JanetLand wrote:

Watched the old Fred Astaire/Cyd Charisse musical Silk Stockings this weekend. Cyd Charisse plays a Soviet official sent to Paris to bring back a wayward composer. When she arrives at her hotel, she immediately starts typing on the Olympia SM3 she's brought with her (that curvy case shows to great advantage). Funny, I didn't know they made those in the Soviet Union . . . .

Strange. I know the film, and unless I'm thinking of a completely different scene, my memory of the typewriter that was being used is completely different. I'll have to look through my film stills and see if I can find what it is that I'm thinking about. 

EDIT: Ha! Was I ever WAY off the mark...  I think what tripped me up was the comment about a Russian in a hotel room. What I was thinking about was the film Nanotchka, and instead of Charise it was Garbo, instead of a SM3, it was a Remington Portable N°2 - also a machine that wasn't made in the Soviet Union. 

Last edited by Uwe (08-9-2015 12:08:30)

Uwe wrote:

JanetLand wrote:

When she arrives at her hotel, she immediately starts typing on the Olympia SM3 she's brought with her (that curvy case shows to great advantage). Funny, I didn't know they made those in the Soviet Union . . . .

What I was thinking about was the film Nanotchka, and instead of Charise it was Garbo, instead of a SM3, it was a Remington Portable N°2 - also a machine that wasn't made in the Soviet Union.  

Heh! Seen one typewriter, seen 'em all... Just drag one over from the offices, willya?

I'm going to go out on a limb and talk about something semi-related to this thread.  Since the last post was entered November, 2015, only five months old, I figure it's safe to go ahead and do so, since someone might come along and read, who knows?  Okay, that out of the way, here goes:  Typewriters on Television.  Yes, there were the typewriters that the regulars used.  "Barney Miller," an old 1970's cop show/sitcom I used to love to watch, had a BUNCH of old typewriters in their precinct 12 office.  Along with Nick Yamana's undrinkable coffee, the bathroom that was a nightmare, and the loonies they pulled in, there were the battlescarred, scratched-up, heavily used, and very American, old typewriters--Royals, Remingtons, and at least one 1956 Underwood SX-150.  That was Phil Fish's machine.  There was also the ubiquitous (always there, at least on that show) Royal KHM with the 10-key decimal tabulator.  No one used it, but it was there.  I think it sat on that shelf from the first episode in 1973 to the very last in 1982.  Anyway, it was a funny show, and I think I'll root through my VHS tapes and watch a few episodes.

RayM wrote:

...a question about the final contest and the machine used by the US champ. I quick look at the badge when it appeared showed "ICM" with wings. Not familiar with that one and a quicker search uncovered nothing.

It's unmistakably a mid-'50s Underwood SX150. And ICM is a fictional company; given the complexities and legalities of contemporary filmmaking with its sensitivities to copyrights, trademarks, and revenue generated by product placements, it was probably necessary to fabricate a typewriter manufacturer for the film.

I looked up the movie just now, and not to be an English teacher about it, the name of it is Populaire, for those like me who want to find out more about it.  It sounds like a romantic comedy.  I saw lots of typewriters even in the preview.  This could prove very interesting.  It also looks like it was set in the 1950s, which too could be interesting.  I also dig watching the old cars and identifying them (I just LOVE the way those old boats looked).