Type-ins, “ASDF”and the Glorias.

At the “Virtual Type-In” a few weeks ago —  staged by my friend Louise Marler, famous typewriter artist  — I hauled down my Olympia Compact 2

to type people’s letters.

We had typewriters inside and out.  Vintage, including kinds I’d never seen before.

I was billed as the “Ghost Writer”.   Louise tried to dictate something for me, but as the event organizer, she was constantly interrupted.

I started to wonder if all the pretty stationery, nice stamps and plain paper I’d brought would remain virginal and untouched.

Just as I was beginning to despair. my friend Penny Rieger appeared.  She used to work for Tom Hanks’ production company, and she knew all about his love of “ASDF” –“QWERTY”.

Then my friend Darlene Basch, who supplied me with one of the two “twin” typewriters I have — and many lovely gifts of

typewriter-related flora & fauna.

The place was getting busy and it was getting warm.  I hoped my fake tan wouldn’t streak.  I had to go to an Emerson College

opening in a few hours, so my time as “GW” was limited.

Then Gloria Gordon and Gloria Shepard arrived.

They got out of the silver car unscathed by the long drive down to Santa Monica Airport, and I was relieved to see them safe and smiling as usual.

(Gloria S. doesn’t use a phone or a navigation system, so I mailed typed directions to her earlier in the week.)

We ‘kicked some tires’ and Gloria Gordon accidentally touched a keyboard that made one of the owners jump.  We chatted it up with the two mechanics and admired some jewelry Louise had made.  Then we got busy.

Gloria S. dictated a letter to her sister who lives in Washington state.  She made it up so quickly it was all I could do to keep up with her.

Gloria Gordon, who’s been an administrative assistant in the film studios, told her to slow down.

We cranked out the letter in minutes,  and Gloria was very happy.

Nobody else asked me to midwife a missive that afternoon, but I didn’t consider it a bust.

It was good practice … when I brag, “110 words a minute”… I’d better back it up!

And it was fun to be among my “peeps” — the ‘virtual keyboard’ community — and share our love of the typing machines that existed long before Steve Jobs was ever born.

*

For that day, I thought, “A little video of this would be great promotion for my blog.”

I asked my daughter Jamie to shoot footage for me — and she did a great job, but I’m still waiting to get it uploaded.

This picture of Gloria Gordon, Gloria Shepard and me is Old School.  Gloria Shepard took it on her film camera, got copies made at Walgreens, and brought me a copy of it today after a play we saw.  It’s perfect that I’m still waiting on the high-tech footage from my daughter, but Gloria’s hard copy photo has already come through.

This photo is merely a tease.  Jamie’s working on her masterpiece.  And we’ll have that up here soon, I promise.