https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/RoyalQDL1952.pdf

Christopher Buckley: “Steaming to Bamboola” and Other Journeys

Bill Buckley's Royal HH from the National Review.

Almost hilarious that a gloved assistant brings it out and then removes it once they're done discussing it. Something so effete-ist about this that would be befitting Buckley himself.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/721704878218903/posts/3068179956904705

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1794856020751839/posts/4424498594454222/

Royal Canterbury pica - PC<br /> Royal Semi-Gothic pica - P SG

https://www.facebook.com/groups/TypewriterCollectors/posts/10163497483964678

In 9 to 5, Dora Lee seems to be using a Royal (Triumph-Adler) SE1000CD typewriter.

See also trailer at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qni6HOyPNBA

reply to u/Greydusk1324 about the difference in Royal Standard typewriters at https://reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1skmfum/comparing_royal_standard_desk_machines/

I'm (sorry?) to report that the internals of the Royal standard typewriters including the Ten, H, KH, KHM, KMM, KMG, RP, HH, FP, Empress, 440, 660, etc. are all incredibly similar if not exactly the same over several decades. The biggest change is probably the introduction of Magic Margins with the KMM. The margin release button also moved down to the keyboard around this time as well.

Most of the rest are smaller, subtle differences in how the ribbon reverse mechanism is done or things like keytops changing from glass and acetate to plastic, the threading design of the ribbon vibrator, as well as the external design and some of the other small fit and finish. Some of the much later models allow one to remove the entire chassis from the body of the typewriter to make cleaning and servicing easier.

There are certainly differences in type-feel and "weight" in the changes in the keytops, but broadly they're all mostly the same machine. The biggest differences between them all (for me) tend to be how well they've been maintained and/or been cleaned and adjusted. One seriously well adjusted Royal is better than any 20 other random Royal standards you might pick up for a fraction of the price. Of course, if you're doing your own wrenching work, then once you've learned one machine well, the rest are a breeze to work on and bring up to snuff.

If you think there's a huge difference between your KMM and KMG (which are probably the two closest models), then perhaps it's worth it to try some others? The biggest difference may be the FP which has chunkier key caps that have more effect on the "feel". The HH and many of the other later models have thinner key tops. The Ten is probably the most different from the rest. The H, KH, KHM are what I would call "experimental" models moving toward the perfection in the KMM and KMG.

Context: I'm an owner of a KHM, 2 KMMs (including a 47+ pound, 18" wide carriage), 2 KMGs, 2 HHs, half a dozen FPs (in all the colors but Willow Green), and a 440. This includes a variety of their standard pica and elites, a Clarion Gothic, and a Pica Double Gothic. Stylistically I love the KMG and the FP, but my KHM has one of the most satisfying "actions" of any of the machines I own.

Of course, all this depends on what sort of collection you're aiming for. I love a good Royal and have a smattering of other makes and models, but I am slowly working toward a completist picture of Royal Standards. I do try to add machines that have a unique typeface or other feature as I add more of them to get some additional depth and breadth to my collection.

If you're a collector with limited space, then pick up the best looking design(s) (for your personal aesthetic) and rest easy that you're not missing too much. You can also pick up new machines to curate for a few years and then move them along to other collectors to enjoy so that your collection is always changing.

You might get some more detail and nuance by watching Joe Van Cleave's YouTube channel where he's done a few dozen videos on Royal standards as well as comparison videos over the past several years.

Good luck on your hunt!

reply to u/Vibeuel_ at https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1s7lfdu/i_hate_loving_typewriters/

He used Chapstick as a heavy grease to hold ball bearings in place to re-insert the carriage and ball bearings into a Royal Arrow.

Sorry you went through this insertion of ball bearings into a Royal in this manner. For the future attempts, there is a re-creation of a custom tool for doing this sort of operation which also includes some repair manual details: https://www.m-morren.nl/product/17071027/royal-bearing-guide-ball-feeder-tool

Lucas Dul also has a video that might help: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_PONcT8HHI as well as some discussion of using straws at the 21:40 mark in this video: https://virtualhermans.com/lucas-dul

Congratulations and welcome to the club.

For some insane reason, the majority of typewriter collectors like 15-20 pound machines that fit into rectangular cases. This means that the value of fantastic machines like yours which are fully featured, better engineered, and which will last centuries aren't as high. With a solid clean, oil, and repair, this is the sort of machine that can do nearly everything you could want from a typewriter. This is a true writer's machine. I've got about six of these around in various colors as well as typefaces and type sizes.

Yours is a Royal FP made sometime between '57 and '62 and can be more closely dated using the serial number under the hood and comparing with the database.

Historical users of the vaunted Royal FP include the likes of Herb Caen, Peter De Vries, Stephen King, Melissa Ludtke, Frank O'Hara, and Morley Safer. Amongst many other appearances, this typewriter was also used by Sgt. Joe Friday in the TV show Dragnet, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (S5, E2), and was in the opening scenes of Miami Vice when Crockett first meets Lt. Castillo.

