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Douglas Thomas: How a typeface helped launch Apollo
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When humanity first landed on the moon in 1969, the typeface Futura was right there with them. In this fascinating history of typography, designer Douglas Thomas shares Futura's role in launching the Apollo 11 spacecraft -- and how it became one of the most used fonts in the world.
Douglas Thomas - Designer, writer and historian of typography
Douglas Thomas's research explores the power of fonts at the intersection of design and culture. Full bio
Douglas Thomas's research explores the power of fonts at the intersection of design and culture. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:12
In 1969 in July,
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three Americans launched into space.
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Now, they went to the surface of the moon,
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they famously made
the great leap for mankind.
the great leap for mankind.
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Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong,
they walked on the surface,
they walked on the surface,
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they planted this flag.
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It's rightly celebrated as a moment
that in America we say is a triumph.
that in America we say is a triumph.
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We think it was this
amazing accomplishment.
amazing accomplishment.
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They didn't just leave behind
this flag, though.
this flag, though.
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They also left behind a plaque.
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This plaque is a beautiful object,
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and one that I want to talk to you
a little bit about.
a little bit about.
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First, you might notice
that there's two globes,
that there's two globes,
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representing all of earth.
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And then there's this beautiful statement:
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"We came in peace for all mankind."
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Now, at first, this is just
nice poetic language,
nice poetic language,
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but it's also set in a typeface
that's perfect for this moment.
that's perfect for this moment.
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It seems industrial, it seems engineered.
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It also is the best possible name
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you could come up with
for something on the moon: Futura.
for something on the moon: Futura.
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Now, I want to talk to you about fonts,
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and why this typeface is perfect
for this moment.
for this moment.
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But it's actually more
than just ceremonial.
than just ceremonial.
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Now, when all of you arrived here today,
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you actually had to think about fonts.
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You might not realize it,
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but you're all unconscious
experts on typography.
experts on typography.
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Typography is the study
of how fonts inhabit our world,
of how fonts inhabit our world,
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they're the visual language
of the words we use.
of the words we use.
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Here's the thing
that's funny about this, though.
that's funny about this, though.
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I know you're probably not like me,
you're not a font nerd,
you're not a font nerd,
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maybe some of you are,
but if you're not, that's alright,
but if you're not, that's alright,
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because I might spend hours every day
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trying to pick the perfect typeface
for the perfect project,
for the perfect project,
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or I might spend thousands
of dollars every year,
of dollars every year,
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trying to get ones
with the right features.
with the right features.
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But all of you actually spend hours
every day, evaluating fonts.
every day, evaluating fonts.
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If you don't believe me,
think about how you got here.
think about how you got here.
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Each of you had to judge by the signs
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and maybe even on your phone,
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which signals to trust
and which to ignore.
and which to ignore.
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You were evaluating fonts.
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Or maybe when you're just
buying a new product,
buying a new product,
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you have to think about
whether something is expensive
whether something is expensive
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or cheap or hard to get or easy to find.
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And the funny thing about it is,
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this may not seem extraordinary to you,
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but the moment you see
something out of place,
something out of place,
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you recognize it right away.
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(Laughter)
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The thing I love about typography,
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and why I love fonts
and why I love Futura,
and why I love Futura,
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is that, for me,
what I study is everywhere.
what I study is everywhere.
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Every street that I walk down,
every book that I pick up,
every book that I pick up,
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every thing that I read
is filled with the thing I love.
is filled with the thing I love.
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Now, once you understand the history
and what happens with typography,
and what happens with typography,
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you actually have a history
of everything before you.
of everything before you.
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And this is the typeface Futura.
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As previously we've discussed,
this is modernism in miniature.
this is modernism in miniature.
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This is a way in which modernism
infiltrated this country
infiltrated this country
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and became perhaps the most popular,
or promiscuous typeface,
or promiscuous typeface,
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of the twentieth century.
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"Less is more," right, these are
the aphorisms of modernism.
the aphorisms of modernism.
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And in the visual arts,
the same thing happened.
the same thing happened.
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Let's focus on the essentials,
focus on the basic shapes,
focus on the basic shapes,
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focus on geometry.
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So Futura actually holds this to its core.
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You might notice that the shapes
inherent in Futura
inherent in Futura
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have circles, squares, triangles.
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Some of the shapes
are all based on circles,
are all based on circles,
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like the O, D and C,
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or others have this pointed
apex of the triangle.
apex of the triangle.
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Others just look like
they might have been made
they might have been made
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with a ruler or a compass.
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They feel geometric,
they feel mathematic, precise.
they feel mathematic, precise.
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In fact, this whole system
carries through with the way
carries through with the way
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that the typeface was designed.
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To not look like it was made
like other typefaces, to be something new.
like other typefaces, to be something new.
