70’S TYPE DESIGN                                                                                          The decade from 1970 to 1980 stands out for many reasons, from sideburns to Richard Nixon to disco. But the things Gene Gable remembers most fondly are the decorative, bold, and sometimes goofy type designs. I've never qualified as a "typophile," or any other –phile for that matter. For one thing, my knowledge of type history is woefully inadequate. And my attempts at drawing letterforms stopped precipitously in the eighth grade. It was then that I won a consolation prize for my hometown's fire-prevention poster contest. My entry depicted a joint-smoking, long-haired man tossing a lit match into the trash. Below I had carefully penned the caption: "Don't be a careless Hippie." I have no idea if I used a serif or san-serif style, but I'm guessing sans. I had no clue at that time what a serif was. All I remember is running out of space and desperately switching to a condensed writing style for the last few characters.

I will gladly confess to being a "typo-hack," however, prone more to gimmickry and showmanship than fine typography. I know and appreciate the difference, but fine typography is damn hard work. I find myself preferring type that cheaply draws attention to itself, boldly screaming "look at me!" Perhaps that's why I love 1970s graphic design so much. And why I'm nominating that decade for the title "Golden Age of Type Design." It was certainly the "Golden Age of Type Setting." Nobody set type like some of those guys in the '70s www.creativepro.com . www.overexposeddesign.com www.overexposeddesign.com www.printmag.com www.cpluv.com