Rolodex? We Don’t Need no Stinkin’ Rolodex

This past week, the Delucchi Plus team received our newly designed business cards. It’s like Christmas in April; shrink-wrapped and appearing magically on our desks.

An internal e-trail indicated a little trepidation from some co-workers, as these are not your standard business cards. You know the ones: three-point five by two inches, like 99.9% of every other card you get. These, in contrast, are oversized and very tasty. (Nice job, Susanna!)

Some colleagues addressed this concern by providing a link to this video about business cards.

The video got me thinking: How many people even know (or remember) what a Rolodex is, and how important they used to be? This got me thinking about how this classic tool has faded… and about the other tools of the trade that have fallen by the wayside.

Trust me, I love my Mac and all the stuff it allows me to do in an instant, (even if I don’t know all of what it can do, or how to do it — but I am learning). As a graphic designer, there are times I miss my Haberule, and the process of actually having to spec type. There is an amazing mathematical formula for specing type, which, thanks to desktop publishing, I’ve long forgotten.

There was nothing like having a desk full of crap you needed to hand-letter, or using Letraset to create a headline for an ad, pasteup a magazine or DRAW an image that you were going to propose to be photographed or illustrated. (“Picture this….”)

Bestine, x-acto blades, rubber cement, a quality wax machine, a 10 pen Koh-I-Noor Rapidograph set, or a 64 Design Marker set (like crayons for grownups) —  these things were heaven on earth. And the more stuff you had on or around your desk, the better.

But the most important item on your art table, squished in between the ashtray, phone and the extra coffee cup full of pencils was the Rolodex — your Bible, encyclopedia and little black book all rolled into one.

Cool business cards are cool, but a well-designed business card backed by the equally cool company it represents? (Insert Joe Pesci accent) – who needs a Rolodex?

For another stroll down memory lane, visit the Museum of Forgotten Art Supplies at my good friend Lou Brooks’ site

For a twisted appreciation of a damn nice business card (featuring a pre-Dark Knight Christian Bale) check out this clip.