, Subject: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 11:18 am
OK….I am completely insane, but I actually had a dream about this last night, so, I am going to share my thoughts before I forget them all!
As I am half a century (no laughing please from the kids here…LOL), I "bridge the gap" between the mechanical world and the computerized one. Thus, I am old enough to remember life before the "computer explosion", when newspapers and magazine pages were still set up by linotype operators with actual metal letters.
I am also old enough to remember when people actually did drafting and mechanical drawing and lettering with a pencil or an ink pen…
OK, what does this have to do with the Zodiac, you say…
Please note that these are my observations only; I have no "firsthand knowedge", other than being in printshops and factories and seeing drafting etc., done this way, and having done some "pencil drafting and graphic arts" myself…
Well….here goes….
1. In looking at Z’s letters where he seems to be less "frenzied", I clearly see that he is writing in a consistent sans serif font, almost like the typical "architect’s small block" font, but not quite. To me, he was clearly taught how to do this because it is different than traditional block printing. It looks like a font that was widely taught in the 1950’s and 1960’s in drafting and mechnical drawing classes, and was also influenced by the European industrial renaissance of the 1930’s…e.g., Bauhaus and the like.
To me, his writing looks a lot like this: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/c … sample.png
Also less "busy" fonts started catching on in the 1930’s in the US, cleaner, sans serif fonts used for numbers in industrial and commerical applications because they were easier to read and less confusing, but also in residential/educational applications as well (address numbers school and transportation signs, etc.).
So, I have often entertained the thought that Z was a draftsman, or employed doing/copying mechanical drawings, or as a sign maker or something like that, which was a job that someone could train for in high school and start at a fairly young age doing simpler drawings or copying, and then working one’s way up to do the more complex work, etc.
2. Another job involving fonts that Z could have trained for in high school or just after high school is that of a linotype operator. Again, fonts were key here, but also setting up the fonts perfectly into magazine or book pages because mistakes were very costly and not tolerated.
An innovation in this industry was the linotype machine, first commercially used in 1886. I realize a lot of you "oldsters" LOL like me already know this stuff/history, but I am providing it for the "young people" who post here and may not be completely aware of what I am talking about.
Here is a link to everything you might want to know about these machines:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linotype_machine
The reason I think that Z might have been linotype operator is twofold:
First the keyboard of a "modern" linotype machine has letters arranged downward according to frequency of use, like this:
OK, she is really insane and "so what", you might say…
Except….if you look at letter frequency vis a vis the linotype machine:
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/s … clnk&gl=us
…there is a possible connection here I think, namely with this statement: " Linotype machines sorted the letters’ frequencies… based on the experience and custom of manual compositors…"
The letters’ frequencies for standard English were/are: etaoin shrdlu cmfwyp vbgkqj xz
The first two groups of 6 letters have their own history vis a vis the printing industry:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ETAOIN_SHRDLU
What is important to note is this: "The letters on Linotype keyboards were arranged by letter frequency, so ETAOIN SHRDLU were the first two vertical columns on the left side of the keyboard. Linotype operators who had made a typing error could not easily go back to delete it, and had to finish the line before they could eject the slug and re-key a new one. Since the line with the error would be discarded and hence its contents did not matter, the quickest way to finish the line was to run a finger down the keys, creating this nonsense phrase.
If the slug with the error made it as far as the compositors, the distinctive set of letters served to quickly identify it for removal. Occasionally, however, the phrase would be overlooked and be printed erroneously…"
What reminds me of a variant of this is the group of "nonsense letters" at the end of the "solved" 408 cipher, namely (and I divided it up into 3 groups of 6):
EBEORI ETEMET HHPITI
So, is it possible Z used the "linotype frequency" for any of his codes, or that the extra letters comprised his own "frequency distribution" somehow…
….or was this his way of saying in the "solved" 408 ciper that I made some mistakes and somehow cluing us in to what they were/are????
…Or it could just be "dummy text"…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filler_text
Or, is any of this in any way related to any of his ciphers?