Your manual, should you need it: https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/RoyalFP.pdf

Joe Van Cleave has a solid video intro and review of it at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOnQRBo7YqA.

The spools for the standard Royal typewriters (Ten, H, KH, KHM, KMM, KMG, RP, HH, FP, Empress, 440, 660, etc.) have a custom metal mechanism for their auto-reverse. The spools are known as the T1 (which is the same as General Ribbon part # T1-77B , T1-77BR, and Nu-Kote B64.) If winding on universal ribbon onto them, remove the eyelette which isn't needed and may interfere with the auto reverse. See: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMDfGkKqbgE If necessary, Ribbons Unlimited carries these spools, but it's much cheaper to just buy 1/2" ribbon on cheap plastic cores or bulk ribbon on cardboard hubs and wind your own on by hand.

More resources: https://boffosocko.com/research/typewriter-collection/

Reply to u/zoke10 at https://reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1s3mngq/thrift_store_find/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/TypewriterCollectors/posts/10163275741574678/

via Mark Schrad at https://typewriterdatabase.com/1949-royal-kmg.15160.typewriter

The Blob (Paramount, 1958)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unfrosted<br /> Unfrosted (Netflix, 2024)

Marjorie Post attacks her toady assistant with a Royal KMG typewriter.

https://youtu.be/4-8adc39DV0?si=Upi9PjBrYFiE_5kn&t=54

Misery (Columbia Pictures, 1990)<br /> clip when Paul attacks Annie

Congratulations. You've joined an exclusive club that includes writers like: Edward Abbey John Ashbery, Saul Below, Johnny Carson, Joan Didion, Bernard Kalb, Elia Kazan, Helen Keller, Grace Metalious, Arthur Miller, Carl Reiner, Fred Rogers, Rod Sterling, George Sheehan, and Wallace Stegner.

I've got over 60 typewriters in my collection and the KMG is my favorite, especially when it's clean and properly adjusted. I've got one each in Royal Elite and Royal Pica typefaces they're so nice.

KMG controls diagram: https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/RoyalKMGdiagram.jpg<br /> Richard Polt's site doesn't have a manual (yet) for the KMG, so pull the manual for the Royal KMM instead. It was the model made just before the KMG and should be functionally identical. The Royal HH which followed it was also broadly similar. https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/tw-manuals.html

The spools for the standard Royal typewriters (Ten, H, KH, KHM, KMM, KMG, RP, HH, FP, Empress, 440, 660, etc.) have a custom metal mechanism for their auto-reverse. The spools are known as the T1 (which is the same as General Ribbon part # T1-77B , T1-77BR, and Nu-Kote B64.) If winding on universal 1/2 inch wide ribbon onto them, remove any eyeletes which aren't needed and may interfere with the auto reverse. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMDfGkKqbgE

Incidentally when browsing YouTube for repair videos, the mechanics of all the Royal standards (listed above) are all incredibly similar if not exactly the same, so search beyond KMG to find solutions.

For cleaning:<br /> - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjumGF9NFE8&list=PLJtHauPh529XYHI5QNj5w9PUdi89pOXsS&index=5<br /> - https://boffosocko.com/2024/08/09/on-colloquial-advice-for-degreasing-cleaning-and-oiling-manual-typewriters/ - The tombstone "glass" (acetate) keys are metal rings that hold a piece of acetate over a paper legend (with the key letter printed on it) onto a metal platform. Don't get liquids or water on these as it will seep inside and discolor or damage the paper legends. They're replaceable, but it requires a special tool and/or lots of patience. Incidentally, these were the last US manufactured typewriters with glass keys.

Use and maintenance: https://boffosocko.com/2025/06/06/typewriter-use-and-maintenance-for-beginning-to-intermediate-typists/

If it helps, here's a link to all my posts about the purchase, history, use and some restoration pieces I've written about mine (start at the oldest and work your way forward): https://boffosocko.com/tag/royal-kmg/

Other resources as you may need them: https://boffosocko.com/research/typewriter-collection/

Good luck!

reply to u/Saltiend at https://reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1rwsfxp/just_bought_a_royal_kmg_any_tips/

Royal KMM Paper Bale Tension Adjustment<br /> by [[Joe Van Cleave]] on YouTube

Royal QDLs from '56-59, though advertisement more likely from '57-58 due to the white.

