FETCHES $8300
This magnificent New Model Crandall (serial number 5698) sold in Park Rapids, Minnesota, for $8300 after 21 bids. For a long time I thought I was still in the hunt, but toward the end of the eBay auction the bidding got way beyond my means.
A couple of "potential" buyers really tried it on as the bids mounted. One wrote, "First of all I would like to compliment you on your wonderful typewriter. In June this year I will open a typewriter museum which will be one of the most important in the world. The museum – in Piedmont, Italy – will house about 400 antique typewriters. I am not a dealer but your splendid typewriter would be one of the most beautiful examples on display in the museum. I hope you are able to lower the price of the typewriter as I have a very limited budget." [Why didn't I think of that?]
Another said, "I could 'buy now' for $3750, including shipping to Spain." Good try!
The seller described the Crandall as having "really fancy artwork on it, with an iridescent, mother-of-pearl kind of shimmer. All we know is that these are not ordinary typewriters, artistically or technology-wise. Check out the letter-thingy!!!  It's a cylinder with letters all around it."
"It's a shame that more of these beautiful typewriters aren't around, because they really are well-constructed machines. You can tell they were made with pride."
A guide to Crandall values was offered:
$1000-$2000 for a basic non-restoreable (or not worth restoring) parts machine that has parts you need.
$3000 for a mess that might be restoreable cosmetically but will probably never function mechanically.
$4000 for a conservable [sic] Crandall that can definitely be made to work. It includes some significant cosmetic restoration required, or, if not done, will hold down the future value.
$5000 for a nice machine with fairly good mother-of-pearl that has a bit of 'surface rust' here and there and either works or can be easily made to work (often hard to judge).
$6000 for a nice machine that is clean and works but is not beautiful.
$7000-$10,000 for really fine, beautiful Crandall that looks great and works great. On these, the mother-of pearl flowers and other forms (including on the back of the base) have bright colours, the pin-stripping is complete, etc.
On all, add $300- $600 for a baseboard and case and more if it has any original documentation with it. Also, provenance/history matters -add something if the original owner is known, more if she or he historically important and if what the owner used it for is known. 
Apparently the Crandall had been owned by an Oscar Kastet of Rothsay, Minnesota.
COLUMBIA REACHES $3700
Meanwhile, in Melbourne, a Columbia No 2 index typewriter - for which the bidding started at 99c - reached $3700 after 35 bids.
KEYTOP-LESS CORONA 4
Someone sold this Corona 4 on Australia eBay for $122 after 19 bids. I wonder how the buyer felt when he or she received it and realised seven keytops were missing? Or maybe, since the evidence was pretty clear from the listing images, the idea was to spend $122 just to further vandalise this old beauty?
When the Corona first appeared on eBay, I contacted the seller suggesting it might be good idea- just in case, like - if he or she pointed out there were seven keytops missing. The reply: "It's been hiding in our ceiling for at least 20 years, only found during a clean out. Unfortunately I have no idea where these [keytops] are. The typewriter was found when we did renovations, therefore I don't know much about it, hence the low starting price."
The Corona was listed as a "Sweet vintage typewriter which would look ace in a shop display ... Keroac [sic] would be jealous." No mention of the missing keytops.
HIGH HOPES
Two people actually bid on this Underwood 18. It sold for a few dollars more than the starting price of 99c. "May not work properly but has 'retro' appeal," said the seller. Rust has retro appeal? Whatever next? We should start selling rust ...