…or am I nuts, and should I not eat spaghetti before retiring…which I did last night, and then dreamt about this… :sleep: :affraid: :confused: 
morf13, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 12:07 pm
Didnt Zodiac suspect, Rick marshall operate some type of radio or theletype equipment? Not sure if its related to the stuff you posted here. I have a memo someplace, if I can dig it up about Marshall when he was first a suspect, and it listed his skills including some type of radio or machinery use, etc
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 12:14 pm
Marshall is not my Z suspect, but he did, I believe, own a police teletype machine…
I think Z is not on anyone’s "known Z suspect list", and has not been "found yet", at least with his connections to the Z crimes, meaning, he may have been in jail or caught for something else, but not for these things, obviously…
AuthUser, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 12:20 pm
Zab,
Interesting post. I’ll have to "chew on this one" for a while…
Auth
bentley, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 12:26 pm
Me too, excellent work.
tahoe27, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 12:31 pm
Dang Zab, you are OLD!
Sooooo kidding–you don’t seem old enough to know this stuff. lol Don’t be making me feel old now. I think this is a fine post you made. Dreams can do good things and give people great ideas. I know a lot of folks have thought of the drafting stuff and this could very well be the case.
You might want to check out this thread:
Frank Dryman/Valentine:
http://zodiackillersite.forummotion.com … ght=dryman
"A talented artist from the time he was a child, Dryman picked up sign painting and drafting while in prison. He earned his diploma and was taking correspondence courses to earn his engineering degree."
The prison was "Deer Lodge" in Montana and he was released to CA in January of 1969. (I know the LHR argument, but I haven’t always felt that was a Z murder so he still intrigues me.) Also born in Napa and served briefly at Mare Island.
Hey Morf–any way we can add this to the other suspects thread? I think it worthy. I have some handwriting samples too from when he wrote in prison.
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 12:35 pm
That’s wild stuff; Tahoe, I am reading it now….Makes you go hmmmmmmm……
I would love to see any of his extemporaneous handwriting or drafting lettering…
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 12:42 pm
One more thought…what if each coded cipher line were coded/"dropped" in place somehow in a similar fashion to how linotype machines did this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Linot … coding.png
It is so hard to be clear about what I am saying writing this, but you get the idea…
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 12:57 pm
Great post Zab, definetly something to think about.
morf13, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 2:03 pm
Dang Zab, you are OLD!
Sooooo kidding–you don’t seem old enough to know this stuff. lol Don’t be making me feel old now. I think this is a fine post you made. Dreams can do good things and give people great ideas. I know a lot of folks have thought of the drafting stuff and this could very well be the case.
You might want to check out this thread:
Frank Dryman/Valentine:
http://zodiackillersite.forummotion.com … ght=dryman
"A talented artist from the time he was a child, Dryman picked up sign painting and drafting while in prison. He earned his diploma and was taking correspondence courses to earn his engineering degree."
The prison was "Deer Lodge" in Montana and he was released to CA in January of 1969. (I know the LHR argument, but I haven’t always felt that was a Z murder so he still intrigues me.) Also born in Napa and served briefly at Mare Island.
Hey Morf–any way we can add this to the other suspects thread? I think it worthy. I have some handwriting samples too from when he wrote in prison.
Sure, feel free to start a thread in the suspects section
Theforeigner, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 2:24 pm
Interesting post Zabagliona, great work/dream:)
And this theorie you have, makes me think of the fact, that Zodiac apparently copied the exact font, Lucian Bernhard Gothic font, of the housenumber on Melvin Bellis house, and used it on the envelope of the Dec 20 1969 letter.
You can see and reas about it here:
http://mk-zodiac.com/1228.html
bentley, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 5:16 pm
Here is a photo of Belli’s house taken in 1964. The address numbers are on the post. So we don’t really know what numbers were there in 1969, but based on the condition of the ones in the photo above, which are there now, I’d say there were not there in 1969.
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 5:33 pm
OMG… 
that is rather eerie….The first pic, the B&W one; approximately what year was that taken?
