Bruce

Certificate of the Imperial Government of China

fangly — Sat, 04 Apr 2026 16:02:26 +0000

Contributed by fangly

Source: commons.wikimedia.org License: Public Domain.

Certificates like this one were issued by the Chinese consulate-general in San Francisco to show that the holder was exempt from the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, which banned Chinese laborers from entering the United States. The Chinese exclusion policy remained in effect until it was lifted in 1943.

The heading combines a Celtic with Ronaldson (also used for the word “SEAL” at the bottom left), and the following paragraph combines Title Text Open No. 3 with Spencerian Script. The word “DESCRIPTION” is in Old Style Extended, while the labels for each item are in a Modern/Scotch. The italic at the bottom is in a style that was presented by MacKellar, Smiths & Jordan as a companion to Ronaldson (Old Style, No. 4) as well as to Bradford Old Style (Old Style, No. 2) and Binny (Old Style, No. 3). The Chinese signatures aren’t typographic.

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

The Love Story of Ursula Wolcott

Stephen Coles — Sat, 04 Apr 2026 15:59:07 +0000

Contributed by Stephen Coles

Source: archive.org Collection of The Mugar Memorial Library, Boston University. License: Public Domain.

A poem written by Charles Knowles Bolton about a historical figure in Connecticut. The decorations are by Ethel Reed, but the printer or book designer is uncredited. The publisher, Lamson, Wolffe, and Company, wrote the following in their 1896 catalog:

It is printed in a a dark brown ink, in an old style antique type, on heavy, hand-made paper of natural tint, with deckled edges and uncut leaves. The book is appropriately illustrated by Miss Ethel Reed, who has drawn also the title-page and cover designs. […]

“Much of the attraction of Mr. Bolton’s little volume lies in the admirable illustrations and letter-heads by Miss Ethel Reed. These designs are in the ‘poster’ style, and in their cleverly massed effects and bold outline have considerable charm and originality.” — The Literary World.

The design is typical of the Arts & Crafts movement, favoring bold strokes in both artwork and type. Old Style Antique is the US import of Miller & Richard’s Old Style Antique No. 7, a 1850s–60s design that regained popularity in the early 1900s. It was later revised as Bookman.

The main title type is a mystery. It seems to match Boston’s Old Style Antique No. 2, but that W!

Source: archive.org Collection of The Mugar Memorial Library, Boston University. License: Public Domain.

Source: archive.org Collection of The Mugar Memorial Library, Boston University. License: Public Domain.

Source: archive.org Collection of The Mugar Memorial Library, Boston University. License: Public Domain.

Source: archive.org Collection of The Mugar Memorial Library, Boston University. License: Public Domain.

Source: archive.org Collection of The Mugar Memorial Library, Boston University. License: Public Domain.

Source: archive.org Collection of The Mugar Memorial Library, Boston University. License: Public Domain.

Source: archive.org Collection of The Mugar Memorial Library, Boston University. License: Public Domain.

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

The Fantastic Art of Frank Frazetta

Ulf Johansson — Sun, 29 Mar 2026 17:22:23 +0000

Contributed by Ulf Johansson

The Fantastic Art of Frank Frazetta (August 1975). The small type (and the text typeface) is De Vinne.

West Nouveau Didot is a typeface drawn by Dave West and added to the catalog of Photo-Lettering by 1971.

In August 1975, it was used in all caps for The Fantastic Art of Frank Frazetta, an album with assorted works by the “Godfather of fantasy art”, with an introduction by Betty Ballantine and book design by Robert Blanchard. The book was published by Rufus Publications and Peacock Press, an imprint of Ballantine Books. Scribner’s issued a hardback edition in September 1975.

The typeface subsequently became the backbone of the typographic identity of Frank Frazetta (1928–2010). It was used for all five volumes of The Fantastic Art of Frank Frazetta, as well as calendars, catalogs, jigsaw puzzles, and other items featuring the iconic works by the Brooklyn-born artist.

