JackBrady_specimenbook

Beachwood Variable Inspired by the vintage stretched-to-fit street signs of Los Angeles

S T H G I E W 6 S T H G I E &H T H G I L A R T X E XTALL

XTALL BOLD R A L U G E R T H G I L A R EXT

T H G I L A R T X E E ID

W

D L O B E D I W X

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arked until m n u e r e w s d a .’ early ro to help s n ig s n Many of the U.S e d o o w gan installing e b s b lu c o t u a local

n io t a ir p s in s it n o s u c fo , t n Beachwood Variable fo t e e r t s ” n u g t o h s “ s from vintage Los Angele e d i w a f o e r u t p a c s t i , s n sig , s t h g i e w d n a s h t d i w f range o a s a y t li a n io and its funct h it w le fi t n o f le b ia r a v le g sin s e x a n g i s e d e l p i t l mu , h t d i w g n i l l o r t n o for c

t n a l s d n a , t h g wei e l fi e l g n i s a n i h wit the roads d le e v a r t s r e k to club wor u A . y a atches. r w c ir s e d h n t a d s n t fi n e s d r drive to touch up s e h s u r b d n tandardized a s s k r o W lic with paint b u rtment of P a p e D lightfully . e .S d U e e h t h , t s 0 4 19 When s in the late y a w h placed. ig e h r . ll .S a U e n r o e e w g s a n n sig cal sig idiosyncratic lo

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WIDTH & HEIGHT COMPARISONS

Xx Aa Xx Xx

Aa Aa XTALL EXTRA LIGHTAa vs XTALL BOLD Aa Aa Aa Aa Aa Aa Aa

Aa

Aa Aa Aa Aa A Aa a Aa Aa

Aa

WIDE EXTRA LIGHT vs XWIDE BOLD

Aa Xx Xx REGULAR vs EXTRA LIGHT

Aa Aa Aa Aa A Aa a Aa Aa Aa Aa Aa Aa 3

Aa Aa Aa Aa Aa Aa Cc Dd Ee Aa Ff Cc Aa Dd Ee AaFf Aa

Aa Bb Aa Bb Aa Cc Dd Ee Ff Bb Aa Cc Dd Ee Ff Bb Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff

XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX

Xx

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WIDTH & SIZE COMPARISONS SYMBOLS

& EXTRAS

%% % %

REGULAR vs EXTRA LIGHT

XTALL EXTRA LIGHT vs XTALL BOLD

WIDE EXTRA LIGHT vs XWIDE BOLD

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4 E L B IA

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For a city supposedly as private as Los An-

R

geles, there’s always a lot of chatter about the public streetscape. What belongs, what doesn’t, and what to hold precious. The never-ending controversy about billboards and graphics pasted on walls has gotten hot again. But in a new way. The upset now is over plans by the owners of the Wilshire Grand hotel to tear it down and build a pair of skyscraper towers.

LA “shotgun” street signs refer to the iconic, classic porcelain street signs used in Los Angeles from 1946 to 1962, characterized by their distinctive “shotgun” shape and blue background with white lettering. Though the city now uses a different style, many of these durable “bird nest” or “shotgun” signs remain in place, especially in historic Hollywood and downtown areas, due to their durability and nostalgic appeal

LOS ANGELES CALIFORNIA

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Pre-1946: Wooden signs were used before World War II.

1946-1962: The “shotgun-style” porcelain signs were introduced.

Mid-1960s: An aluminum blade-style sign

with white letters on a black background replaced the porcelain signs.

1985-Present: The current style, a blue

trapezoidal sign with porcelain on steel, is the most common today.

/ .

A L

/ B L V D

A V S J I * * * 3

%B B & & 3 3 S L I

CK V A

PARAGRAPH

X X

Any developer -- in this economy -- willing to invest in a downtown skyscraper should be on some level applauded. But the controversy isn’t really over the construction project. The debate is about the developer’s request for the OK to let advertisers beam messages on the towers.

The targets of those flashing colors would I presume be downtown pedestrians and drivers. And if there’s enough of either of those to support ads like that, well -- that’s another good sign about the future of Downtown. Some who oppose the signage think the sedate nature of Figueroa Street needs to be safeguarded. They lose me there. There are places in the city where billboards should be allowed to burn bright, where outdoor graphics should be bold and distracting. If you can’t do that at the corner of Figueroa and Wilshire, I don’t know where you could.

Impose some controls that let City Hall dial things back if cars suddenly start crashing in the intersection. But otherwise, adding a little visual life to a downtown that still sleeps too soundly at night seems like a good thing.

On the other hand, I’m less sold on a change that affects the streetscape in a different way. You know those signs at almost every corner in Los Angeles that tell you the street name?

Well, the city is slowly phasing in a new style of sign. And if you’ve seen them you can’t help but notice a certain aesthetic shift. For decades L.A. street signs have been sleek and cool.

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UPPERCASE

UPPERCASE

Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg Hh Ii Jj Kk Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp Qq Rr Ss Tt Uu Vv Ww Xx Yy Zz

Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg Hh Ii Jj Kk Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp Qq Rr Ss Tt Uu Vv Ww Xx Yy Zz

lowercase

lowercase

Symbols & Extras

Symbols & Extras

!@#$%^&*()_-+=`~{}[]:;”’< > ,.?/

!@#$%^&*()_-+=`~{}[]:;”’< > ,.?/

abcdefghijklm nopqrstuvwxyz

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abcdefghijklm nopqrstuvwxyz

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UPPERCASE UPPERCASE

Bb Cc AaAa Bb Cc DdDdEeEeFfFfGgGgHhHhIi JjIi Kk Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp Qq Rr Ss Tt Jj Kk Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp Qq Rr Uu Vv Ww Xx Yy Zz Ss Tt Uu Vv Ww Xx Yy Zz

UPPERCASE

Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg Hh Ii Jj Kk Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp Qq Rr Ss Tt Uu Vv Ww Xx Yy Zz

lowercase lowercase

lowercase

Symbols & Extras& Extras Symbols

Symbols & Extras

!@#$%^&*()_-+=`~{}[]:;”’< > ,.?/

!@#$%^&*()_-+=`~{}[]:;”’< > ,.?/

a b c dabcdefghijklm ef g h i j k l m n o p qnopqrstuvwxyz rst u vw x y z

!@#$%^&*()_-+=`~{}[]:;”’< > ,.?/

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abcdefghijklm nopqrstuvwxyz

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UPPERCASE

^

13jBj jbh^y65 djh Gg Hh Ii Jj Kk Ll Mm xx Guy9 JH JSIO Nn Oo Pp Qq Rr Ss Tt Uu Vv Ww Xx Yy Zz (O09099009N]] lowercase jiou28u &* T abcdefghijklm >/{P_ ~jdjbZOLKL nopqrstuvwxyz

;;L>: ”,jidhiSymbols & Extras wo__=@@kndjn Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff

!@#$%^&*()_-+=`~{}[]:;”’< > ,.?/

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Beachwood Variable Beachwood Variable

Beachwood Variable Beachwood Variable

Beachwood Variable Beachwood Variable Beachwood Variable Beachwood Variable

Beachwood Variable Beachwood Variable

Beachwood Variable Beachwood Variable

BEACHWOOD VARIABLE BEACHWOOD VARIABLE BEACHWOOD VARIABLE