If that is a modern pic, and the first pic is the old address numbers, then no big deal…and it is coincidence…
If the first pic was taken any time before 1975, or if it can be established that the numbers were changed sometime between 1964 and 1974, then that is quite weird…
bentley, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 5:50 pm
The picture with the numbers on the wall was taken within the last year or two, so again the chances of those numbers being there 40 years ago are slim IMHO, particularly with different numbers in their place (on the post) in 1964. I stood right next to those new numbers, the paint is fresh and the numbers look new. It’s an upscale neighborhood, that house is probably worth several million, can’t imaging keeping the same ones for 40 years.
The envelope is addressed exactly as the phone book (Melvin M Belli, MTGY), my guess is he just copied that.
Theforeigner, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 6:22 pm
The picture with the numbers on the wall was taken within the last year or two, so again the chances of those numbers being there 40 years ago are slim IMHO, particularly with different numbers in their place (on the post) in 1964. I stood right next to those new numbers, the paint is fresh and the numbers look new. It’s an upscale neighborhood, that house is probably worth several million, can’t imaging keeping the same ones for 40 years.
The envelope is addressed exactly as the phone book (Melvin M Belli, MTGY), my guess is he just copied that.
I think it´s very possible that the house numbers are the old once from 1969.
They are made out of metal and you can easily get them fixed by sandblasing them, then they will appear as good as new.
I also belive that it is highly proable that people that bye an old fine estate like that, which even used to belong to the famous Melvin Belli, would choose keep the old original numbers (I sure would).
But either way, if they are not the numbers that was there back in 1969, the Zodiac still choose to copy a specific font, either the font from the numbers on the house OR the font in the phonebook.
Normaly a person would just write the addres from the phonebook in their own natrual handwriting right?
So, we have here an odd serial killer who get the idea to copy a font!
WHY? IMO because it would tell the recipent of the letter that he was at the recipents house, to create extra fear. AND because he possibly had skills?/ interest in fonts etc.
We also know that Zodiac used many different handwritings; from childish unsophisticated, unmature to skilled, sophsticated, mature handwriting.
So that IMO tells us that he had som kind of connection to crafts of writing or deslike.
So IMO Zabagolina´s dream/theorie seems to fit along those lines.
I know that Mike Kelleher ´s suspect was a printer of som sort and worked in san Francisco.
bentley, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 6:38 pm
I think it´s very possible that the house numbers are the old once from 1969.
They are made out of metal and you can easily get them fixed by sandblasing them, then they will appear as good as new.
I also belive that it is highly proable that people that bye an old fine estate like that, which even used to belong to the famous Melvin Belli, would choose keep the old original numbers (I sure would).
In that case, I would reuse the numbers that were there in 1964. 
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 6:40 pm
Couldn’t Zodiac be a comic book artist who learned how to do his own lettering in the 1950’s.
bentley, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 6:55 pm
That’s interesting DAB, because I’ve studied the little buses and cars Z drew in the bomb diagrams. Fairly unique I’d say, and if I ever ran across the same style I’d probably recognize it. Most of us barely literates just draw a box with wheels. Don’t know if they are comic book quality, what do you think?
Theforeigner, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 7:35 pm
I think it´s very possible that the house numbers are the old once from 1969.
They are made out of metal and you can easily get them fixed by sandblasing them, then they will appear as good as new.
I also belive that it is highly proable that people that bye an old fine estate like that, which even used to belong to the famous Melvin Belli, would choose keep the old original numbers (I sure would).In that case, I would reuse the numbers that were there in 1964.
I belive those numbers ARE the once from 1964.
In 1964 they were just placed in a different shape. I belive they are seperate numbers which can be placed in whatever shape you want. I mean you dont buy a full 1228 nr,
you buy:
one "1"
two "2"
one"8"
and then you arrange them them as 1228, either horizontal or vertical or diagonal etc.
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 9:03 pm
Yes, Bentley. I believe Zodiac was a comic book artist.