The Fantastic Art of Frank Frazetta. Book Two (1977). The secondary typeface is ITC Souvenir.

The Fantastic Art of Frank Frazetta. Book Three (1978)

The Fantastic Art of Frank Frazetta, Book Four (1980). Betty Ballantine’s name now is set in all-caps West Nouveau Didot, too.

The Fantastic Art of Frank Frazetta, Book Five (1985)

Assorted Frank Frazetta calendars from 1977 to 1982

The Frank Frazetta Calendar 1977, designed by Robert Blanchard

The Frank Frazetta Calendar 1978

The Frank Frazetta Calendar 1979

The Frank Frazetta Calendar 1980

The Frank Frazetta Calendar 1982 with box

The Fantastic Art of Frank Frazetta jigsaw puzzle, “The Death Dealer” (1973). The text in red caps is in ITC Korinna. The title uses another PLINC face, Staudel Xenotype P.

A collection of 1970s and 1980s Frazetta puzzles from American Publishing Corporation

The Fantastic Art of Frank Frazetta, Catalog No. 2 (1981)

The Fantastic Art of Frank Frazetta, Catalog No. 2 (1991)

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

Dennis the Menace by Hank Ketcham, Fawcett Crest paperback series

Florian Hardwig — Sat, 28 Mar 2026 08:00:00 +0000

Contributed by Florian Hardwig

Wanted: Dennis the Menace. The other fonts are Antique Tuscan Condensed and Akzidenz-Grotesk Bold.

Hank Ketcham’s Dennis the Menace made its debut as a daily syndicated newspaper comic strip on March 12, 1951. It has subsequently been published in comic book form by various publishers, including Standard/Pines (1953–58), Fawcett Comics (1958–80, and Marvel Comics (1981–82).

Shown here are covers for the mass market paperback collections by Fawcett Crest, published in their Crest Book and Fawcett Gold Medal imprints. The main title is set in Filmotype Accent. Volume titles and secondary text use a variety of typefaces. More often than not, the former is added in the form of hand-lettering.

In This Corner… Small text is in Venus Extended.

Make-Believe Angel. The volume title appears to be lettering. At the very bottom, News Gothic Bold.

Rides Again. Accent is here used for the whole tite and for the author’s name.

…Teacher’s Threat

Household Hurricane

…Who Me?

Ambassador of Mischief, featuring all-caps Dom.

Everybody’s Little Helper, again with Dom

Dennis the Menace and Poor Ol’ Mr. Wilson

Surprise Package

Short ’n Snappy

Dennis the Menace and his Girls

Perpetual Motion

…Here Comes Trouble

All-American Kid

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

John P. Schaum business card

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 23:59:00 +0000

Photo(s) by Alan Mays on Flickr.

Source: www.flickr.com Uploaded to Flickr by Alan Mays and tagged with “belgian”, “broadgauge”, “glyptic shaded”, “old style extended”, “fashion”, “cloister”, and “french clarendon shaded”. License: All Rights Reserved.

This is a nineteenth-century advertising trade card for John P. Schaum, gas fitter and plumber, whose business was located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The other side of the card features an illustration with a rabbit and flowers.

Chandeliers, Coal Oil Lamps, and Gas Fixtures.
Stoves, Heaters, and Ranges.
Gas Fitting and Plumbing.
John P. Schaum,
No. 24 South Queen Street, Lancaster, Pa.

The featured typefaces include Belgian (Bruce, 1867) and Fashion (Farmer, 1876). Most of the typefaces come from the catalog of MacKellar, Smiths & Jordan in Philadelphia. This includes Broadgauge (a foundry version of a design previously seen in wood as Antique Tuscan Extended, 1869) French Clarendon Shaded (1871), Cloister (1873), Glyptic Shaded, Caxtonian (both 1878), and Kitcat (1883). The grot on the back is a version of a design that was known in Germany as Moderne Steinschrift.

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

Sean Mason – A Breath of Fresh Air album art

Amélie Lehoux — Sun, 08 Mar 2026 15:46:35 +0000

Contributed by Amélie Lehoux

Source: amelielehoux.com Amélie Lehoux. License: All Rights Reserved.