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Here it is in the lightweight,
the medium weight and the bold weight.
the medium weight and the bold weight.
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The whole family has
different things to commend to it.
different things to commend to it.
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This was a conscious break from the past,
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something that looked like it was made
by a machine, and not by hand.
by a machine, and not by hand.
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When I say not made by hand,
this is what I mean.
this is what I mean.
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This is what we think about maybe,
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when you might create something
with a calligraphic brush or a pen.
with a calligraphic brush or a pen.
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That there's thicks and thins.
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And even more traditional typefaces,
say like a Garamond,
say like a Garamond,
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holds vestiges of this old system
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in which you can see the A
where it get little bit thinner at the top
where it get little bit thinner at the top
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and thicker down below,
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because it's trying to look like
someone had made it by hand.
someone had made it by hand.
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But Futura, in contrast,
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is designed to look like
no one had touched it at all,
no one had touched it at all,
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that this was made by a machine,
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for a machine age, for an industrial age.
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There's actually a sleight of hand here
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that Paul Renner, the designer
who made this in 1927, employed.
who made this in 1927, employed.
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If you look at the way in which
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the circular shape
joins with the vertical shaft,
joins with the vertical shaft,
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you'll notice that it tapers
just every so slightly.
just every so slightly.
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And this is one of hundreds of ways
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in which this typeface was designed
to look geometrically perfect,
to look geometrically perfect,
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even though it's mathematically not.
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And this is what typeface
designers do all the time
designers do all the time
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to make typefaces work, every day.
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Now, there were other designers doing this
at the same time in Europe and America.
at the same time in Europe and America.
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These are a few other
excellent examples from Europe,
excellent examples from Europe,
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trying to create something new
for the new age, a new moment in time.
for the new age, a new moment in time.
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These are some other ones in Germany
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that in some ways
look very similar to Futura,
look very similar to Futura,
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maybe with higher waist or lower waist
or different proportions.
or different proportions.
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Then why did Futura take over the world?
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In this case, if you can read
the titles there,
the titles there,
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some of these names
don't quite roll off the tongue:
don't quite roll off the tongue:
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Erbar, Kabel Light,
Berthold-Grotesk, Elegant-Grotesk.
Berthold-Grotesk, Elegant-Grotesk.
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These aren't exactly
household names, are they?
household names, are they?
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And so when you compare that to Futura,
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you realize that this was a really
good choice by the marketing team.
good choice by the marketing team.
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What's amazing about this name --
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you know, what's in this name
is that this is a name
is that this is a name
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that actually invokes hope
and an idea about the future.
and an idea about the future.
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And this isn't actually the word
for future in German,
for future in German,
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it wasn't a German name,
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they actually picked something
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that would speak to a wider,
larger audience, a universal audience.
larger audience, a universal audience.
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And when you compare it
to what was being done in America --
to what was being done in America --
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these are the typefaces
from the same period
from the same period
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in the United States in the 1920s,
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bold, brash, braggadocios.
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You almost think of this as exactly
like what the stock market looked like
like what the stock market looked like
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when they were all
going nuts in the 1920s.
going nuts in the 1920s.
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And you realize that Futura
is doing something revolutionary.
is doing something revolutionary.
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I want to step back and talk
about an example of the typeface in use.
about an example of the typeface in use.
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So this is a magazine that we all
probably know today, "Vanity Fair."
probably know today, "Vanity Fair."
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This is what it looked like
in 1929, in the summer.
in 1929, in the summer.
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And in many ways, there's
nothing wrong with this design.
nothing wrong with this design.
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This is absolutely typical of the 1920s.
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There's a photograph
of an important person,
of an important person,
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in this case Franklin Roosevelt,
then-governor of New York.
then-governor of New York.
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Everything seems centered,
everything seems symmetrical.
everything seems symmetrical.
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There's still a little bit
of ornamentation,
of ornamentation,
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so this is still maybe having
some vestiges of the painted lady
some vestiges of the painted lady
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and not fully modernistic.
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But everything seems kid of solid.
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There's even drop caps
to help you get into the text.
to help you get into the text.
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But this all changed very quickly
and in October of 1929,
and in October of 1929,
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a Berlin-based designer came
and redesigned "Vanity Fair."
and redesigned "Vanity Fair."
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And this is what
it looks like with Futura.
it looks like with Futura.
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Instead of the governor
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now we have a photograph
of an abstract, beautiful setting,
of an abstract, beautiful setting,
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in this case, the ocean.
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Instead of drop caps,
there's nothing at all.
there's nothing at all.
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And replaced with a centered
layout is now asymmetry.
layout is now asymmetry.
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And it gets even more radical
the further you enter the magazine.
the further you enter the magazine.
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In this case,
even more dramatic asymmetry.
even more dramatic asymmetry.
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In this case, illustrations
by Pablo Picasso, moving across the page
by Pablo Picasso, moving across the page
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and breaking the gutter of the two pages.
