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1969 Olivetti Valentine Serial # 5529343 1969 Olivetti Valentine typewriter, Serial # 5529343 James Grooms's 1969 Olivetti Valentine typewriter. 2025-01-11 From the Virtual Typewriter Collection of James Grooms: 1969 Olivetti Valentine Serial # 5529343 Is the Valentine the most written about typewriter? Is there any with so much ink spilt? So someone can school me on this machine, but a bit of newspapering tells a story that's not the conventional one. This was a budget model. A budget model at the bottom of the heap. At release it looks like it had an msrp of $65. This was soon dropped to a street price of around $50 and eventually Olivetti couldn't sell them at $30. Did you know they changed the name to Space Age and still couldn't sell them? There are no articles about the release and the designer. Just another loss leader to drum up some hype that flopped.

Then along in the late 90s and early 2000s it starts showing up in design/art shows and featured by interior designers. The 'icon' is born. All sorts of articles stating it was expensive and sought after when new. Supposedly a big release on Valentine's day in 1969? All I see are a bunch of department store 1/16th page ads in August. Popular Science had a blurb in the new product section right beside another icon, the AMC Gremlin.

The wiki article is a great example of the No Truth era. It doesn't look like a L32 under the hood to me. It looks like my Dora clones. The $295 msrp comes from a 2017 article. Clearly nobody has fact checked this who has the slightest understanding of the typewriter business in 1969.

Ok grumpy old man. This model was a one owner machine. Really clean. The largest amount of work went into polishing the body. I have not seen one that didn't have some amount of damage to the top of the body cover where it rubs going in and out of the case. And then rubs during any sort of travel. Great design? Well at least it was reasonably priced and I can now say I have one. Back to Smith Coronas where I have a bunch of 6 series stuff acquired in a distant past where they could be had for $20. Now they are going for $300 plus regularly on ebay. This is going to finance some more typewritering!

1969 Olivetti Valentine #5529343

Status: My Collection
Hunter: James Grooms (jgrooms)
Created: 01-10-2025 at 07:31PM
Last Edit: 01-11-2025 at 10:35AM

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Description:

Is the Valentine the most written about typewriter? Is there any with so much ink spilt? So someone can school me on this machine, but a bit of newspapering tells a story that's not the conventional one. This was a budget model. A budget model at the bottom of the heap. At release it looks like it had an msrp of $65. This was soon dropped to a street price of around $50 and eventually Olivetti couldn't sell them at $30. Did you know they changed the name to Space Age and still couldn't sell them? There are no articles about the release and the designer. Just another loss leader to drum up some hype that flopped.

Then along in the late 90s and early 2000s it starts showing up in design/art shows and featured by interior designers. The 'icon' is born. All sorts of articles stating it was expensive and sought after when new. Supposedly a big release on Valentine's day in 1969? All I see are a bunch of department store 1/16th page ads in August. Popular Science had a blurb in the new product section right beside another icon, the AMC Gremlin.

The wiki article is a great example of the No Truth era. It doesn't look like a L32 under the hood to me. It looks like my Dora clones. The $295 msrp comes from a 2017 article. Clearly nobody has fact checked this who has the slightest understanding of the typewriter business in 1969.

Ok grumpy old man. This model was a one owner machine. Really clean. The largest amount of work went into polishing the body. I have not seen one that didn't have some amount of damage to the top of the body cover where it rubs going in and out of the case. And then rubs during any sort of travel. Great design? Well at least it was reasonably priced and I can now say I have one. Back to Smith Coronas where I have a bunch of 6 series stuff acquired in a distant past where they could be had for $20. Now they are going for $300 plus regularly on ebay. This is going to finance some more typewritering!

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Aug 1969. First US mention of the Valentine.
Aug 1969. First US mention of the Valentine.






Hunter: James Grooms (jgrooms)

James Grooms's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]

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As with many, the bug is back there somewhere due to an Underwood No. 5. My grandparents had a No 5. My parents had a yellow Royal Safari that I used to index card everything, including a beer can collection. Collection syndrome clue! A casual interest in typewriters started with a garage sale 3 bank simply because it said Underwood on it. Typewriters were found here and there , but I wasn't actively looking for them. The long dormant collecting tic was activated when my neighbors left a Remington Quiet Riter on the curb when they moved.

Typewriters are the perfect blend of using one's technical skills, history and functional purpose. My goal is type tested machines. My interests are not isolated to anyone area. For example, I am a big fan of Smith Corona electrics, mid century electrics and all things Royal.


RESEARCH NOTE: When researching the Olivetti Valentine on a computer with lots of screen real estate, you may find that launching the Olivetti Serial Number page and the Olivetti Valentine By Model/Year/Serial page in new browser windows can give you interesting perspectives on changes throughout the model series.

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