For my very first ever photo posted to this blog, I'm choosing a photo I took on Good Friday at Cantigny Park in Wheaton, Illinois. The photo is of the tomb of Col. Robert R. McCormick, a veteran of the First World War, and a newspaper man. But not just any newspaper man, he was the owner, editor and publisher of the Chicago Tribune, and also got the paper involved in radio and TV with the famous call sign: WGN - "World's Greatest Newspaper."
I could not think of anything more appropriate to start this blog than with photo of the tomb of a soldier and famous newspaper man. It's symbolic on a number of levels.
But first the typography of the tomb engraving itself--a very easy to read, and surprisingly modern sans-serif font that features thin, tall, all-capital letters. Notice how the first letter of every word is a little taller than those used in the rest of the word. There's a lot of text in this engraving, and it seems this particular type was chosen to get the maximum in a very limited space. The stone itself is a very high quality white granite imported from North Carolina.
The reason this first entry into the journal has a lot of symbolic importance extends to many different levels. Here's a few to get things started:
NEWSPAPERMAN - Though the inscription on this part of the tomb deals with Col. McCormick's service during the First World War, he was actually far more famous for his owning the Chicago Tribune, and the WGN radio and TV stations. He was a mass media genius, and obviously was very, very familiar with the world of typography.
STONE ENGRAVING - All the earliest forms of writing that survive to the common day survived because they were engraved in stone or clay, or at the very least, pigments were used on a stone surface, like cave paintings for instance. Stone was the ideal medium for putting out a message that you wanted to last for a very, very long time.
TOMB - In the digital age, it is quite obvious that many of the old forms of mass media are dying off, or being reduced in size and influence. This goes for newspapers, television, books, records, and various other things that can easily find life in 100% digital form. Even when I watch TV now-a-days, it's often shows I select from an "On Demand" service, rather than trying to re-arrange my schedule around their airing. Digital is all encompassing, and is changing the way news and data are delivered in a very major way. It would not be the least surprising to me if printed books and newspapers were to be completely gone from sale within ten to twenty years.
Click here to buy a print or digital download of the photo.
RZ
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