Below is an advertisement that appeared in the Brown Section of the Seattle Times on February 11, 1934
Notice that the first name on the list is that of the University Book Store, 4326 University Way.
Sunday, January 27, 2013
University Book Store
The largest dealer of Royal Portable Typewriters in Seattle was the University Book Store, at 4326 University Way Northeast. In fact, it sold so many Royal Portables that the Book Store had a large neon sign installed on their awning, as seen in this 1930 photograph:
Below is an advertisement that appeared in the Brown Section of the Seattle Times on February 11, 1934
Notice that the first name on the list is that of the University Book Store, 4326 University Way.
Below is an advertisement that appeared in the Brown Section of the Seattle Times on February 11, 1934
Notice that the first name on the list is that of the University Book Store, 4326 University Way.
E.W. Hall, 1111 2nd Avenue
E.W. Hall was Seattle's largest office machine dealer during the 1930s and 1940s. In 1938, Hall's moved from the Burke Building (now the site of the Jackson Federal Building) into the Taft Building, at 1109 2nd Avenue. They moved into their modernized home in 1938. They sold many brands of typewriters, and were the first dealer in Seattle to offer the Hermes portable. They moved out of the Taft Building in 1961. Below are some King County Assessor's photographs of the Taft Building (Courtesy of the Puget Sound Regional Archives):
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| The Taft Building, as it has looked since its 1970 remodel. |
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| The Taft Building, 1951. For a Sketchup model of this building, go to: http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=db0ae03088d1b6a5d07d189c07d65d0c&prevstart=0 |
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| The Taft Building following the move of E.W. Hall. This photograph was taken in 1962. |
Royal Royalite, Second Generation, 1959-1963
In 1959 Royal changed the color of their low-priced Royalite from jade green to a modern two-tone gray color scheme. Gone were the flat green keys that were left over from the Halberg Traveler:
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| Halberg Traveler, 1954 Richard Polt Collection |
In their place were new, taller ivory keys. The paper support from the Halberg was replaced with the paper support that would continue in production on Royalite typewriters until 1967.
The "portfolio-type" case continued in production until 1963, when it was replaced by an attache-type case, as seen in the picture below:
Like the original case for the Royalite, this case is made of vinyl-covered cardboard. The typewriter in the photograph was manufactured in 1963, while the one in the first photo was made in 1962. Other subtle differences can be found between the two machines:
- On the 1962 model, the lettering that says "Royalite" is centered on the paper table; on the 1963 model, it is on the right-hand side of the paper table.
- The label that reads "Made in Holland" is under the lettering that says "Royalite" on the 1963 model, while it is on the back of the 1962 model.
- The lettering on the 1963 model is in the font Rockwell, while the 1962 (and earlier) models have their lettering in Wide Latin.
- The 1962 Royalite's label says that it was made for Royal McBee Nederlands, N.V. (the equicalent of Royal McBee Netherlands, L.L.C.)
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Royal Royalite typewriters
In 1954, Royal McBee corporation purchased an emerging typewriter manufacturer from Holland, who only made small portable typewriters, which were known as Halberg Travelers. Very few Halberg-labeled typewriters were made; most are found under the name Royal. Royal altered the design of the Traveler--the gull-wing ribbon covers were removed, as was the console carrying case, which was similar to that of the Smith-Corona Skyriter. These were replaced by a removable ribbon cover, which stretched down the sides of the machine, and a zippered carrying case, which was made of vinyl. They were sold under a new name: Royal Royalite.
While the earliest Royalites were one-tone green, later models could be found in two-tone gray, or in a special name variant, called the Eldorado, in black and gold. These typewriters came in vinyl attache cases. In 1963, the Halberg-designed Royalite was offered one last time, as the Royalite '64, which was the first Royalite to be offered with a two-color ribbon. However, this was not the last use of the Halberg design. Until 1967, versions with a raised ribbon cover, which did not stretch down the sides, were offered as the "Royal Citadel," the "Royal Lark," the "Royal Dart," and the "Singer Scholastic," which was sold only at Singer Sewing Machine Centers.
The final typewriter to use this design was manufactured in 1967, most likely a Singer Scholastic. For more information on this machine, go to http://royaltypewriters.blogspot.com/p/singer-scholastic.html
While the earliest Royalites were one-tone green, later models could be found in two-tone gray, or in a special name variant, called the Eldorado, in black and gold. These typewriters came in vinyl attache cases. In 1963, the Halberg-designed Royalite was offered one last time, as the Royalite '64, which was the first Royalite to be offered with a two-color ribbon. However, this was not the last use of the Halberg design. Until 1967, versions with a raised ribbon cover, which did not stretch down the sides, were offered as the "Royal Citadel," the "Royal Lark," the "Royal Dart," and the "Singer Scholastic," which was sold only at Singer Sewing Machine Centers.
The final typewriter to use this design was manufactured in 1967, most likely a Singer Scholastic. For more information on this machine, go to http://royaltypewriters.blogspot.com/p/singer-scholastic.html
Royal Quiet Deluxe, 1955
In 2008, I purchased a charcoal gray Royal typewriter from Goodwill. I immediately went to the Typewriter Database (www.tw-db.com) and misread the year--I thought it was a 1957 model. After double-checking, I discovered that it was actually a 1955 model--the numbers on those tables all blend together... I also discovered that after Pastel Yellow, Charcoal is the second-rarest color that the Royal Quiet Deluxe came in.
After doing some more research, I discovered that my typewriter was designed by Henry Dreyfuss, who also designed the Princess Phone for AT&T. His design first appeared in 1948, and had a two-tone gray matte finish. By the 1950s, his design had been rounded-off, and came in a choice of gloss colors. However, it retained the tombstone-shaped keytops, although by this time they were made of plastic.
The Quiet Deluxe was further refined by 1957, with the addition of the Twin-Pak ribbon cartridge system, and a pair of keys (1/! and =/+). The design continued until 1960, when it was completely replaced by the Futura. The futura was mechanically identical, with the exception of the addition of a key-set tabulator (on the Quiet Deluxe, tabs were manually set at the rear of the machine, under the paper support) which enabled the user to push a button to set or clear tabs. Unlike its predecessor, an unlimited number of tabs could be set.
After doing some more research, I discovered that my typewriter was designed by Henry Dreyfuss, who also designed the Princess Phone for AT&T. His design first appeared in 1948, and had a two-tone gray matte finish. By the 1950s, his design had been rounded-off, and came in a choice of gloss colors. However, it retained the tombstone-shaped keytops, although by this time they were made of plastic.
The Quiet Deluxe was further refined by 1957, with the addition of the Twin-Pak ribbon cartridge system, and a pair of keys (1/! and =/+). The design continued until 1960, when it was completely replaced by the Futura. The futura was mechanically identical, with the exception of the addition of a key-set tabulator (on the Quiet Deluxe, tabs were manually set at the rear of the machine, under the paper support) which enabled the user to push a button to set or clear tabs. Unlike its predecessor, an unlimited number of tabs could be set.
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| Royal Quiet Deluxe patent drawing (Courtesy of Google Patents) |
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