Marilyn's Photos - Dec 10 2025 - War of the Fonts

 

expect I could win this bet easily.  There’s nothing that isn’t a political battle in the U.S.  What triggers my claim?  In the N.Y. Times Political News Section this morning is this headline below.  It is listed above the Supreme Court news, of which one item was about states’ assessment of who should be spared the death penalty.  Not a minor moment.  So how momentous can this headline actually be? “Marco Rubio ordered the State Department to return its default font to Times New Roman.  It rejected the Biden administration’s switch to Calibri, done for accessibility reasons, as a D.E.I. Play.”  Let’s play that game: Is there a superior font?  “Calibri (sans-serif) is “often favoured for digital readability and accessibility (like resumes viewed on screen) due to its clean look, while Times New roman (serif) remains a traditional choice for print, though some find it dated or harder on the eyes digitally.” Which font is the most used?   “Helvetica is considered the most used and popular font globally, with its lean, neutral look in design.  And Arial?  Also incredible common along with Times New Roman… Helvetica consistently ranks first for overall versatility and ubiquity.” Marco Rubio says the move is a return to “decorum” and “professionalism” and a rejection of the previous administration’s “wasteful” diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.  He also indicated it is associated with “ceremony”.  It goes better with “classical” aesthetics in government, including federal architecture, according to one reporter. This has received the headline “Font Coup” and has been covered far and wide.  The Guardian, Reuters, The New York Times, Politico, The Straits Times, HuffPost and broader - The Indian Express, The Hindu, and Hindustan Times, and Germany’s Spiegel and Australia’s Guardian covered it.   Everyone paid attention to the political battle. The “coup” headline emphasizes that. One view is neutral - this might be considered a story that shows the extent of the political and cultural divide in the U.S. Or it could be very pointed - a story that tracks the demise of democracy in the U.S.  Looking at the reporting itself and how the event was covered, I bet they are recording the demise of democracy.   And the expression font of wisdom - doesn’t that take on an ironical note here. Remember how sweet Sophie looked yesterday?  Here she is in another pose often seen - ears in the back of her head.  She’s observing what Millie is doing in the other room.

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Oct 20 2020 - The Font of Knowledge

 

Ed Benguiat was one of our most prolific typographers.  He died this week.  He created more than 600 typeface designs mostly between 1970 and 1995. He was born in New York in 1927, and grew up in Brooklyn.  Ed was once a very prominent jazz percussionist playing in several big bands with Stan Kenton and Woody Herman, among others. About his career, he said: I'm really a musician, a jazz percussionist. One day I went to the musician's union to pay dues and I saw all these old people who were playing bar mitzvahs and Greek weddings. It occurred to me that one day that's going to be me, so I decided to become an illustrator. Here are a few of his quotes: I do not think of type as something that should be readable. It should be beautiful. The only place Avant Garde looks good is in the words Avant Garde. I don't think that success is the premise to what is good or bad. The contributions that one makes in typography, design, and art in general cannot be, and must not be measured on how much money is involved. That would lead to total chaos. The word itself (contribution) is to give to a common purpose. I don't think that success is the premise to what is good or bad. Examples of his fonts are HERE.  His most notable include: Tiffany, Bookman, Edwardian Script, Caslon No. 225, and self-titled fonts Benguiat and Benguiat Gothic.   His own favourite? "My favorite alphabet is one that no one uses or likes; it’s called Panache, a plain sans serif letter with thick and thins in it. And my least favorite is Comics Sans, the downright ugly and awkward font used in Snoopy that everyone seems to love.”

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