1950s

Basic Commercial is a font based on historical designs from the hot metal typeface era. It first appeared around 1900, and was created by type designers whose names have not been recorded but whose skills cannot be overlooked. This typeface's design has been popular among groups and movements as diverse as the Bauhaus, Dadaism, and the masters of Swiss/International-Style typography. It... Read More

Similar in design to Franklin Gothic, News Gothic was one of a number of sans serif faces manufactured by American Type Founders in the early years of the twentieth century. Initially cut as a light sans, heavier versions were made in the 1940s and 50s along with some condensed weights. The News Gothic font family offers an uncomplicated design that is well suited for use in newspapers and... Read More

The first cuts of Trade Gothic were designed by Jackson Burke in 1948. He continued to work on further weights and styles until 1960 while he was director of type development for Mergenthaler-Linotype in the USA. Trade Gothic does not display as much unifying family structure as other popular sans serif font families, but this dissonance adds a bit of earthy naturalism to its appeal. Trade... Read More

Following to Swiss design principles, Alessandro Butti and Aldo Novarese designed the Microgramma font for the Nebiolo typefoundry in 1952. Microgramma is wide, almost like an "extended" font, and it has the typical look of 1950s industrial design. The font has been immensely popular as a display face ever since its original release. Use it in large sizes to help get your message across to... Read More

The first slab serif fonts appeared at the beginning of industrialization in Great Britain in 1820. Clarendon and Ionic became the names for this new development in England, known as English Egyptienne elsewhere in Europe. Clarendon is also the name of a particular font of this style, which, thanks to its clear, objective and timeless forms, never lost its contemporary feel. In small point... Read More

Caledonia was designed by William A. Dwiggins in 1939 and originally appeared under the name Cornelia with the Mergenthaler typesetting machine factory in Berlin. Dwiggins conceived of this typeface as a reworking of the Scotch Roman which was designed for Mergenthaler Linotype in New York. The neotransitional Caledonia has serene, vertical forms, unflexed serifs, and a transitional style... Read More

The Englishman William Caslon punchcut many roman, italic, and non-Latin typefaces from 1720 until his death in 1766. At that time most types were being imported to England from Dutch sources, so Caslon was influenced by the characteristics of Dutch types. He did, however, achieve a level of craft that enabled his recognition as the first great English punchcutter. Caslon's roman became so... Read More

ITC Klepto is the work of British designer Phill Grimshaw, and true to its name, it 'stole' its look from a series of 22 headlines which Grimshaw once created for an ad campaign. It is an eclectic, rough-edged sans serif in the style of the 1950s. ITC Klepto can also be enhanced by drop shadows, color gradation and distortions, which, when applied, recreate the effects seen in the horror... Read More

La Bamba is the work of British designer David Quay and heavily influenced by the style of the 1950s. It comes with complete upper and lowercase alphabets as well as a set of decorated initialling capitals for added variety. La Bamba is a casual design with wedge-shaped serifs and radiates a gay, light-hearted mood.

Based on script handwriting and engraving used in formal announcements and invitations, Mahogany Script lends itself to typesetting in which an elegant mood is desired. The Mahogany Script font is an elegant design with a warm and informal feeling.

Designed by Intertype's design group under the direction of Edwin W. Shaar in about 1952, Nuptial Script is an informal face designed especially for wedding invitations. Ornate without being fussy, Nuptial Script is a welcome alternative to more commonly used alternatives.Nuptial Script's letterforms were influenced both by English copperplate hands and Italian calligraphic swash capitals.

Lydian is an unusual sans serif face with strongly calligraphic letter shapes, originally cut by American Type Founders. The eye-catching nature of the Lydian font family has made it popular for use in magazines and advertising as well as in newspapers for headlines and introductions. The cursive has an even more marked pen-drawn structure.