Portland's unofficial slogan “Keep Portland Weird” appears in a few different styles and formats, but most commonly using Ad Lib, or lettering based on Ad Lib, and in yellow on black.

The original two-line slogan, on the side of Millennium Music, has “Weird” being based on Ad Lib (the E and D especially), and “Keep Portland” in a somewhat generic signwriter’s sans serif. The later and more popular one-line version is a little closer to Ad Lib throughout.

The slogan is an obvious opportunity for a variety of fan art and merchandising, much of which still retains Ad Lib, and often Antique Olive.

Brian Kidd who wants to Make Portland Weird (Again), on a T-shirt. This time it’s Ad Lib, with what looks like squeezed House Brush.

Apparently the site of the original “Keep Portland Weird” slogan: Music Millennium.

In the spirit of the original two-line slogan, Antique Olive for “Keep Portland” and Ad Lib for “Weird”, with the motif repeated in a few different colour ways.

Bumper Sticker design, again with Antique Olive and Ad Lib

Let’s get dangerous! Darkwing Duck, Disney’s superhero parody from the 1990s, made use of Banco for “Darkwing” (with double contour and an enlarged initial with exaggerated features) and Ad Lib for “Duck” (with drop shadow).

Source: archive.org License: All Rights Reserved.

Fire Sale is a 1977 screwball comedy film based on a novel by Robert Klane (1941–2023) and directed by Alan Arkin (1934–2023). I haven’t watched it, and judging from the scathing reviews quoted on Wikipedia, it looks like I didn’t miss out. I’m posting it here because the opening titles use Filmotype Newton. I haven’t seen a full glyph set for this early 1960s phototype design yet, and the titles feature a whole lot more text than other uses. Apart from a few biform alternates for a e i, Newton didn’t include lowercase characters. The text in lowercase is added in the stylistically related Ad Lib.

Source: archive.org License: All Rights Reserved.

Source: archive.org License: All Rights Reserved.

Source: archive.org License: All Rights Reserved.

Source: archive.org License: All Rights Reserved.

Source: archive.org License: All Rights Reserved.

Source: archive.org License: All Rights Reserved.

Source: archive.org License: All Rights Reserved.

Source: archive.org License: All Rights Reserved.

Source: archive.org License: All Rights Reserved.

Source: archive.org License: All Rights Reserved.

The Otter Pops wordmark uses Filmotype Newton. From Wikipedia:

Otter Pops are a brand of freeze pops sold in the United States. The product consists of a clear plastic tube filled with a fruit-flavored liquid and is one of the earliest brands of this dessert. […] National Pax introduced Otter Pops in 1970, in competition with Jel Sert’s similar product, Fla-Vor-Ice. As of 1990, the product was manufactured by Merrytime Products Inc. of Marshall, Texas.

Although Filmotype Newton has long disappeared and no digital version exists (to my knowledge), its letterforms still serve on the Otter Pops packaging to this day. On some more recent box designs, it’s being used in redrawn form (see e.g. the questionable counter in P) and together with a number of different typefaces, including the stylistically related Ad Lib.

All-caps Ad Lib is used for the album name, shown here with its TH ligature and alternates for E. Designed by Freeman Craw, this novelty typeface was issued by ATF just a few years earlier, in 1961. The smaller text is set in condensed and extended styles from the Venus family. Photography by Joe Covello / Black Star.

From Wikipedia:

The Beatles’ Second Album is the second Capitol Records album by the English rock band the Beatles, and their third album released in the United States including Introducing... The Beatles, which was issued three months earlier by Vee-Jay Records. Following its release in April 1964, The Beatles’ Second Album replaced Meet the Beatles! at number 1 on the Billboard Top LPs chart in the US.

[More info on Discogs]

The back cover appears to be using Craw Clarendon Condensed, amongst other typefaces.

Cool and Strange Music Magazine was published between 1996 and 2003 by Dana Countryman (b. 1954), an electronic music composer, songwriter and performer from Washington. Two issues from 1998 are available in digtized form at the Internet Archive. Shown here is the front cover of the 10th issue (“Dedicated To Unusual Sounds”) of “America’s Wackiest Music Magazine”.