And you’re right–the buses are very distinctive!
morf13, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Fri Jun 11, 2010 9:27 pm
I knew I had this set aside someplace…the Marshall thread is so quiet, i havent dusted the Marshall disc off lately. One of the items included was a memo regarding an anonymous tip about Marshall, and the teletype machine is indeed mentioned:
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Sat Jun 12, 2010 11:15 am
….that is very interesting, and also eerie, Morf…OTOH, I want to say that he was probably a sex offender but not a murderer… (I am not making light of that, BTW as both of these men were assaulting children which is absolutely disgusting…) like Allen; OTOH….some of the stuff is quite strange…
I looked up the Belli house last night on Google maps, and the current numbers are the thin steel ones in the 1930’s type font.
I have a couple of things to say about this:
1. The other pic, taken in the 1960’s has house numbers that were of a style quite common to that era; my house also has them. Hwoever, my house was built in 1926, and these are NOT the original numbers on my house, and I do not think those are the original number’s on Belli’s house either.
2. The current ones, which may be the old ones are actually more fitting of the period in which the home was built; so…
3. I would love to know when the numbers were changed because that may give us more clues…For example, if the numbers were changed in the late 1950’s early 1960’s then Z could have been there sometime before they were changed and copied the numbers. It would also considerably expand his timeline, because it would mean that he was probably offending during that earlier time as well….If the numbers were changed in the late 1940’s for example, then Z probably wasn’t there, and did not copy the numbers.
Anyone have any thought on letter frequencies or code text orientation vis a vis the linotype machine?
I also found this "Zynchronous" quote :affraid:
In the Wiki ETAOIN SHRDLU entry I posted earlier:
"Herb Caen claimed that the San Francisco Chronicle newspaper was nicknamed the Etaoin Shrdlu because of its questionable production standards.."
…also this…
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/s … clnk&gl=us
It is possible Z was actually employed as a pressman/pressman’s helper/linotype operator by the SF Chronicle??
DAB – I have also thought that he could have been a comic book artist or small ‘zine illustrator; that is an excellent point.
Bentley, I also agree about the busses; I have often wondered why no sibling or teacher, or relative, or friend, etc. of Z has EVER stepped forward to comment on the drawings or handwriting or "style" of all of his stuff…I have some theories on that too, but that is for another thread…
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Sat Jun 12, 2010 11:53 am
Linotypes at the SF Chronicle in the 1960’s; they also hired younger men (mostly) as linotype apprenticles to clean the machines, etc.
From: http://www.printerhistory.com/meetprinters.html
Theforeigner, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Sat Jun 12, 2010 3:33 pm
I wonder if Herb Caen ever expressed any thoughts/comments on the fact that Zodiac addressed him by name in one of his letters (April 24, 1978). And if Caen ever had a Z suspect in mind?
And yes, I know some people belive this letter to be a hoax, but I´m convinced it is from Zodiac. Morrill confirmed it to be from Z.
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Sat Jun 26, 2010 1:00 pm
I think it may very well be from Z, Theforeigner…
I have another Zodiac printing question; newspapers before computers used crop marks, in fact all printers/publishers used them, and still do even in the computer age…
A crop mark tells where the boundary is for a pic/image in a publication, or it can be literally where the image needs to be trimmed, as well…
A common crop mark "set" used for many years in the newspaper/printing/publishing industry is:
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Sat Jun 26, 2010 9:36 pm
Hello, Zab. Yes, I’ve seen those cross-hair marks in the margins of original comic book art. It’s used to align colors magenta, yellow, cyan, and black.
Also, for what it’s worth, I know a comic book artist that draws his vehicles, including buses, with the split screen. Also, he draws his "cars driving down the road" so that they lean at a slant.
There might be other artists who do this, but I haven’t noticed them yet.
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Sat Jun 26, 2010 9:43 pm
DAB
How old is this comic book artist, and is he still alive?
Is he American, or from the UK?
(If you do not mind me asking these questions…Thanks!)
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Sat Jun 26, 2010 10:04 pm
He’s American (all the more reason why it’s strange he should draw his vehicles with split screens). He is still alive.
, Subject: Re: The Zodiac Cipers & Letters, Linotype and Fonts, Graphic Arts, Drafting & Mechanical Drawing Sat Jun 26, 2010 10:26 pm
…my understanding is that split windshields were standard fare until about 1953??