Royal Green, Royal Star White, Royal Beige, Royal Gray, Royal Red, Royal Turquoise,

Add specifies the QDL is available in Canterbury Pica or Canterbury Elite.

reply to u/UsefulLength9143 at https://old.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1ruew5h/royal_p_this_isnt_pics_font_is_it/

Looking closely at the slugs with letters, several clearly have a "P" foundry mark which was commonly used in this time period to identify Royal's "Royal Pica" face (see: https://typecast.munk.org/2011/04/24/1964-nomda-blue-book-royal-font-styles/) which was the generic name they gave in their catalogs to this particular pica (pitch) typeface. Similarly a foundry mark of "E" was often used to represent their 12 pitch "Royal Elite" typeface. Surely it's the case that the designer had some other name for this typeface, but I've never seen Royal documents which specify anything other than Royal Pica or Royal Elite.

While it certainly helps to see the rulers on the carriage to doublecheck, one can guess the exact typeface in this instance solely by the foundry marks, though this is not always the case for a wide number of manufacturers.

Generally people are right in asking to see the ruler as the difference in width of slug on a 10CPI and 12CPI machine is on the order of 1/64 of an inch which is incredibly hard to discern visually on photos like these without something to use for scale.

https://www.atticpaper.com/proddetail.php?prod=1935-royal-portable-typewriter-ad-wm-steig

Following the redesign in '56 with the red badging on the front, all QDLs had a 1/! key.

https://typewriterdatabase.com/Royal.Quiet+De+Luxe.72.bmys

https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/RoyalFP.pdf

https://www.facebook.com/groups/4770669677/?multi_permalinks=10163215089874678

Description of journalist who had blurry typing because he bottomed out the keys rather than hit them like hot coals.

https://typewriterdatabase.com/1964-montgomery-ward-signature-88.18742.typewriter

According to James Grooms, the Montgomery Ward Signature 88, a variation of the Royal Safari, was also sold as the Signature 500 and the Heritage 500. Following this model, Brother began manufacturing typewriters for Montgomery Ward.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/705152958470148/?multi_permalinks=1203433725308733

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1r98cmz/royal_qdl_used_by_jackie_robinson/

At the Jackie Robinson Museum. According to the exhibit, it was used by him to write a column for the New York Post and later the New York Amsterdam News.

Jackie Robinson used a first iteration version of Henry Dreyfuss' Royal Quiet De Luxe. The museum dates it as 1949.

via James Grooms

Royal Typefaces from 1967 WOMDA

• Royal Farnsworth - 11 pitch
• Royal Pembrook - 11 pitch
• Windsor - 10 pitch
• Oxford - 11 pitch
• Merit Elite - 12 pitch
• Merit Pica - 10 pitch
• Canterbury Elite - 12 pitch
• Canterbury Pica - 10 pitch
• Graphic Elite - 12 pitch
• Graphic Pica - 10 pitch
• Elite Century - 12 pitch
• Contemporary Elite - 12 pitch
• Contemporary Pica - 10 pitch
• Executive - 9 pitch (double caps, italic)
• Patrician - 12 pitch
• Standard Elite - 12 pitch
• Standard Pica - 10 pitch
• Medium Roman - 10 pitch
• Clarion Gothic - 12 pitch (double caps)
• Manifold Elite, Single Gothic - 12 pitch
• Manifold Pica, Single Gothic - 10 pitch
• Manifold Roman, Single Gothic - 9 pitch
• Modified Pru, Double Gothic - 12 pitch
• Pica, Double Gothic - 10 pitch
• Medium Roman, Double Gothic - 9 pitch
• Small Double Gothic - 16 pitch
• Small Elite - 14 pitch
• Great Primer - 9 pitch
• Farrington Optical Scanner Type 12L - 10 pitch
• Policy Print - 10 pitch
• Check Validation Type - 8 pitch
• Small Spencerian - 12 pitch
• Spencerian - 10 pitch
• Butterick - 8 pitch (similar to Congress, but larger)
• Large Vogue - 6 pitch
• Small Bulletin - 6 pitch
• Elementary Primer - 6 pitch
• Bulletin - 6 pitch

also has keyboard styles for Royals

Typewriters making a comeback, thanks in part to Taylor Swift<br /> by Itay Hod for [[CBS Evening News]] on 2025-05-04<br /> accessed on 2026-02-04T00:02:10

Taylor Swift - Fortnight (feat. Post Malone) (Official Music Video)<br /> by [[Taylor Swift]], [[Post Malone]]<br /> accessed on 2026-02-04T00:13:18

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1qowfn2/mulder_is_a_fan/

X-Files (Fox), Season 2, Episode 4<br /> A poster for a Royal Ten appears on a wall behind Mulder.

Shannon Monaghan aka u/politebuzz identified themself via https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1qopiby/comment/o24im1r/

Known historical users of the Royal KMM:<br /> - John Ashbery<br /> - Russell Baker - Ray Bradbury - Richard Brautigan - Richard Brooks - Pearl S. Buck<br /> - Johnny Carson (or possibly KMG) - Norman Corwin<br /> - Frank Herbert<br /> - Helen Keller<br /> - Murray Kempton<br /> - Ken Kesey<br /> - George Washington Lee - Harper Lee<br /> - Ursula K. Le Guin - David McCullough<br /> - Margaret Mead<br /> - Dorothy Parker<br /> - Grantland Rice<br /> - Georges Simenon<br /> - Christina Stead<br /> - Tom Wolfe

The KMM was also the typewriter featured on the 1980s hit television show Murder, She Wrote which is currently being remade in 2025/2026 with Jamie Lee Curtis.

