The carrying case that my 1949 Smith-Corona Silent came in was very scuffed, with a scrape that looked like it had been brushed against a brick wall. This was half of my inspiration to put a landscape on it. The other half of my inspiration was this 1930s postcard:
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As some may remember, this typewriter was missing the right-hand carriage knob. I found a spare, and put it on. I also cleaned up the paint, lubricated it, cleaned the burnished metal logo, and replaced the ribbon. The carriage-return lever wobbled because it was missing both of the screws that anchor it in place, and was held on with a paperclip. I replaced the paperclip with both of the proper screws, and it now works like it is brand new!
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Here is the first Seattle Times ad to feature the Smith-Corona Silent (in the Super-5 style)
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Here is the (temporary) end result--I plan to eventually paint more detail into this scene. For now, it is mainly a line drawing, done in crayon.:
My goal was to capture as much of Seattle's skyline (circa 1949) as I could. In the foreground in this geographically impossible landscape (think Frasier's windows), is the Smith Tower. Behind it on the left, is the Northern Life Tower (now Seattle Tower). In the background (making it geographically impossible), is Mount Rainier. However, the postcard is more geographically impossible...
