Typewriter Talk / Project Blue Boook - TV Series From 2019-2020

**Posted by Pete E.** 26-1-2024 12:48:38

“Project Blue Book” was a two (2) season TV show produced by the History Channel and released in 2019-2020. It now runs on Freevee and Amazon Prime from time to time.

The show is set in the 1951 to 1953 time frame. Two main characters are a Professor and an Air Force Captain that are set up in a period-correct office building at Wright Patterson A.F. Base in Ohio.

Their office has an administrative lobby with a receptionist who types on what appears to be a Hermes 8 which is appropriate for the time-frame of the movie series.

In the office, the Captain has a Halda P shown prominently at the center of his desk. The Halda P is also a fit for the time-frame of the movie series.

However...along the window wall of the Captain's office is shown a 1962-1966 Royal Empress standard typewriter (if you look carefully in a few of the scenes).

The show takes great pains to outfit the office with time-period correct office furniture and décor. But the Royal Empress just “screams” the 1960's and is the ugly-duckling in the scenes where it is photographed.

The TV series was a Canadian production; based around Toronto but set to be in Ohio-USA in the 1950's.

And of course, my wife thinks I am an odd-bird to notice and get excited about such things.
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**Posted by Pete E.** 07-2-2024 13:00:02

Forgot to mention...when the Professor Hynek character is at home in his office/den...he uses a 1940's Royal portable on his desk.
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**Posted by Uwe** 07-2-2024 15:38:09

They didn't contact me for help, otherwise I would have warned them against the Royal. For that matter, I don't think the Hermes or Halda are correct placements either. For an American military office I would have suggested either Remington or Underwood models. And those models would have likely been older versions instead of a manufacturer's newest offerings. Sounds like a prop master who didn't want to waste too much time sourcing typewriters was responsible for that production.

**Posted by SoucekFan** 08-2-2024 02:46:25

Uwe wrote:
For an American military office I would have suggested either Remington or Underwood models. And those models would have likely been older versions instead of a manufacturer's newest offerings.

I think I would have gone with Royal KMM's. Though in support of Uwe's suggestion, I once cleaned a late Underwood 6, found in Ohio, that was badged for the United States Army Air Forces, which I believe was the 1940's predecessor to the Air Force. It can be seen in this Typewriter Database gallery.

**Posted by Uwe** 15-2-2024 17:59:22

The Royal I was warning against was just the Empress. And you're right that KMMs are a good option; I've have seen Royal models in U.S. military photos, however a lot of them were in use by the navy. I don't know if typewriter procurement was a branch specific activity or if it was done for the entire military in general.

**Posted by SoucekFan** 15-2-2024 23:16:59

Coincidentally, I will be going to the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson this weekend with my family; I haven't been there since I was a kid. If I see anything typewriter related of that era, I will report back.

**Posted by Uwe** 16-2-2024 15:04:33

SoucekFan wrote:
Coincidentally, I will be going to the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson this weekend...

That should be interesting; I hope they have one!

Conversely, I have been to museums that had typewriters on display that I knew couldn't possibly be the actual original models. For example, the first time I went to Hemingway House in Key West there was one typewriter in the entire museum, and it was highly likely that it was one he had used. However, many years later when I revisited the house, there was a typewriter in almost every room - and most of them were models that I had never seen documented evidence of Hemingway using. When I asked someone who worked there about this, he sheepishly admitted that they had just bought a number of vintage typewriters to embellish the display cabinets.

**Posted by SoucekFan** 19-2-2024 00:04:27

Uwe wrote:
SoucekFan wrote:
Coincidentally, I will be going to the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson this weekend...
That should be interesting; I hope they have one!

I didn't see any typewriters while I was there. I did get to see an Enigma and SIGABA machine, though.

**Posted by Uwe** 22-2-2024 11:58:42

Well, part of a typewriter: I think the Enigma used Olympia keytops.