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1qhokip/some_typewriter_customization_ideas/

Besides, why go the AI route when there are so many already available custom and chromed machines out there? There is way more creativity in reality.

Examples:

• Smith-Corona 5 series: https://mrmrsvintagetypewriters.com/en-us/products/chrome-plated-smith-corona-typewriter-part-of-david-rain-collection-tom-arden
• Richard Polt has photos of his Silver Surfer Hermes 3000, a paint stripped typewriter on page 291 of his book The Typewriter Revolution. Photo here: https://www.facebook.com/TypewriterRevolution/photos/a.1563333157165476/2155401697958616/?type=3
• Polt also talks about the process on one of his Smith-Coronas at https://writingball.blogspot.com/2011/08/sterling-silver-surfer.html
• A sterling silver Smith-Corona Sterling: https://oztypewriter.blogspot.com/2011/09/on-this-day-in-typewriter-history-civ.html
• Multiples here: https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1oouq6o/chrome_typewriters/
• A chromed Olympia SG1: https://www.facebook.com/groups/olympiasg1/posts/1549224696395939/
• A chrome/nickel finished Henry Dreyfuss: https://typewriterdatabase.com/1948-royal-quiet-de-luxe.25508.typewriter
• If you're really crazy, maybe a Candy Apple Green Metal Flake pin striped Hermes? https://typewriterdatabase.com/1956-hermes-2000.17456.typewriter
• A brown pin striped QDL: https://typewriterdatabase.com/1941-royal-quiet-de-luxe.19473.typewriter
• Maybe in custom "white cracked ice" https://typewriterdatabase.com/1946-royal-quiet-de-luxe.19914.typewriter
• A green hot rod? https://typewriterdatabase.com/1961-olympia-sm4.19353.typewriter

And to be honest, if you're going to lay out some money to chrome a machine, why do it with a flimsy Skyriter? Find something showy, something honest, something substantial. Why not a Royal KMG or FP, a Remington Super-Riter, or a solid Hermes Ambassador?

Nothing is more badass than Helen Gurley Brown's silver plated Royal Empress: https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/hgbrownroyal.jpg

https://sophsun1.tumblr.com/post/805029439375310848/misery-1990-dir-rob-reiner

Known historical users of the Royal KMG:

• Edward Abbey
• John Ashbery
• Saul Below
• Johnny Carson
• Joan Didion
• Bernard Kalb
• Elia Kazan
• Helen Keller (may have been a KMM)
• Grace Metalious
• Arthur Miller
• Carl Reiner
• Fred Rogers
• Rod Sterling
• George Sheehan
• Wallace Stegner

Royal KMM basic introduction

Looks like a post-war standard Royal KMM, sometimes best known as the machine used by Jessica Fletcher in the TV show Murder She Wrote (as well as the upcoming Jamie Lee Curtis reboot.)

Richard Polt has you covered for the manual and some repair manuals/information.

Some contemporaneous videos on use and maintenance may help.

As for ribbon replacement, try this video. The spools for the standard Royal typewriters (Ten, H, KH, KHM, KMM, KMG, RP, HH, FP, Empress, 440, 660, etc.) have a custom metal mechanism for their auto-reverse. The spools are known as the T1 (which is the same as General Ribbon part # T1-77B , T1-77BR, and Nu-Kote B64.) If winding on 1/2 inch wide universal ribbon onto them, remove the eyelette which isn't needed and may interfere with the auto reverse. If necessary, Ribbons Unlimited carries these spools or you can get them (and ribbon) from a local typewriter repair shop.

Ribbon purveyors: https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/tw-faq.html#q1. I prefer Baco and Fine Line for their spectacular pricing and quality.

Other known historical users of the Royal KMM:

• John Ashbery
• Russell Baker
• Ray Bradbury
• Richard Brautigan
• Richard Brooks
• Pearl S. Buck
• Johnny Carson (or possibly KMG)
• Norman Corwin
• Frank Herbert
• Helen Keller
• Murray Kempton
• Ken Kesey
• George Washington Lee
• Harper Lee
• Ursula K. LeGuin
• David McCullough
• Margaret Mead
• Dorothy Paraker
• Grantland Rice
• Georges Simenon
• Christina Stead
• Tom Wolfe

Katie Nolan Destroys UNC’S Mike Lombardi Over His 'Cute' Typewriter Video<br /> by [[Stephen Douglas]] for Sports Illustrated<br /> accessed on 2025-10-30T13:53:59

https://discord.com/channels/639936208734126107/639938983220215828/1131197256691875881