I began collaborating with Sean Mason on the design of his sophomore album in October 2024. He reached out to explain his plan for a complete rebrand of his visual identity. Sean is a visionary Grammy-nominated jazz pianist, composer and bandleader, and a recipient of a Bessie Award and Bistro Award.

The challenge was to translate the pianist’s spiritual and creative rebirth into a singular visual identity; to visually represent the joy, but also the difficulties, of that process.

The primary inspiration was the Ivy aesthetic, championed by Miles Davis in the 1950s and 60s. Sean attended Juilliard and moved to NYC in 2018. He then came back to his roots, his hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina. His music is deeply rooted in the cultural heritage of the South. Thus, it felt fitting that the album packaging hinted at the colors of the American flag. Sean’s musical style is very reverential, often paying homage to old school jazz, hard bop and gospel music. I wanted the visual aesthetic to mirror his respect for the jazz tradition. Therefore, in all the promotional materials and the album packaging, I incorporated typographic references ranging from the early 20th century to the 1970s.

[More info on Discogs]

Front and back cover

Inner gatefold

Inner sleeve

These sheets include logos of publications that reviewed A Breath of Fresh Air, some of which use additional fonts like Gill Sans, Clarendon, and Frutiger that are not part of the album design.

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

Burning Spear – Man in the Hills album art

Florian Hardwig — Sat, 07 Feb 2026 10:44:19 +0000

Contributed by Florian Hardwig

Source: yourvinylshop.com Palm Beach Vinyl. License: All Rights Reserved.

Recorded August 18, 1976, in Kingston, Jamaica, Man in the Hills is the follow-up to Burning Spear’s seminal Marcus Garvey from the year before. The reggae album contains several songs that reminisce about Spear’s childhood in Saint Ann. Its cover was designed by Neville Garrick (1950–2023), who takes credit for many of the covers to Bob Marley’s albums. Coincidentally, Marley was from Saint Ann as well (and so was Marcus Garvey).

Man in the Hills is one of the more prominent in-use examples of Rustic No. 2, an 1840s oddity that’s equally cherished and ridiculed. A woody typeface for roots reggae.

“Burning Spear” is visualized by a perspective setting of Firebug, an aptly named variant of Dom Casual with added flames. I don’t know where this mod originated. Dan X. Solo showed it in his book Special Effects and Topical Alphabets from 1978.

[More info on Discogs]

Song names and credits on the back cover are set in ITC Souvenir, mostly in all caps.

Front and back cover

Gatefold with liner notes by Carl Gayle from Black Music magazine

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

The Incredible Melting Man Super 8 film reel cover

William Kenny — Sat, 07 Feb 2026 08:20:35 +0000

Contributed by William Kenny

Source: derannvaults.uk Super8DataBase. License: All Rights Reserved.

The teardrop-shaped letterforms of Smoke, appropriately suggesting an oozing substance, act as a subtle counterpoint to a graphic tightly-cropped close-up of Rick Baker’s gruesome make-up effects on this Super 8 film box art for The Incredible Melting Man.

Though dating back to the 1890s, the moment of glory for Smoke was the psychedelic era. The Doors’ Waiting for the Sun features one example. With its trippy associations, Smoke is perhaps not the obvious choice for a horror movie, introducing a slightly incongruous note into this striking design.

A cut-down ‘digest’ version of the AIP film, this Super 8 reel was released by Mountain/Ken Films in the late 1970s. Operating from an office on Wardour Street, they were one of the major operators in the home cinema market, prior to the advent of home video. Remarkably, via a deal with 20th Century Fox, they were able to release a version of Star Wars in the UK prior to the cinema premiere.

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

Winter Market at Madeleine Café

Arnaud Aubry — Fri, 23 Jan 2026 08:31:17 +0000

Contributed by Arnaud Aubry

Arnaud Aubry. License: All Rights Reserved.