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And there's something even more radical.
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If you look closely at the Futura,
you might notice something.
you might notice something.
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You might not pick it up at first,
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but there are no capital letters
in the title or the captions on this page.
in the title or the captions on this page.
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You might not think that's very radical,
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but pick up any magazine,
any book or go to any website,
any book or go to any website,
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and I guarantee, you are not
going to find it very easily.
going to find it very easily.
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This is still a radical idea.
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And why is that radical?
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When we think about
what capital letters denote,
what capital letters denote,
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they denote something important,
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whether it's our names, or our titles.
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Or maybe even just
the name of our corporations,
the name of our corporations,
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or maybe our trademarks.
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Actually, in some ways,
America's the home of capitalization.
America's the home of capitalization.
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We love putting capitals in everything.
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(Laughter)
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But think about how radical this would be
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to introduce a magazine where you're
taking away all the capital letters.
taking away all the capital letters.
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This has maybe had
the same political force
the same political force
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that we now argue over things
like pronouns in our society today.
like pronouns in our society today.
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In the 1920s,
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this is just shortly after Soviet Russia
had a communist revolution.
had a communist revolution.
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And for them, this actually represented
a socialist infiltration into America.
a socialist infiltration into America.
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All lowercase letters meant
that this was an egalitarian,
that this was an egalitarian,
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complete lowering of everything
into one equal playing field.
into one equal playing field.
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Now this is still kind of a radical idea.
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Think about how often
you do capitalize something
you do capitalize something
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to have more power or prestige to it.
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So for them to do this was a way
in which Futura was using this idea.
in which Futura was using this idea.
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Now, other designers
were doing other things with Futura.
were doing other things with Futura.
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Others brought other ideas
of modernism with it,
of modernism with it,
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whether it was interesting
new illustration styles,
new illustration styles,
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or interesting new collage
types of illustration.
types of illustration.
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Or even just new book covers,
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whether they were from Europe.
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But here's the funny thing.
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In the 1920s, if you wanted
to use a new typeface,
to use a new typeface,
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you couldn't just go download it
onto your computer.
onto your computer.
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You actually had to have pieces of lead.
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So for Americans who wanted to adopt this
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and make it part of their own system,
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something they could use
in everyday typography,
in everyday typography,
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whether in ads or anything else,
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they actually had to have metal type.
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So being good American
capitalists, what did we do?
capitalists, what did we do?
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We made all sorts of copies.
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Ones that had nothing to do
with the name Futura,
with the name Futura,
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but looked identical to it,
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whether it was Spartan or Tempo.
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And in fact, by the time
that World War II started,
that World War II started,
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American corporations were actually trying
to boycott Nazi goods.
to boycott Nazi goods.
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But they said,
"Go ahead and use our copies.
"Go ahead and use our copies.
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Use 20th Century, use Spartan,
use Vogue, use Tempo.
use Vogue, use Tempo.
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These are identical to Futura."
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And in fact, for most people,
they didn't even learn the new names,
they didn't even learn the new names,
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they just still called it all Futura.
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So America took this typeface in,
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conquered it and made it its own.
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So by the time World War II finishes,
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Americans are using this on everything,
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whether it be catalogs, or atlases,
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or encyclopedias or charts and graphs,
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or calendars, or even political material.
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And even the logo for a new
expansion football team.
expansion football team.
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And in fact, it was used even on some
of the most important advertising
of the most important advertising
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of the 20th century.
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So it's in this context
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that when the US government
was picking a typeface
was picking a typeface
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to use after World War II
for new maps and new projects,
for new maps and new projects,
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they picked Futura.
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It wasn't an astounding choice,
it wasn't a radical choice,
it wasn't a radical choice,
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it didn't have anything
to do with communism.
to do with communism.
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But in this case, it was used
on some of the most important maps,
on some of the most important maps,
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so this one, an air force map in 1962,
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or used for the maps in Vietnam in '66.
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And so it wasn't a surprise
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that when astronauts
first started the Mercury program,
first started the Mercury program,
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such as John Glenn orbiting the earth,
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that charts and maps
that he was using were in Futura.
that he was using were in Futura.
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And in fact, by the time
Mercury morphed into Apollo,
Mercury morphed into Apollo,
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it started getting used
more and more for more things.
more and more for more things.
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So in this case for a safety plan,
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or even starting to get used
on instrument panels,
on instrument panels,
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or navigational aids.
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Or even on diagrams
to show how the whole system worked.
to show how the whole system worked.
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But here's the amazing thing,
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it didn't just get used for papers
that they handed out to people.
that they handed out to people.
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It started to get used for an interface,
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for an entire system
that helped the astronauts
that helped the astronauts
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know how to use the machine.
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NASA wasn't just one big corporation
making everything.
making everything.