Even with "its original sticker", this Imperial didn't sell (at $9.99), surprisingly enough:
But this Underwood Champion sold for $610 after 30 bids. Things are definitely looking up Down Under:
This off-white Olivetti Valentine finally sold for $700 in Germany:
Do my eyes need re-testing, or does this Royal look green to you, too? I checked with the seller and it's a "classic Royal grey":
Talking of green, an Irish seller definitely needed his eyes testing, He listed this as an Imperial::
FATE OF NOISELESS 77
The Lonely Platen
The likely, unfortunate history of the aforementioned Corona 4 might have been similar to what seemingly happened to an Underwood Noiseless 77 in the US. Ray Nickson was concerned a new eBay trend might have been emerging when a seller, in separate auctions, listed several parts of the Noiseless - platen, carriage knobs, etc etc, everything BUT the keytops. "I will be interested to see if this fellow can sell all those parts," Ray wrote. "If the seller gets their starting price on each item, they will have made more than they would for an entire machine, I should think. It would be a worrying trend if savvy sellers could make typewriter collectors buy machines in pieces!"
HOW TO SELL A TYPEWRITER
This "teaching and cut model" of an Adler 7 was listed on German eBay. Got you looking, didn't it?
(ANOTHER MOVIE IN WHICH ALAN AяKIN IS ASTONISHINGLY BяILLIANT)
Russian typewriter enthusiasts have joined the TyposphereAleksandr Trofimov, 31, contacted me about using material from my blog on his, which can be seen here. "I am a Russian native who is keen on collecting typewriters. These technical masterpieces currently enjoy increasing interest in Russia, but a very limited number of fans know anything about the history of this invention. Along with my growing passion towards collecting typewriters, I have also learned how to fix and restore them, and - surprisingly enough - I discover that St Petersburg lacks professionals who are skilled at bringing such mechanical devices back to life. Typewriter owners from Russia who contact me about fixing their Underwoods or Royals etc also regret that there are no relevant workshops. As I am myself interested in typewriter history and their heyday years, I see that there is a real need to share this knowledge with my Russian co-fans and collectors."
Aleksandr says of his blog, "This is where I am attempting to tell about the history of typewriters, about celebrities who either contributed to the development of these devices or used typewriters to become famous in whatever creative areas. Also here interested collectors will find good tips on maintenance or restoration. Being a journalist myself, just like you, I aspire to make this as interesting as possible." 
Aleksandr added, "Several fan webpages devoted to
typewriters have been launched in the Russian social network, namely here, yet this very one is referred generally to by only people who are interested in selling or buying typewriters."
ANOTHER DOCO?
A newsletter from Martin Howard in Canada says Martin has been approached by Doug Nichol, a filmmaker from San Francisco, about presenting the history of typewriters as part of a full-length documentary on typewriters. Famous people who still use typewrites have also been interviewed, including Tom Hanks, Sam Sheppard, John Mayer and the Pulitzer Prize-winning author David McCullough. The film will be out this year."
Martin is also working on a book about the world’s first typewriters with Norman Ball, a retired professor of technology in society. Ball is an author and former archivist and curator at the Canada Museum of Science and Technology.
Martin is hoping to be able to create another public exhibit. "It has been five years since 20 of my typewriters formed an exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum, called ‘Early Typewriters - Gateway to the Information Age’.  A nice legacy of this show is that the exhibit room at the ROM is now referred to as the ‘Typewriter Room’. William Thorsell, former CEO and general manager of the ROM, said: 'The [Howard] collection illustrates mankind’s search for a solution to a challenge, the intriguing avenues explored, the beautiful means by which they were expressed and the technical proficiency of the age. The invention of the typewriter also speaks to social change, and the explosion of communications means in the 19th and early 20th Centuries.' "
YET ANOTHER NAKAJIMA
The Pentagon. It's got to be the 150th model name for a Nakajima, and still counting ...
WHAT I LOVE
Still the same thing; Being contacted by the family of people who have, for one reason or another, been famous in the typewriter world and who have been mentioned in this blog. More on that tomorrow. In the meantime, think "Remington Heiress". Yes, I'm delighted to reveal that Gambi Benedict is alive and well. Read all about it anon. I'm so excited about this development.
Also, there is word about the founder of the Mercedes typewriter company.
WHAT I HATE
Pesky sellers who repeatedly pester you for positive feedback, with "subtle" hints like "You give me positive feedback and I'll give you positive feedback". Like, what else can they give me? Negative feedback? I don't think so.