The number of fonts on this cover is massive and diverse, likely reflecting the nature of the magazine itself, ranging from familiar faces such as Impact and Brush Script to lesser-known ones like Amazone and OPTI Sport Script. “Esquivel” is set in stretched Tiki Type Surf. The name of the publication itself is set in an artificially-italicized Will Robinson. This shareware digitization of Filmotype Maxwell was released by Mike Allard the same year the issue came out.

Magazine ad for Toxic Waste Hi-Voltage Bubble Gum from ca. 2008

Toxic Waste is a line of sour candies by Candy Dynamics from Indianapolis.

The advertisement for their Hi-Voltage Bubble Gum shown above features Ad Lib for “Torment your Taste Buds!” and “New!”, mostly in all caps, AG Book Stencil, a style unique to the AG Book Family, is used for “Shockingly Sour BUBBLE GUM!”, and “Over 2 Feet of Gum!” uses Techno. Secondary fonts include Akzidenz-Grotesk (plus Condensed) and Univers Ultra Condensed.

The packaging combines Kaffeehaus (an interpretation of Kaufmann with rounded terminals) for “Hi-Voltage” with Stencil (ATF) for “Toxic Waste”, supported by more Techno. The typeface chosen for the “Nuclear Sludge” packaging is Stop. The Candy Dynamics logo is based on Mister Earl, with stretched letterforms.

Toxic Waste Candy Special Edition Drums

Toxic Waste Nuclear Sludge candy display, 2008

Candy Dynamics logo

Source: www.amazon.co.uk License: All Rights Reserved.

Poster for The Velvet Vampire, featuring Moon Flair, Toronado Interlock, Franklin Gothic Condensed, Univers, Neue Auora VIII, and News Gothic Condensed.

The Velvet Vampire is a 1971 American vampire film directed by Stephanie Rothman. It was distributed by Roger Corman’s New World Pictures, and put on a double bill with Scream of the Demon Lover, a 1970 Spanish-Italian horror film by José Luis Merino and originally called Ivanna. The posters and other promotion for the two films feature strong imagery – and some lesser known typefaces.

The title typeface for The Velvet Vampire is called Moon Flair. This all-caps face with “Shotgun” counters is shown by Lettergraphics in their 1976 catalog (but not yet in the 1969 edition), without designer credits. Digital interpretations include Velvet Teen (Pink Broccoli, 2008) and Velvet Vampire (GautFonts, 2019). Both fonts are based on the material designed for the film, and hence are not faithful to the original beyond the glyphs featured in this use.

“She’s waiting to love you … to death” is set in another anonymous design from the Lettergraphics library – this phototype company was located in Culver City, California, and hence in close proximity to Hollywood. Toronado Interlock was shown already in 1968. There likewise is a digitization by Pink Broccoli, under the name Troubled PB (2019).

Source: www.amazon.com License: All Rights Reserved.

Poster for Scream of the Demon Lover, featuring Burst Caps, Marschall, Neue Aurora IX, and Venus Condensed.

On the poster for Scream of the Demon Lover, the title is set in Burst Caps. Again, this is a phototype design of unclear origin. The bold sans-serif caps with burst pattern in each glyph appear in Lettergraphics’ 1976 catalog. There are digizations by David Rakowski (as Starburst, 1990) and, more complete, by Dan X. Solo as Burst (1999).

“A walking corpse lusts for revenge” probably is in Monmart, which was the name Lettergraphics used for their phototype adaptation of Marschall. Other aliases for this German design from 1905 include Elefante and Domingo.

Shout-out to John Michael Cozzoli for sharing images of the double bill press book on Zombos’ Closet.

Source: www.zomboscloset.com From Zombos’ Closet by John Michael Cozzoli. License: CC BY-NC-ND.

Pages from the press book for The Velvet Vampire and Scream of the Demon Lover. “2 new smash chiller attractions from New World Pictures” is set in all-caps Akzidenz-Grotesk.

Source: www.zomboscloset.com From Zombos’ Closet by John Michael Cozzoli. License: CC BY-NC-ND.

Pages from the press book for The Velvet Vampire and Scream of the Demon Lover, with lobby stills. “Order from National Screen Service” uses Helvetica.

Source: www.zomboscloset.com From Zombos’ Closet by John Michael Cozzoli. License: CC BY-NC-ND.