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel S5, E2

https://typecast.munk.org/2022/11/25/montgomery-ward-typewriters-1941-1985-signatures-forwards-and-escorts-and-why-certain-rare-royal-typefaces-can-be-found-on-brother-typewriters/

According to Ted Munk, "Spencerian Script only occurs on Montgomery Ward Brothers and not on any other Brother-manufactured machines"

Royal KMM FPE HH KH 10 T1 B64 Typewriter Ribbon Install Rewind Respool Replace by [[Phoenix Typewriter]]

The spools for the standard Royal typewriters (Ten, H, KH, KHM, KMM, KMG, RP, HH, FP, Empress, 440, 660, etc.) have a custom metal mechanism for their auto-reverse. The spools are known as the T1 (which is the same as General Ribbon part # T1-77B , T1-77BR, and Nu-Kote B64.) If winding on universal ribbon onto them, remove the eyelette which isn't needed and may interfere with the auto reverse.

The function of the mechanism is fairly similar to that of the Remington, but the mechanism is on the spool itself rather than on the spindle.

If necessary, Ribbons Unlimited carries these metal spools: https://www.ribbonsunlimited.com/6N064-Royal-Standard-Electric-Ribbon-64-p/6n064.htm

https://typewriterdatabase.com/show.26500.typewriter

https://www.facebook.com/groups/TypewriterCollectors/posts/10162194238069678/

Alice Denham, novelist and 1956 Playboy Playmate. She eventually wrote a memoir called “Sleeping With Bad Boys” about her life in the 50s/60s NYC literary scene.

A typewritten commonplace in a small metal tin.<br /> https://www.youtube.com/shorts/bMorWUnpYWE

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/56p9zt/royal_quiet_de_luxe_backspace_fix/

https://themechanicaltype.blogspot.com/2019/10/a-comprehensive-history-of-royal-model-p.html?m=1

Royal Century - Silver Seiko Typewriter Review - YouTube<br /> by [[Joe Van Cleave]]<br /> accessed on 2025-08-28T11:37:07

Broadly a review of the Royal Century made by Silver-Seiko, but he also compares the performance with the Hermes Rocket/Baby and the Smith-Corona Skyriter, which he feels aren't as solid as the Century despite their lighter weight and portability.

Royal standards have the shift lock further away from the letter "a" which can prevent the accidental shifting of the letter "a" while typing. This distraction can be annoying when writing at speed.

Know historical users of the Royal KHM included:<br /> - William Faulkner<br /> - David McCullough<br /> - Al Neuharth<br /> - Mickey Spillane<br /> - Dalton Trumbo<br /> - Frank Lloyd Wright<br /> - L. Ron Hubbard

Portable Typewriters Today - February 2015<br /> by [[Will Davis]] on 2015-02-10<br /> accessed on 2025-08-05T16:35:48

Jamie Lee Curtis Confirms ‘Murder, She Wrote’ Reboot In Works: “Oh, It’s Happening” by [[Glenn Garner]]

Electric Repair Tip: Drive Belt Replacements by [[Sarah Everett]] of [[Just My Typewriter]]

https://www.neighborhoodarchive.com/mrn/episodes/1083/index.html

Royal Arrow by [[Joe Van Cleave]]

https://youtu.be/qrlt6VyC8D0?si=nqMErXlEd-rfkQL0&t=409

I love that Joe sets up a camera inside the case of the Royal Arrow to show how the metal fixtures on the case dovetail with the machine. In one instance the piece on the right has been bent while the one on the left properly tucks the carriage return arm inside.

Unraveling the Royal Quiet De Luxe – Part 5: Reprise – The End of the Royal “A” Model? by [[Ted Munk]]

Unraveling the Royal Quiet De Luxe – Part 4: The Colorful End of the QDL, and What it Became by [[Ted Munk]]

https://www.facebook.com/groups/705152958470148/posts/1013993200919454/

Royal X typewriter in Tintin in America

https://www.facebook.com/groups/705152958470148/posts/1010406587944782/

Removing the carriage of the Royal Quiet De Luxe is generally not recommended.

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1la2zyw/jack_webb_from_dragnet/

Successful Secretary Presented by Royal Office Typewriters. A Thomas Craven Film Corporation Production, 1966. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=If5b2FiDaLk.

Script: Lee Thuna<br /> Educational Consultant: Catharine Stevens<br /> Assistant Director: Willis F. Briley<br /> Design: Francisco Reynders<br /> Director & Producer: Carl A. Carbone<br /> A Thomas Craven Film Corporation Production

"Mother the mail"

gendered subservience

"coding boobytraps"

"I think you'll like the half sheet better. It is faster." —Mr. Typewriter, timestamp

A little bit of the tone of "HAL" from 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). This is particularly suggestive as H.A.L. was a one letter increment from I.B.M. and the 1966 Royal 660 was designed to compete with IBM's Selectric

This calm voice makes suggestions to a secretary while H.A.L. does it for a male astronaut (a heroic figure of the time period). Suddenly the populace feels the computer might be a bad actor.

