Before the advent of desktop publishing software and digital printing, manual typesetting and linotype machines revolutionized the landscape and logistics of the newspaper industry. Printing and graphic design enthusiasts will relish in these highly informative typesetting relics and marvel at the exponential progress of ephemeral printing mechanics. This fascinating compilation contains (3) vintage printing and typesetting films from the manual printing press and linotype era.
Included Films:
Learning to Set Type
Learning to Set Type
Produced: 1959
Length: 10 Minutes
In the pre-microchip era of the late 1950s, printing was a whole other ball game. It took effort, expertise, and attention to detail to create a decent looking, clean piece of print. Learning to Set Type explores the ‘how to’ of a complex and genuinely time consuming art that has faded considerably since the invention of the printer. Anyone in today’s world, with a computer, can print intricate articles and posters such as the ones seen in the film, but particular homage is paid to the artist quality, the dedication and skill that takes years to master. This is an excellent step by step explanation of the set type, including things not to do, and how to properly handle the delicate instruments.
Printing
Printing
Produced: 1947
Length: 11 Minutes
Printing makes books, magazines, artwork and everything in between possible and available to every person. The wide range of products of the press and the need for a constant supply require the efforts of many talented persons, in printing firms ranging in size from the small one man establishment, to large plants employing hundreds of workers. With every advance in printing technology, from the Linotype and Monotype (seen in this film), to MAC computers, the knowledge readily available to the public has increased over time. ‘Printing’ is a vocational film exploring the jobs available in the printing industry in the late 1940s. It provides excellent footage of people operating printing presses, which have been consolidated into a couple of computers and sophisticated printers in modern times. Along the streets of progress and the halls of knowledge ‘Printing’ serves as a homage to the advances of technology and the importance of the written word to people throughout the ages.
Typesetting: Linotype
Typesetting: Linotype
Produced: 1960
Length: 35 Minutes
The need to read, which stirs the very souls of human kind, was more evident in the era of progress during the 1940s than ever before. Publishers, newspapers and bookstores poured out thousands of magazines, newspapers and books, every day to inform, instruct and amuse. A necessary tool for such soul stirring material in the 40s was the Linotype printer. A revolutionary machine that was part mechanical genius and part human skill, the Linotype would pave the way for modern printing presses of today. Typsetting: Linotype, offers an informative and instructional glimpse into what it took to operate such machines, as well as a nostalgic look to the mechanical revelations of the publishing industry.
