"OK, team, you heard the boss: don't make it look like a Smith-Corona!"
"But it is a Smith-Corona."
"Wrong! It's a Sears."
"So what does a Sears look like?"
"That's the question. Get to work, boys!"
"Well, at least we've got a Sears logo ... how about slapping some fleurs de lis under it?"
"Flirt-a-what?"
"Fleurs de lis."
"And we'll put some gold concentric circles on the platen knob."
"Gold, huh? I like that. Classy. Let's make the return lever gold, too."
"And the paper table. Hey, how about if we make the line spacing selector numbers pop up a bit ... here, let me show you."
"It needs red, too. I like red highlights. And let's give it a paragraph key, like those old 'self-starter' keys on Remingtons."
"All right, and on the other corner we'll put a half-spacer. Hey, let's give it a left-pointing arrow, just to confuse people!"
"I think it should have one of those check-protection keys, the kind that types tiny dots."
"This thing is deluxe, right? So it's definitely going to have to include the Change-A-Type.™"
"We can do more than that. A simple two-color ribbon isn't enough. This baby is gonna handle four colors!"
"How the heck are you going to arrange for that?"
"Real simple."
"What else can we change to look like a—Sears?"
"Um ... the feeet?"
"Now we're getting somewhere. And no slide-forward ribbon cover like on Smith-Coronas. The Sears is going to have a flip-up cover with modern angles."
"And a nice, chunky base that looks like ... I dunno ... a car from the year 2010, or something."
"Let's paint it a really dark forest green."
"Yeah!"
"OK, boss, there you have it: this is what a Sears looks like."
"But it is a Smith-Corona."
"Wrong! It's a Sears."
"So what does a Sears look like?"
"That's the question. Get to work, boys!"
"Well, at least we've got a Sears logo ... how about slapping some fleurs de lis under it?"
"Flirt-a-what?"
"Fleurs de lis."
"And we'll put some gold concentric circles on the platen knob."
"Gold, huh? I like that. Classy. Let's make the return lever gold, too."
"And the paper table. Hey, how about if we make the line spacing selector numbers pop up a bit ... here, let me show you."
"It needs red, too. I like red highlights. And let's give it a paragraph key, like those old 'self-starter' keys on Remingtons."
"All right, and on the other corner we'll put a half-spacer. Hey, let's give it a left-pointing arrow, just to confuse people!"
"I think it should have one of those check-protection keys, the kind that types tiny dots."
"This thing is deluxe, right? So it's definitely going to have to include the Change-A-Type.™"
"We can do more than that. A simple two-color ribbon isn't enough. This baby is gonna handle four colors!"
"How the heck are you going to arrange for that?"
"Real simple."
"What else can we change to look like a—Sears?"
"Um ... the feeet?"
"Now we're getting somewhere. And no slide-forward ribbon cover like on Smith-Coronas. The Sears is going to have a flip-up cover with modern angles."
"And a nice, chunky base that looks like ... I dunno ... a car from the year 2010, or something."
"Let's paint it a really dark forest green."
"Yeah!"
"OK, boss, there you have it: this is what a Sears looks like."
ha! love it. They did tend to look more interesting than the stock SCMs (:
ReplyDeleteGreat presentation! First time I heard of the four color ribbon.
ReplyDeleteWeird, huh? I googled the feature and see that it's been mentioned a few other times online, but I have never actually found such a ribbon.
Deleteand electric!! i bet that dot::matrix key repeats- i want i want i want.
ReplyDelete..
it took my poor brain a while to work it out but the 4-col ribbon is 2-cols one end and 2 cols the other with a rivet at the join... I think I'll make myself one.
Great post, Richard..
Yes, that key does repeat! Let me know if you make a 4-color ribbon.
DeleteHow close to the truth I wonder? I could hear coffee cups rattling and the flick of cigarette ash behind the dialogue :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks.
DeleteOh, that was *very* amusing.
ReplyDeleteIt all made sense except for the dark forest green. ;)
ReplyDeleteI have but one electrified manual, a Smith-Corona Coronette Automatic 12, and I've ended up liking it better than I thought I would. The type slugs hit the ribbon with an authoritative smack, and the power carriage return is dramatic. But I like the styling of this Sears version better.
ReplyDeleteNice vignette, I can picture the conversation.
So ugly, yet so beautiful at the same time!
ReplyDeleteI’ve been Googling is the #11209 twin spool ribbon by Porelon the correct replacement?
ReplyDeleteNo — that's meant for printing calculators, and will not have the correct spools or thickness of ink. Look for a "universal typewriter ribbon" offered by various companies, or an Underwood-style ribbon. See my FAQ at https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/tw-faq.html.
Delete