"We're living in an electric world, more speed and less effort."—Mr. Typewriter<br /> (techno-utopianism)

Newsweek Staff. “Design: The Dreyfuss Touch.” Newsweek, October 4, 1948. Http://archive.org/details/sim_newsweek-us_1948-10-04_32_14. Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/sim_newsweek-us_1948-10-04_32_14/page/62/mode/2up.

Hurtling into posthumanism by [[Richard Polt]]

Users of the Royal HH typewriter included: William Buckley, Charles Bukowski, George Burns, Herb Caen, Truman Capote, Bruce Catton, Patty Chayefsky, Don DeLillo, Alice Denham, James T. Farrell, Paul Fussell, Hugh Hefner, Elia Kazan, Sterling North, Robert B. Parker, Sylvia Plath, Mario Puzo, Robert Penn Warren, Eudora Welty, and William Zinsser.

including photos via https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/typers.html

https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/typers.html

Users of the Royal FP included: Herb Caen, Peter De Vries, Stephen King, Melissa Ludtke, Frank O'Hara, and Morley Safer.

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1kdswdg/outer_limits_zanti_misfits_what_machine_is_this/

The Outer Limits episode (season 1, episode 14)

https://www.atticpaper.com/proddetail.php?prod=1958-royal-future-typewriter-ad-two-pages

The character Radar O'Reilly apparently had an early model Royal standard typewriter in MAS*H.

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1kb71ni/fixed_typewriter_plus_a_new_one/

Found a silver plate with a black letter "G" inside a Royal H.

https://typecast.munk.org/2023/02/17/1967-womda-typewriter-typefaces-royal-fonts/

https://youtu.be/TwAJO7uDwJg?si=UfRBFcai-IgZDG4B&t=120

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074119/

via https://old.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1iucu6i/you_guys_wouldnt_know_what_typewriter_is_used_in/

Replacing the Carriage on a Royal Portable Typewriter by [[Marty Morren]]

https://www.m-morren.nl/product/17071027/royal-bearing-guide-ball-feeder-tool

David McCullough on His Typewriter by [[C-SPAN]]

Man shed for writing with a single room of 8' x 12' with 800 books, Royal KMM typewriter, and 2 filing cabinets. He's written every book he's ever done on his Royal KMM.

"It's got 750,000 miles on it."

reply to u/Novembree at https://old.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1hfncyz/had_a_typewriter_for_awhile_could_use_help/

Welcome to the Royal KMM club! Seems like lots of these have been posted in the last day including one by u/betternatured and another by u/the-other-gusta along with a very similar Royal KMG by u/Jacki-san.

The serial number puts yours down as a KMM with an 11 inch platen manufactured in 1945. Cross reference: https://typewriterdatabase.com/royal.72.typewriter-serial-number-database

Manual: https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/RoyalKMM.pdf

These were really popular and ubiquitous, standard (large desktop) typewriters in the mid-century that were the workhorse of many offices. Because they were so common and so heavy, they only go for $5-25 in the used market in either unknown or marginal condition. If they're cleaned up and well-serviced they can go for more with a cap of around $300-400 depending on the level of restoration. Some with special features (like special typefaces) or provenance may go for more.

The Royal KMM was known to have been used by writers including: John Ashberry, Harry Ashmore, Russell Baker, Ray Bradbury, Richard Bratigan, Richard Brooks, Pearl S. Buck, Johnny Carson, Norman Corwin, Frank Herbert, Ken Kesey, G.W. Lee, Harper Lee, Ursula K. LeGuin, David McCullough, Margaret Mead, Grangland Rice, and Dorothy Parker. This was also the model famously used by Angela Landsbury's character on the TV show Murder, She Wrote.

Depending on your level of typewriter knowledge try out some of the following short films which will also provide some tips, tricks, and maintenance advice common in the era of your machine:

• Basic Typing: Methods. Vol. MN-1512a. United States Navy Training Film, 1943. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztyzGit1dTI
• Basic Typing: Machine Operation. Vol. MN-1512b. United States Navy Training Film, 1943. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-REJEArnjE
• Advanced Typing: Shortcuts. Vol. MN-1512c. United States Navy Training Film, 1943. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUJfCfqgsX0
• Advanced Typing: Duplicating and Manuscript. Vol. MN-1512d. United States Navy Training Film, 1943. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ve5JnTUzvo
• Maintenance Of Office Machines. Vol. MN-1513. United States Navy Training Film, 1943. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocdxgkxKAKo

Happy Typing!

