Issue 015: Puerto Rico, Air Force One, Pre-Fab Housing & Didone Type
It's been a busy few weeks. I'm prepping for a branded shoot next week, saw Peter Yarrow play folk music under a whale skeleton, and got to share the stage with one of my favorite character actors (see below)... but I didn't write a newsletter last week.
Sometimes it feels daunting to sit in front of a computer and type. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Oh well, here's a newsletter for this week!
Congress should vote on Puerto Rico's statehood. Though it's been a territory of the United States since it was annexed in 1899, Puerto Rico doesn't have official representation in the U.S. Congress.
After Congress put it on Puerto Rico to hold a vote for statehood, 97% of the voters who turned out were in favor (although the turnout was very low). And while candidates from Obama to George W. Bush have spoken out in favor of statehood, there's been virtually no movement in Congress.
Statehood for places like DC, Puerto Rico, and Guam would swing the electoral and congressional maps toward the left... a nice bonus to ending an obviously colonial and outdated relationship with the territories. And, at the very least - making politicians vote for the record would at least limit all the politicians who just give lip service to Puerto Rico when they want to win votes in Florida. Whadya think?
Politico's cover story last weekend, "We're The Only Plane In The Sky," is a riveting oral history of Air Force One in the eight hours after the Sept. 11 attacks as told by the people who were on board.
99 Percent Invisible: The House That Came In The Mail
One of my favorite podcasts talks about mail order housing and what happens to giant Sears factories after they're abandoned.
Rolling Stone: Stephen Colbert breaks down a verse from Chance The Rapper and Childish Gambino
Proving that knowledge is cool and that he might be the only person whose subconscious cross-references hip-hop with Gilbert & Sullivan and J.R.R. Tolkein.
Heather Sundell: Modern Hunters & Gatherers
How we curate our online lives and try to chase different versions of ourselves. (Full disclosure, Heather is my wife).
From finding out where gas is still available, to using cell-to-cell WiFi to communicate when there's no Internet or cell service, apps can be extremely helpful in an emergency. This list from NPR is a great reference for your friends and family who might be in the path of Hurricane Florence.
Let's take a minute to talk about Didone typefaces because I've seen them pop up on three (beautifully designed) book covers recently and I'm wondering if it's part of a trend.
Lindsey Stanberry's Money Diaries, Erin Gibson's Feminasty, and Lisa Brennan-Jobs' Small Fry.
Didot – the typeface that exemplifies the Didone style seen on all three treatments above – was designed by heavyweight foundry Hoefler & Frere-Jones in 1991 as part of a re-design for Harper's Bazaar.
Yes... that is the top of Andie MacDowell's 1991 noggin.
But, as the HFJ write up continues, it's history goes back much further... the 'modernist' style as it's also called was perfected in the late 18th century by two typographers: "in Parma, Giambattista Bodoni (1740-1813), and in Paris, Firmin Didot (1764-1836). Didot was a member of the Parisian dynasty that dominated French typefounding for two centuries, and he’s remembered today as the namesake of a series of Neoclassical typefaces that exquisitely captured the Modern style."
Didone typefaces have a sophisticated and modern feel and can be recognized at a glance by flat, unbracketed serifs and a combination of thick and thin strokes. A more detailed history is available here.
(Btw, the story of how Hoefler & Frere-Jones broke up is one of the most epic 'divorces' in the design world. Read it here.)
If you live in Southern California, LA's Union Station is having a "Retrocade Experience" the weekend of September 22-23.
For $5 you get 2 hours of free play on classic arcade games and specialty pinball cabinets including Pac Man, Donkey Kong and Street Fighter – all in the beautiful and historic Ticket Concourse. There will also be food trucks, a DJ, day-glow Arcade Lounge, and a Pac Man Tournament.
I got to share a stage with one of my favorite actors of all time, Stephen Tobolowsky, a few weeks ago when he told stories at a Bangarang! show. He was a delight on stage and off and I can't wait for him to play with us again.
Thanks for reading! I'd love to get your feedback. Favorite segment? What's working? What's not working? What do you want to see more of?