Pages from the press book with ads for The Velvet Vampire and Scream of the Demon Lover. “Order from National Screen Service” uses Akzidenz-Grotesk Italic.

Source: www.zomboscloset.com From Zombos’ Closet by John Michael Cozzoli. License: CC BY-NC-ND.

Pages from the press book with ads for The Velvet Vampire and Scream of the Demon Lover. The title of the latter is here also set in Artistik. “Double the shock” uses Ad Lib.

The logo of Farmers Feed Cities uses Ad Lib, vertically stretched and with faux small caps.

Farmers Feed Cities was an Ontario-based non-profit group created in 2008 when farmers were exceptionally angry. They felt misunderstood by the public, disrespected by decision makers and, from their perspective, ignored by governments.

In reality, they were anything but ignored by governments, which had repeatedly come to their aid when chronic low prices were nagging the grain sector in particular. And as farmers, they had among the most respect of any profession. Still do.

They launched high-profile events, especially tractor parades at Queen’s Park. On the downside, that alienated some farmers who thought it made them look like they were begging for money and couldn’t exist without government support.

But overall the campaign was a hit, especially with the public. Farmers Feed Cities’ arrival coincided with consumers’ ballooning interest in local food. Supporting farmers was considered cool, as was recognizing their contributions. Farmers Feed Cities stickers, T-shirts and posters were everywhere. And then they quietly folded in 2014.

See the Farmers Feed Cities website (2012) on the Internet Archive.

Still from the opening credits, with “Paramount Pictures presents” in Ad Lib

The titles and promotional materials for the 1995 cult-classic movie Clueless use Ad Lib (1961) and FF Fontesque (1994).

The movie logo is based on Ad Lib, with partly stretched letterforms arranged on a bouncing baseline, enclosed in an ellipse. FF Fontesque is featured for the secondary text on the movie poster as well as for the trailer.

The DVD cover for the 2005 re-issue titled the “Whatever!” Edition also uses Ad Lib for the lead actress’s name, and the sub-title. This cover adds rhinestones to the title to make it sparkly and the whole thing is on a ridiculous pink background. Classic!

Still from the opening credits, with the movie logo in Ad Lib

Theatrical release poster. The tagline “Sex, Clothes, Popularity. Is There A Problem Here?” is set in FF Fontesque. The credits are shown in a light weight of Futura Condensed, in stretched all caps.

Still from the trailer, with “Paramount Pictures presents” in FF Fontesque.

Still from the trailer

Still from the trailer, with “Alicia Silverstone” in FF Fontesque

Still from the trailer, with the movie logo in Ad Lib

DVD cover for the 2005 re-issue

Ad Lib (ATF, 1961) for a children’s record with Kay Lande. Let’s Go To The Toy Shop is part of a “totally new record series […] carefully designed to give your child a wholesome balance of pleasure and learning”, launched by Simon Says, a sublabel of the Record Guild Of America, Inc., in March 1965.

[More info on Discogs]

Show logo as seeen in the intro.

Remote Control is a TV game show that ran on MTV from 1987 until 1990. “The worthless game of useless TV knowlegde” was MTV's first original non-musical program. A board game based on the show was released by Pressman in 1989. There was also a video game adaptation that was available for multiple platforms. The show logo uses Koziar Interlock, a 1960s face that was exclusively available from NYC-based typesetting service Photo-Lettering. For the board game, it’s paired with the stylistically related Ad Lib (ATF, 1961).

Game show host Ken Ober.

Board game box.

Board game instruction book.

Ad Lib’s numerals with the characteristic square counters.

Cover for Children’s Jokes And Riddles, recorded by The Rocking Horse Players and Orchestra, featuring Jimmy Nelson (b. 1928), and released by Rocking Horse Records sometime in the 1960s.

Гущерчето (“The Little Lizard”) is based on Aleksandr Volodin’s play Two Arrows. Stone Age Detective. Produced by the Varna Theater Foundation for the State Puppet Theatre Varna, Bulgaria.

Designer Peter Zhelev uses caps from ParaType’s Cyrillic version of Ad Lib for the title. All smaller text is set in several weights from Karandash’s Basil.

An “interlocked” variation of Ad Lib

Pizzeria in Amsterdam