Typewriters - Mister Rogers' Neighborhood by [[Fred Rogers]]<br /> episode 1083<br /> https://www.neighborhoodarchive.com/mrn/episodes/1083/index.html

"I was very much interested in letters." -- Fred Rogers

via u/Old_Interaction_9009 at https://old.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1fqxmt0/what_type_of_typewriter_did_i_buy_got_an_estate/lpt196b/

Snarky reference to "Royale with Cheese" from Tarantino's Pulp Fiction (Miramax, 1994)

Recorded Live - Flesh Eating Film Reels (1975) by [[S. S. Wilson]]

Idea of artificial intelligence using a typewriter to communicate. Cross reference HAL and Mr. Typewriter (Royal advertisement).

https://patents.google.com/patent/USD144165S/en?oq=USD144165S

Filed August 2, 1945

I just got a 1950 version of this KMG this week in medium rough shape too. (My 7th Royal and my 2nd Standard)

Looks like a Royal KMG with the Henry Dreyfuss glass tombstone keys in Gray Frieze paint. https://typewriterdatabase.com/Royal.KMG.72.bmys

Mine has some minor carriage issues that I'm hoping clear up with some cleaning. Otherwise it may need some tools and internal repair work and/or parts. If yours is generally working, a good cleaning and oiling should get you going: https://boffosocko.com/2024/08/09/on-colloquial-advice-for-degreasing-cleaning-and-oiling-manual-typewriters/

Diagram of parts: https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/RoyalKMGdiagram.jpg

Manual of the prior model KMM which preceeded it, so the functionalilty should be almost exactly the same: https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/RoyalKMM.pdf (Royal Standard internals were almost exactly the same from the Ten (1909) through the FP/Empress (1966).)

Home Study Course in Typewriter Repair and Service: ca. 1959, published by the Typewriter Repair School in Little Falls, New Jersey. Focuses on the Royal KMM among others: https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/homestudycourse.pdf

See also:<br /> - https://typewriterdatabase.com/manuals.php - https://typewriterdatabase.com/1968-Ames_Standard_SVC.royal-repair.manual - https://typewriterdatabase.com/1960-Ames_Gen_Cat_10-March.royal-parts-01.manual

Searching on YouTube for cleaning and repair advice should help out a lot. Phoenix Typewriter has some solid videos on related models (search also the Royal X (ten), KH, KHM, KMM, KMG, HH, FP, and Empress which are all roughly the same internals with slightly different body styles.)

If you need some basic typewriter 101, try: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJtHauPh529XYHI5QNj5w9PUdi89pOXsS

reply to u/MajesticWear5478 https://old.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1g1i440/tips_for_cleaning_and_fixing_a_1949_royal/#lightbox

The November 1952 issue of Boys Life had an advertisement for contest for a gold-plated Royal Quiet De Luxe typewriter.

timestamp

Needs exact sourcing, but Ian Flemming had a gold-plated Royal that he paid $174 for in 1952 and which sold in 1995 by Christys' for $89,229.

timestamp

Origin of Royal's Vogue by [[x over it]]

reply to u/NoDoctor4602 at https://old.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1fjrjns/ive_spent_a_few_days_searching_for_any_concrete/

In the mid to late-1950's and after several typewriter manufacturers made limited runs of gold plated typewriters for special anniversaries or for bonuses to salespeople. They're uncommon, but not rare. I've seen at least 6 or seven pop up on auction sites in the last 6 months. If you really want one, watch the lower end of Facebook Marketplace, ShopGoodwill, Craigslist, et al. where one will assuredly pop up for a much more reasonable price. I'm not sure if it was this one or another I've seen since April, but one of these went up for sale on ShopGoodwill.com recently and sold for about $600. A week later it was listed on eBay for several thousand just like this one. Given the timeframe, I doubt they spent any time cleaning, oiling, or adjusting it in any fashion—it was a pure flip. I've also seen this recently with Royal typewriters with a less common, but highly collectible Vogue typeface: a Royal P sold for about $900 there and was listed on eBay shortly after for over $1,500 with no indication that it was cleaned or adjusted. (If you watch some of the sites carefully, you can pick up a Vogue machine for under $100 easily enough depending on the type and condition.)

In my mind, as a collector, I'd try to find one in the wild and clean it up or I'd want it in stunning restored condition for over $2k. You might be just as well off picking up a working model for $100-$150 and gold plating the pieces yourself. It would probably be cheaper in the long run and you'd have a better machine in better condition. Some sucker with money to burn will eventually buy a Gold Olympia SM3 for over $2,000.

