The Last Manual Typewriter Manufacturer Closes Up

[in/y]

The last maker of manual typewriters, Godrej and Boyce in India, had ceased production.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1380383/Worlds-typewriter-factory-ends-production-Godrej-Boyce-closes-doors.html

 

[Atterbury Dodd]

Sad. Most of the ones made 1960's and before will be going for the next 200 years though...

 

[Old Rogue]

I remember learning to type on an old Underwood in the early 70's. My dad had bought five of them at a surplus sale. None of them worked, but he was able to rob parts and assemble three working typewriters. He sold two of them for more than he paid for the lot. After learning to type on the third one I used it through high school and even in college to type papers and such. I have to admit that word processors are so much more efficient, but I do miss the feel of the keys and the clackity-clack of a manual typewriter.

 

[Nobert]

Thank heavens I have my Royal portlable (and a Smith Corona stashed away somewhere). I use them to write drafts of things even when the final destination will be digitised.

I learned to type on a Royal desktop of my Dad's, that had been my grandfather's back in the forties. Computer keyboards are so relatively easy to use that it's possible to type at a goodly clip even by the Tyrannasaurus Rex method. (I only learned touch-typing a few years ago myself).

As previously mentioned, these things were built to last, so they will probably be kicking around for awhile. And whenever any technology becomes a "dead language" there is generally a core group of enthusiasts that keep it going as a novelty. There's someone making a documentary about a group of people who are reassembling a linotype machine.

 

[zombi]

How sad! I have such a soft spot for typewriters. I just picked one up at the Salvation Army quite recently -- I'm looking forward to writing with it.

 

[W4ASZ]

Contrary information appears in this thread :

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?55906-Last-Typewriter-Plant-Closing