Here is a poster I did for a Christmas market gathering local designers that took place in a little coffee shop in Nantes in November 2024. I used Pinewood, a freebie digital interpretation of Rustic No. 2, both for the title and as an illustrative element, adding snow on top to make it fit to the rest of the composition. I paired it with Exposure, chosen for the warm feeling of its blurry outlines.

Arnaud Aubry. License: All Rights Reserved.

Source: arnaudaubry.info Arnaud Aubry. License: All Rights Reserved.

Arnaud Aubry. License: All Rights Reserved.

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

Languages of Art by Nelson Goodman

Benjamin Shaykin — Sat, 17 Jan 2026 13:02:24 +0000

Contributed by Benjamin Shaykin

Photo: Benjamin Shaykin. License: Public Domain.

From Wikipedia:

Languages of Art: An Approach to a Theory of Symbols is a book by the American philosopher Nelson Goodman. It is a work of 20th century aesthetics in the analytic tradition. Originally published in 1968, it was revised in 1976. Goodman continued to refine and update these theories in essay form for the rest of his career.

The cover design on this 1976 paperback by Bobbs-Merill is uncredited, but does say on the back cover, only partially visible on this well-worn copy: “The cover design is based on a score for a dance and musical composition by Joyce Mekeel.” I believe it matches the original hardcover design from 1968.

Photo: Benjamin Shaykin. License: Public Domain.

Photo: Benjamin Shaykin. License: Public Domain.

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

Blondie – “War Child” single cover

Sat, 06 Dec 2025 14:08:30 +0000

Photo(s) by Klaus Hiltscher on Flickr.

Source: www.flickr.com Uploaded to Flickr by Klaus Hiltscher and tagged with “brucemikita”. License: All Rights Reserved.

From Wikipedia:

“War Child” is a 1982 song by the American rock band Blondie, featured on their sixth studio album The Hunter. The song was released as a second single from the album in various countries, but not in the band's native US. […] [It was] the last new Blondie single for seventeen years, when the band reformed and released “Maria” in 1999.

The title typeface is Bruce Mikita, which originated at the Bruce type foundry in New York City – where Blondie formed in 1974 – under the name of Rustic Ornamented Shaded around 1867.

[More info on Discogs]

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

Ferrante & Teicher – Encore album art

Javi Gonzalez — Sat, 06 Dec 2025 14:01:27 +0000

Contributed by Javi Gonzalez

Source: archive.org Internet Archive. License: All Rights Reserved.

Encore is the title of an album by the piano duo Ferrante & Teicher, released in 1970 on the Harmony Records label. Originally released in 1960 with a different cover and titled Themes From Broadway Shows, it features arrangements of show tunes from musicals like The Music Man, Gypsy, and Bye, Bye Birdie. Two sizes of Bookman are used for setting the titles, artist name, and song list. The cover photo is credited to Don Hunstein who may have been responsible for the typography as well.

[More info on Discogs]

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

Josep de Ros de Les Olives and the Camponal distillery

Lluís Serra — Sun, 23 Nov 2025 19:20:00 +0000

Contributed by Lluís Serra

Letterhead by José de Ros

Josep de Ros was an industrialist from Figueres, Spain, born in the manor house of Les Olives into an aristocratic family. Around 1917, he started a business in the fertilizer sector and opened the Camponal liquor distillery a few years later. He had a warehouse on Vilallonga Avenue in Figueres, near the railway station, close to the border with France. He died in 1935.

In the shown letterheads by Josep/José de Ros from around 1930, the difference between typography and lettering is difficult to appreciate (thanks to the staff of Fonts In Use for the clarifications).

Detail of the letterhead: “José de Ros / Abonos, cereales y despojos / Figueras”. All three styles are lettering.

The name is in an English script close to Stempel’s Künstler-Schreibschrift, known in Spanish as Inglesa Artista semi-negra, with an ornamented J and a characteristic loop around the stem of the R. Josep de Ros i Moner (father) and Josep de Ros i Reig (son) were descendents of Ros de Olano. In Stempel’s 1918 specimen book for the Spanish market, the name of Ros de Olano is set in Inglesa Artista (it’s misspelled as “Olona”; another page in the same book has the correct spelling).

