Another wintry storm Friday

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I stumbled across this AFL-CIO promotional video from the 1960s, and found it both charming and fascinating. It's a detailed look at all the art and work involved in binding books, and a rather romantic and aspirational portrayal of the life of a tradesman, filled with such statements as the following:

"This is a happy marrying of antique values with modern practicality, and these workers know that the wearing out of a book from re-reading is a truer estimate of its worth than any review by a critic."

Of course the big punch is saved for the end of the video:

the automation of the bookbinding process

, the outlook for someone interested in making books for a living is 

Arts and Culture

State of the Arts Blog

Marianne Combs

Author

An educational video from the 1960s documents the 'people who make the pen mightier than the sword.'

Bookbinding: antique values, modern practicality

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