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There was hundreds of contractors --
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Boeing, IBM, McDonnell Douglas --
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all making different machines.
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Now imagine if astronauts had to use
different typefaces and different systems
different typefaces and different systems
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for each component they had
in the space shuttles.
in the space shuttles.
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This would have been
impossible to navigate
impossible to navigate
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and there would have been
a cognitive overload
a cognitive overload
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every time they had
to open up a new system.
to open up a new system.
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So in this case, Futura
being used on the interface
being used on the interface
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helped them navigate complexity
and make it more clear.
and make it more clear.
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And it wasn't just used on buttons,
it was used on labels,
it was used on labels,
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and it was used on their food rations,
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and it was used on their tool kits.
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It was used on knobs and levers
to tell them what to do.
to tell them what to do.
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In fact, maybe even some of the places
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where they needed to have things
that were complex be more simple to them,
that were complex be more simple to them,
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instructions were printed
entirely in Futura,
entirely in Futura,
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so that they could know
what to do with that one moment.
what to do with that one moment.
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They didn't have to remember
everything in their head,
everything in their head,
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they could have it out there
in the world to see and refer to.
in the world to see and refer to.
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In this case, Futura helped
make that system,
make that system,
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which was already
a very difficult and complex system,
a very difficult and complex system,
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a little less complex.
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In fact, the very first or last thing
an astronaut might have seen
an astronaut might have seen
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when they were entering
or exiting the spacecraft
or exiting the spacecraft
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would have been in Futura.
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One of my favorite examples
of how Futura worked in this way
of how Futura worked in this way
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is actually this camera.
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This is a Hasselblad
that was made by the Swedish company.
that was made by the Swedish company.
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It's a perfectly good camera,
some of you might have used one,
some of you might have used one,
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it's prized by photographers
as a really great camera.
as a really great camera.
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And you might notice,
if you know anything about cameras,
if you know anything about cameras,
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that there's some
modifications made to it.
modifications made to it.
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In this case, there are stickers
placed all over the film canisters,
placed all over the film canisters,
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or other parts of the camera here.
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What this enabled NASA to do,
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was make something really great
out of the astronauts.
out of the astronauts.
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They're not photographers,
they're not experts in art.
they're not experts in art.
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But they could ensure that they
would know how to use this camera
would know how to use this camera
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because of the labels
placed there in Futura.
placed there in Futura.
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So in this case,
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Futura acquired and made sure
that they had legitimacy
that they had legitimacy
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with the things they were using.
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In this case to not take off the film
before it would expose.
before it would expose.
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Which, in this case,
we would have never had
we would have never had
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some of the amazing photos we had
without this label.
without this label.
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When we see something as decorative
as this, a ceremonial patch,
as this, a ceremonial patch,
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or something like this plaque on the moon,
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we realize that Futura was more
than just something ceremonial,
than just something ceremonial,
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something more than something
that had just been picked for its design.
that had just been picked for its design.
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In fact, Futura had authority,
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had legitimacy and had power
because of this choice.
because of this choice.
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There's one other thing
I want to talk about in closing.
I want to talk about in closing.
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And that is that Futura tells a story.
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And this is what I love about typefaces,
is that all of them tell stories.
is that all of them tell stories.
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And in this case, this typeface
tells a very powerful story
tells a very powerful story
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about assimilation, about something
being taken into America
being taken into America
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and being made part of its culture.
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And that's one of the best
and worst things America does,
and worst things America does,
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is we take things into our culture
and we spit them out back again
and we spit them out back again
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and claim them our own.
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And in this case, Futura mirrors
exactly what happened with the technology
exactly what happened with the technology
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undergirding the whole system.
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Futura was a German typeface,
taken in, made into an American commodity.
taken in, made into an American commodity.
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And so were the technologies:
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the rockets, the scientists
all came from Germany as well.
all came from Germany as well.
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So in some ways, this German typeface
on an American plaque
on an American plaque
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perfectly mirrors what happened
with the technology.
with the technology.
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And in this case,
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when you think about this story,
you realize that typography on the moon
you realize that typography on the moon
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represents legitimacy,
represents authority,
represents authority,
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and this gave them, the astronauts,
the power to get to the moon.
the power to get to the moon.
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Thank you.
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(Applause)
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Douglas Thomas - Designer, writer and historian of typographyDouglas Thomas's research explores the power of fonts at the intersection of design and culture.
Why you should listen
Douglas Thomas is is the author of Never Use Futura (Princeton Architectural Press, 2017). His work explores the nexus of typography, design and culture. He specializes in user experience design, publication design and branding. His design work has been featured in Communication Arts, Eye, Design Observer, Print and Graphis. He is assistant professor of graphic design at Brigham Young University.
(Photo: Kei Ito)
Douglas Thomas | Speaker | TED.com