Fonts surround us every day, on street signs and buildings, on movie posters and books, and on just about every product that we buy. But where do they come from, and why do we need so many? Who is responsible for the staid practicality of Times New Roman, the cool anymity of Arial, or the irritating levity of Comic Sans (and the movement to ban it)? Typefaces are w 560 years old, but we barely knew their names until about twenty years ago when the pull-down font menus on our first computers made us all the gods of type. Beginning in the early days of Gutenberg and ending with the most adventurous digital fonts, Simon Garfield explores the rich history and subtle powers of type. He goes on to investigate a range of modern mysteries, including how Helvetica took over the world, what inspires the seeming ubiquitous use of Trajan on bad movie posters, and exactly why the all-type cover of Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus was so effective. It also examines why the T in the Beatles logo is longer than the other letters and how Gotham helped Barack Obama into the White House. A must-have book for the design conscious, Just My Type's cheeky irreverence will also charm everyone who loved Eats, Shoots & Leaves and Schott's Original Miscellany.
Product Identifiers
Publisher
Tantor Media, Inc
ISBN-10
1452654514
ISBN-13
9781452654515
eBay Product ID (ePID)
191360517
Product Key Features
Author
Simon Garfield
Format
CD-Audio, MP3 Format
Language
English
Topic
History: World & General
Additional Product Features
Place of Publication
Old Saybrook, Ct
Running Time
450
Narrator(s)
Gildart Jackson
Author Biography
Simon Garfield is the author of books including The Error World: An Affair with Stamps and Mini: The True and Secret history of the Making of a Motor Car. With acting credits that span stage and screen, Gildart Jackson is most often recognized for his role as Gideon on Charmed. He has also been featured on Providence and General Hospital, and his theater roles include Trigorin in The Seagull, Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady, and Adrian in Private Eyes at the Old Globe.