Features

California Typewriter: A Big-screen Film about a Small, Hometown Treasure

Gar Smith
Thursday September 28, 2017 - 10:45:00 AM

Opens Friday, September 29 at the Shattuck Cinemas (Showtimes: 1:30, 4:35, 7:10, 9:50)

Thanks to retro-hipster millennials, vinyl is back. And now, in addition to 78-rmp LP records, another sound-making machine from the past is making a proud return.

The manual typewriter, an ancient writing tool used by everyone from Mark Twain to San Francisco's Herb Caen (who fondly dubbed his metal type-slinger the "Loyal Royal"), has not only been making a comeback but it has now been honored with a big-screen documentary featuring the likes of Tom Hanks, John Mayer, Sam Shepard, and the Boston Typewriter Orchestra.

Even better, the documentary celebrates Berkeley's own, California Typewriter Company, a small, family-owned enterprise on San Pablo Avenue that has weathered the Electronic Revolution and continues to service and repair these finely crafted, finger-powered writing machines. 

 

http://californiatypewritermovie.com 

http://www.californiatypewriter.com 

California Typewriter, which has been around since 1949, sells and services all makes and models of typewriters, fax machines, printers—and even word processors. Herbert L. Permillion, III, took over the business in 1981 after a 20-year stint at IBM where he serviced Selectric Typewriters. A Bay Area resident since the 1950’s, Permillion believes typewriters "have an important place in the toolbox of society." 

CalType's Kenneth Alexander, a master typewriter repairman with more than 42 years of experience, tells you straight out what he can deliver: "If you want somebody to fix it, call on me," he grins. "If you want somebody to type poetry, call someone else." 

* * * 

For some of us, it wasn't so long ago that manual typewriters were state-of-the-art technology. When I worked at the Berkeley Barb, the Revolution was recorded one loud key-stroke at a time. (That may be why we referred to reporters "banging out a story.") When we spoke of writing, we used state-of-the-art terms like "the platin," "paper table," "space bar," "carriage return lever," and "ribbon spool." 

I remember working for a San Francisco environmental publication when the first computers arrived—complete with gleaming screens and electronic keyboards. But, with a photo of John Muir hovering over my desk, I refused to abandon my manual. I challenged the new tech-fans to a typing contest and, in the tradition of John Henry (who pitted his legendary hammer against a steam-powered steel drill), I pounded out my copy so fast that I left the newcomers in the dust. 

Why bother learning key codes and protocols? Who needs imaginary letters floating inside an electronic screen? That's so ephemeral! Give me a piece of hard copy I can hold in my hand. 

Within a month, however, the seductive new technology had won me over. 

It was so much easier to forgo the tedious process of correcting typos with dabs of "white-out." And electronic copy machines were much more convenient than inserting sheets of carbon paper.  

* * * 

On Tuesday afternoon, I stopped by California Typewriter to drop off my ancient Danish-made Erika manual typewriter for servicing. I returned around 5PM for a special event—a come-one-come-all "type-in" to celebrate the debut of the new movie. 

Posters announcing the upcoming screening of California Typewriter were on display in the windows of California Typewriter and director/editor Doug Nichol was on-hand with cardboard cartons of hot coffee and several large boxes of exceptionally tasty cookies. 

More than a dozen typewriters were arrayed on tables set up around the shop. Soon people began to wander in. The clatter quickly grew as they sat down and started typing away. Some arrived carrying their own personal typewriters. The crowd quickly grew so large that new arrivals were invited to grab some of the classic typewriters from the shelves of the stores' museum-quality collection of machines—some dating back more than 100 years. 

* * * 

Nostalgia was unleashed as the congregants eagerly recalled favorite typewriters from by-gone years—Adler, Olivetti, Underwood, Remington, Imperial, IBM Selectric. Heartfelt declarations were shared ("I love Smith-Corona but the Olympia is supreme!"). And there were moments of shared memories from the early days of the electronic change-over—"FORTRAN!' "COBALT!" "Pong!" "The Osborne 'portable' computer!" 

At one point, the conversation turned to the problem of jamming keys—which can happen during speed-typing when more than one key strikes the paper at the same time and the metal parts jam together like a traffic wreck. I learned something I would not have discovered at any other event: It turns out that the Olympia and Adler machines feature a stronger metal that prevents the keys from getting bent when they collide. Instead, they snap back into alignment. 

* * * 

I found myself working on a mahogany-hued Corona from the 1920s. The keys on this model resembled old-fashioned teletype keys, with each letter surrounded by a ring of metal. 

I start to pound out a message: 

"Here's to the whack and clatter of a machine that gives your vocabulary some real throw-weight!" 

At this point, I had to stop. I noticed something odd about this typewriter. Unlike the other machines on hand, it lacked a #1 key—the key that, in all the other models, also provides an exclamation point (while holding down the uppercase shift key). 

"Hey! This typewriter doesn't have an exclamation mark!" I protested. 

Kenneth Alexander glided over with a knowing smile on his face. 

"Of course it has an exclamation point," he explained. "You just have to know where to find it." 

I watched as he typed a lower case "l" and then hit the backspace key. At this point, he typed a period, which landed right below the "l" and—Voila!—an exclamation point! 

* * * 

How is it that California Typewriter is still economically viable in our all-electric, interconnected, Fitbit-enhanced age?  

According to CalType's website, the secret is: Family. 

"We've supported each other all of these years in doing what we love to do, and that's to serve our community with the skills that we've honed over the course of our entire lives. The community gives back to us by sharing the wonderful things they create using the machines we fix for them or that they buy from us: poetry, novels, screenplays, recipes, or just a kind thank-you note. . . . The typewriter continues to speak to and through all of us, and we're proud as a family to share this idea with our customers and our friends." 

So take some time to celebrate the not-so-bygone typewriter—an honorable artifact that still clicks with its fans—by catching this cheerful, award-winning documentary. And take the whole family! 

Contact: California Typewriter, 2362 San Pablo Avenue, Berkeley, CA, 94702. (510) 845-3780. info@californiatypewriter.com