Owning a typewriter is a joy. The satisfaction I get from it has lasted longer than any phone or computer I’ve recently used. I love it! If you look under the hood it boggles the mind how humans engineered this in an age without computers. Pushing a key with the right pressure and seeing it produce a crisp character is magical. Similar to handwriting, but with a satisfying hammering of characters.
While on vacation in Ogunquit Maine with my wife and son we visited the Blacksmiths Mall Antiques store, which I’d recommend as its impressive in it’s breadth and curation of fun old junk. My son was particularly into the sealed packs of 80s baseball cards. I was most impressed with a manual typewritter. All the moving parts and tactile feedback were mesmerizing. I didn’t buy it cause it wasn’t in the best shape, but I now wanted to get one.
After the trip, typewriters kept randomly popping up in my wondering youtube consumption. Tom Hanks is a big fan proclaiming to have hundreds. John Meyer thinks they are the jam. What really sold me was Van Neistat’s love letter to his Corona. I was off searching for one.
Many people describe how typewriters feel to use, so my initial preference was to try them in person. As you might guess there are few places to do that. The closest store to me was in Manhattan and therefore expensive, but also a bit far and appointment only. Didn’t seem worth it.
Digging through Etsy and eBay the Olivetti Lettera 32 caught my eye. Its low profile and colorful design struck a cord. Turns out Cormac McCarthy used one to write all his books, plays, and correspondence. A few false starts on craigslist ended with a purchase from a local self professed antiques junky for cash in a Walgreens parking lot.
By Colin Dowell
19th April, 2023
Westport, CT
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