Here's a vew posts/videos as examples of gold plated machines:<br /> - A video of another Gold Olympia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnUHgyABjw0<br /> - Royal QDL https://typespec.com/weve-got-gold-in-them-thar-hills/<br /> - https://www.huffpost.com/entry/kasbah-mod-typewriters_n_1453776

If you're looking for something great that you'll use, I recommend visiting a repair shop that has some stock to try out some machines to see if you'd like their touch/fee/aesthetics first. Visiting a type-in or two might give you some experience with a wide variety of typewriter models as well. Then try to find a rare or exceptional version that's worth putting some money into. Why put so much into an Olympia if it turns out you're an Olivetti, Royal, or Smith-Corona person? https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/tw-repair.html (I desperately love Royals, but Smith-Coronas and Remingtons are much more forgiving of my mediocre typing technique, a fact which pains me dearly and cost a few hundred dollars and some sweat equity in cleaning and tuning machines to discover). Incidentally, I'll mention that for about $2,000 you could easily purchase a wide variety of about two dozen machines (even with shipping) and be able to get something truly exceptional in terms of condition and function.

Incidentally, the higher prices of $250-600 for repaired/refurbished/restored machines being sold by repair shops are usually what Harry Beercan is using as a pricing guide when he's selling his grandmother's musty, broken, old typewriter online not knowing that several hundred dollars in labor and parts has been calculated into the selling price.

Did it work prior to replacing the ribbon? If yes, then perhaps remove the ribbon and replace again. See page 19 of the manual here: https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/RoyalKMM.pdf

YouTube also has tutorials for how to thread these. (Also search for the No. 10, KH, KHM, HH, Empress, FP, etc. which also used the same general ribbon spools and set up if you can't find a KHM.) I can*t tell 100% from the photo, but the ribbon looks like it's spooling on clockwise on the right (and vice-versa for the left) and you want it the other way.

Is it not advancing regardless of which direction you have the ribbon going? Usually just one side is not working. You can use this fact to compare the typewriter bilaterally. Watch what's going on with the side that does work and compare it with the side the doesn't. What's wrong on the non-working side?

Often times the spindle on one or both sides is frozen up with dried up grease, oil, dirt, or dust. A small quirt of mineral spirits or lacquer thinner (or other degreaser) will free it up. (Here we use the mantra, a typewriter isn't really "broken" unless it's clean and broken.) See: https://boffosocko.com/2024/08/09/on-colloquial-advice-for-degreasing-cleaning-and-oiling-manual-typewriters/

reply to u/UltimateAiden98 at https://old.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1f0nzt8/my_royal_kmm_ribbon_is_t_advancing_what_should_i/

Portable Typewriter Relabeling...how and why by [[Will Davis]]

https://willowcreektypewriters.com/products/well-never-be-royals-short-sleeve-unisex-t-shirt

We'll Never Be Royals

Royal HH & FP typewriter shipping help by [[Typewriter Justice]]

Advice for how to package a heavy standard typewriter for shipping. Two heavy rubberbands to hold the margin release buttons to protect the escapement. Then plastic wrap to keep the carriage from moving during shipment. Then protection for the knobs and carriage return levers put into a first box. Then packing peanuts in a second box, fill to completely full and tape closed.

Given my current r/typewriter flair ("typewriters + card index = magic"), I couldn't help but appreciate that Lucas Dul features a 3x5" card index (aka database) of typewriter typefaces in a recent video on the 1896 Williams 3 typewriter: https://youtu.be/T1zzXwB3Xh8?si=K4FeiS-V_aev9_SZ&t=506. Those who have been following along on the typeface front will recognize some of the samples from this small index having been featured in a video on typewriter typefaces at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scrguKgDNIY.

I'm reminded of a similar card index (or Zettelkasten if you speak German) database of type I saw last year via the Letterform Archive article at Schriftenkartei [Typeface Index], 1958–1971 and a related Flickr version of it at https://www.flickr.com/photos/letterformarchive/albums/72177720310834741/

Lest you think these sorts of analog office pairings are completely obsolete, I feel compelled to mention that I've recently noticed that Pam Beasley's character had both an IBM typewriter and a metal 1970s/80s era two drawer metal card file behind her desk in the TV series The Office (NBC, 2005-2013).

If typewriters and card indexes are your sort of thing, I've got a small personal collection as well as some research and writing about them which can be found at https://boffosocko.com/research/zettelkasten-commonplace-books-and-note-taking-collection/#Boxes

If you follow my collections and work, you know I'm not beyond pairing up a nice typewriter with a card index (or two).

Image of a 1948 Royal and a matching Steelcase card index.

Syndication link: https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1e5u5z3/era_appropriate_database_for_typewriter_typefaces/

Nabokov began teaching at Cornell in 1948 and must have been relatively financially well-off enough to afford the roughly $95 ($1,248 in 2024 dollars) for a brand new Royal Quiet De Luxe typewriter.

The typewriter is pictured at the top of the article in a photo from a 1958 photo shoot. Presumably he bought it contemporaneously, though may have gotten it used after its release in 1949. The model changed in mid-1950.