Topic: Frederic William Goudy

Frederic W. Goudy (1865–1947) was a prolific American type designer whose fonts include Copperplate Gothic, Kennerley, and Goudy Old Style. He also designed, in 1938, University of California Oldstyle, for the sole proprietary use of the University of California Press. The Lanston Monotype Company released a version of this typeface as "Californian" for wider distribution in 1956, while ITC created a digital version, called ITC Berkeley, in 1983.

In 1903, Goudy and Will H. Ransom founded the Village Press in Park Ridge, Illinois. This venture was modeled on the Arts and Crafts movement ideals of William Morris. It was moved to Boston, then New York. In 1908, he created his first significant typeface for the Lanston Monotype Machine Company: E-38, sometimes known as Goudy Light. However, in that same year the Village Press burned to the ground, destroying all of his equipment and designs. In 1911, Goudy produced his first "hit," Kennerly Old Style, for an H. G. Wells anthology published by Mitchell Kennerly. His most widely used type, Goudy Old Style, was released by the American Type Founders Company in 1915, becoming an instant classic.

From 1920–1947, Goudy was art director for Lanston Monotype. By the end of his life, Goudy had designed 122 typefaces and published 59 literary works. Goudy was the originator of the well-known statement, "Anyone who would letterspace blackletter would steal sheep." (More commonly misquoted as: "Anyone who would letterspace lowercase would steal sheep.")