“Figueras” is drawn in a serif with inline. The structure is very close to the Bravour typeface designed by Martin Jacoby-Boy for Stempel in 1912), but with sharper serifs, and a wider letter U with a small spur. I have made a comparison with the solid Bravour negra and the decorated Bravour adornado (Verzierte Bravour).

Comparison of the lettered inline caps to the Bravour typeface

From the obituary for the father in La Veu de l’Empordá, 27 December 1919 (translated):

[…] Josep de Ros was from a noble family, from the stately house of Ros located in the town of Les Olives, although the one they owned in this city could also be considered a manor. Among the ancestors of the house are the famous General Ros de Olano, who was a minister of the Crown and commanded an army corps in the African War during the years 1859 and 1860. The last Prior of the Monastery of Santa Maria de Ripoll also came from the Ros family.

Detail of the letterhead featuring Merveille, Kleukens, and Venus, all by Bauer/Neufville

The Camponal letterhead is typographic: it’s set in the typefaces Merveille, Kleukens-Kursiv and Venus-Grotesk, all by the Bauer type foundry (Merveille originated in the United States under the name Laclede), and distributed in Spain by the Neufville branch in Barcelona. Bauer’s typefaces were the most commonly used ones in Catalonia before the Franco dictatorship (1939). This letterhead helped to locate the forgotten Camponal distillery.

Label featuring Venus schmal dreiviertelfett, Fette Grotesk-Kursiv, and Clio a.k.a. Kleopatra

The Camponal identity uses other typefaces by Bauer and Neufville, like Antigua Mercedes (the Spanish name of Tages-Antiqua), Bernhard-Antiqua, Fette Grotesk-Kursiv, Carnaby (Marocco), Grotesca Estrecha (Neue enge Zeitungs-Grotesk), Florentiner Mediaeval, and Majestic.

A few typefaces could have been sourced from different type foundries based in Madrid and Valencia, like Clio (Ludwig Wagner, 1903) distributed by Neufville/Bauer as Kleopatra and by Gans as Aurora; or Aurora Grotesk (Wagner & Schmidt, 1908) sold by Gans as Grotesca Ideal and by Fundición Tipográfica Nacional as Grotesca Estrecha.

Typography and lettering also coexist in other elements, such as in the Camponal liquour labels and packaging.

Learn more about Josep de Ros and the Camponal distillery.

Camponal label featuring lettering (white letters), Kleukens-Antiqua, and Majestic

Label featuring Kleukens-Antiqua, Venus, and an unidentified typeface (similar to Stempel’s Holzhausen-Antiqua, but with a different M)

Bottle label ft. lettering, an unidentified grotesk for “Licor de Hierbas ‘Camponal’” (similar to Grotesca Favorita by Gans), and Bauer’s Kleopatra

Packaging ft. lettering (the reversed letters at the top), Marocco a.k.a. Carnaby for “Cura estómago e intestinos”, Majestic for “G. Garriga”, and other unidentified typefaces

Camponal ad ft. Bernhard-Antiqua, Universitäts-Antiqua a.k.a Druckhaus-Antiqua, Neue enge Zeitungs-Grotesk, Tages-Antiqua a.k.a. Antigua Mercedes, and others

Point-of-sale display ft. Columbus, a version of Edel-Grotesk (probably Groteska Moderna by Fundición Tipográfica Nacional), and Schmale halbfette Etienne

Camponal ad ft. Bernhard-Antiqua, Tages-Antiqua a.k.a. Antigua Mercedes, Universitäts-Antiqua, Florentiner Mediaeval, Kleukens-Antiqua, and an unidentified grotesk

Address label ft. Etienne Sombreada (Gans’s version of Umstochene Etienne by Schelter & Giesecke), Venus, and Antigua Veneciana (Gans’s version of ATF’s Cheltenham)

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

Dr. W. H. Moyer, Veterinary Surgeon and Dentist business card

Sat, 06 Sep 2025 06:58:00 +0000

William H. Moyer, of Pottsville, Pa., received a V.S. (Veterinary Surgeon) degree from the Ontario Veterinary College in Toronto during the commencement held on March 28, 1891, according to a note in the Journal of Comparative Medicine and Veterinary Archives, vol. 12, no. 5, May 1891, pp. 261-64.

