Poppy's Wish of a Lifetime - Liz Degen Photography

Last Friday was pretty darn special. My grandfather (aka Poppy) won a trip to New York through an incredible organization called Wish of a Lifetime through Brookdale Senior Living. He got to tour Woodside Press in Brooklyn and use one of the last remaining functional Linotype machines in the U.S. As a graphic designer, the work that was put into printing and typesetting pre-photoshop is completely mind-blowing. Seeing my Florida family in New York was enough of a blessing, but seeing Poppy in action and flawlessly using machines he hasn’t used in about 35 years was straight-up inspiring.

Wish of a Lifetime wrote:

It’s said, Thomas Edison called the Linotype machine the 8th wonder of the world. These machines powered newspapers, factories…a whole industry that was American as any. But with the ebb and flow of technology, it quickly became obsolete, and those with an occupation operating the machines soon found themselves out of work. 83-year-old Jack was one of those people. It was his first career up until 1985, “[I was] convinced that I would one day retire from my craft. But that was not to be the case. A new technology started to come into being in the later 1970’s…The industry did not transition well at all. In fact, over half the rank and file of the union would be out of jobs in a very short time. What we referred to as ‘the composing room,’ was becoming a thing of the past.”

It was Jack’s wish to be able to sit down at a Linotype machine again, even if for a short while. So on September 14th, with the help of Brookdale Senior Living, we sent Jack and his granddaughter to Woodside Press in NYC – where there is one of the few remaining Linotype machines in the country.

A special thank you to everyone who helped make Jack’s experience so special!

Hand-fed “Chandler & Price” printing press.

Davin demonstrating how to hand-feed the Chandler Price printing press.

Poppy posing with a look of joy at being in a printing plant after an absence of approximately 33 years.

Davin at the California Job Case cabinet. These are the drawers that contain “hand type.” Each and every character is assembled by hand in a composing stick.

Poppy, probably saying . . . “ah yes, I remember this well.” This was the way type was set before the Linotype machine was invented.

Chart showing the layout of the California Job case. Lower case on the left, caps on the right. Numbers in the middle, upper portion.

Poppy pontificating about how the type is composed into what is called a “form”, which is then locked up in a frame, called a “chase”, so that it can be placed into the printing press.

Above, Poppy when he was 18 years old, at the “Ludlow” machine, then again at 84 years old, striking the same pose.

At last . . . Poppy at the “Linotype” machine. Didn’t miss a beat. After 33 years, it was just as if he used the machine 10 minutes ago. Loving it!

Poppy checking the first line that he cast on the “Linotype.” Incidentally, the line that he is holding is called a “slug.” And yes, that slug is quit hot, being cast with molten lead.