Afterwards, he set up a practice in Elizabethville, Pa., as indicated on this business card. Someone penciled in the year “1890” on the front of the card, and the name “J. Romberger” is written on the back.

Dr. W. H. Moyer,
Veterinary Surgeon and Dentist, Elizabethville, Pa.
Graduate of the Ontario Veterinary College, Member of the Veterinary Medical Society, of Toronto, Canada.
Four Year’s Practice with Dr. J. W. Sallade, V.S., of Pottsville, Pa.

The doctor’s name is set in John F. Cumming’s Karnac (Dickinson, 1884). The condensed low-contrast slab for his job description is unidentified – it’s similar to Skeleton. “Elizabethville, Pa.” is in a Gothic, possibly Boston’s. Additional typefaces include (an American version or relative?) of Antique Five, Latin Antique, a light Clarendon/Ionic, and what looks like Antique No. 310, Bruce’s version of Old Style Antique No. 7.

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

Walker Brothers Carpets ad, 1880

Stephen Coles — Fri, 05 Sep 2025 00:41:34 +0000

Contributed by Stephen Coles

This ad in The Salt Lake Herald., April 18, 1880, demonstrates the ingenuity of late nineteenth-century typographers. Given the cost of producing and printing engravings, newspaper ads rarely used illustrations at that time. So companies sometimes turned to type to draw attention and express themselves. This layout evokes rug patterns and borders as if seen from overhead in a floor plan, grabbing the eye on an otherwise dense page.

The designer put three very different typeface styles to use: The “Carpets.” at top and bottom appear to match MacKellar, Smiths & Jordan’s four-line pica Gothic, No. 3, a style we list as Grotesque No. 5 / 396–399. (The word at the top may use a C from a different font.) Meanwhile, the light and narrow Condensed No. 3 contrasts nicely with the extra broad and bold Title Extended. All of these typefaces were likely created within a couple decades before this printing. They originated at German or Eastern U.S. foundries and made their way across the country to Salt Lake City in time to show up in service of the Walker Brothers Carpet company.

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

The Memoirs of Josephine Mutzenbacher, Brandon Books

fangly — Sat, 28 Jun 2025 13:20:39 +0000

Volume one

From Wikipedia:

Josephine Mutzenbacher or The Story of a Viennese Whore, as Told by Herself (German: Josefine Mutzenbacher oder Die Geschichte einer Wienerischen Dirne von ihr selbst erzählt) is an erotic novel first published anonymously in Vienna, Austria, in 1906. The novel is famous in the German-speaking world, having been in print in both German and English for over 100 years and sold over 3 million copies, becoming an erotic bestseller.

Although no author claimed responsibility for the work, it was originally attributed to either Felix Salten or Arthur Schnitzler by the librarians at the University of Vienna. Today, critics, scholars, academics and the Austrian Government designate Salten as the sole author of the "pornographic classic".

This edition was published in 1972 by Brandon Books, a subsidiary of Parliament News, Inc. Volume one contains an English translation of the original novel, while volume two contains a translation of a sequel written by a different author, originally titled Meine 365 Liebhaber.

The title combines Makart with oblique Bookman. The author attribution, as well as the volume number, publisher name, serial number and price, use Trade Gothic. The other credits use italic Century Expanded.

Volume two

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

Sly and the Family Stone – Life album art and magazine ad

Ian Fine-Free — Sat, 14 Jun 2025 15:35:31 +0000

Sandwiched between (and some would say overshadowed by) Dance to the Music and Stand!, Sly and the Family Stone’s Life continued the group’s brand of psychedelic-tinged funk-rock-soul. For the US market, the album produced only one single – the title track “Life” backed with “M’Lady” – which had little impact on the charts.

Above a photomontage of the band as a theater full of people, the uncredited designer chose to juxtapose the filigreed 19th-century Ornamented No. 1539 with the sleeker, more modern Palisade Graphic. For the bichromatic setting of the former, the specific font in use probably is the phototype adaptation made by Headliners in 1964 as part of their Morgan Press Collection.

[More info on Discogs]

Billboard ad (July 13, 1968, p. 19). This time the album/single's title has added (handdrawn?) quotes. The other fonts present are Folio Extra Bold and Kabel.

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

Natalie Wildgoose – Come Into the Garden EP cover and gig posters

Oliver Deans — Sun, 30 Mar 2025 12:29:53 +0000

Artwork for Natalie Wildgoose and her new EP Come Into the Garden, alongside posters for her release shows at The Cardigan Arms in Leeds, and Servant Jazz Quarters in London.

A range of period typefaces are used throughout. For the EP artwork, Anglo-Saxon Caps is used for the titles and Seta Reta NF for the credits. The show posters use Schwarzkopf and P22 Arts and Crafts Hunter for headers, with a combination of Archive Garamond (bold italic), Madisonian Light, Skeleton Antique and News Gothic (medium, bold) for subheadings and body copy.

The Chocolate Watchband – No Way Out album art

Robby Rhodes — Mon, 17 Mar 2025 08:31:38 +0000

No Way Out is the debut album by American garage rock band The Chocolate Watchband, released in 1967 by Tower Records. The album blends garage rock, psychedelic influences, and elements of R&B, featuring a mix of original songs and covers, including “Let’s Talk About Girls” and “Come On”.

The album cover features bold typography, combining two distinct typefaces. The band’s name and album title are set in Braggadocio, a geometric stencil typeface designed by W.A. Wooley in 1930 for Monotype. Below the title, the band's name appears again in Caslon Rounded. Track names are set in Akzidenz-Grotesk schmal fett, also known as Standard Bold Condensed. “Keep the 18th Amendment” is added in Helvetica, and “LP” at the bottom features Agency Gothic Open. The cover designer remains unknown.

[More info on Discogs]

The dedication on the back cover appears to be set in all-caps News Gothic Condensed.

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use

M’Liss opening night lady ticket, People’s Theatre Company

Sat, 15 Feb 2025 11:01:13 +0000

A nineteenth-century ticket for a production of M’Liss, an 1877 play based on a short story by Bret Harte. It's likely that the ticket dates to sometime in the 1880s before Harry L. Churchill, manager of the repertory company that performed the play, became ill and was hospitalized in 1890 (see the newspaper account below).

The all-caps Glyptic is for used “People’s Theatre Company,” “Harry L. Churchill,” the C in “Compliments,” and the M in “Manager”. It’s paired with lowercase letters from a Latin Condensed. The IDs of the two romans are uncertain. The one of regular width sits somewhere between a Modern/Scotch and a beefier Ionic. The wider one could be Lightface Extended or similar.

People’s Theatre Company.
This Ticket and Ten Cents will Admit one Lady to best Reserved Seat, on presentation at Box Office, or Advance Sale.
Opening Night: M’liss.
Compliments Harry L. Churchill, Manager

From the New York Clipper, July 12, 1890, p. 276.

Harry L. Churchill, who for some time has managed various repertory companies through New England, is said to be confined in an insane asylum at Greenfield, Mass. Dave Seymour, writing for Mrs. Churchill, says: “Mr. Churchill is suffering from a complication of diseases, among which are softening and paralysis of the brain. The best physicians have been consulted, and all pronounce him incurable. The diseases were brought on by overwork and mental anxiety, as of late his companies had been doing a losing business. His last work was with the C. D. Henry People's Theatre Co. His wife, Florence Churchill, is a faithful attendant.”

This post was originally published at Fonts In Use