Back when OpenType hadn't yet opened and Apple was developing the Line Layout Manager called GX Typography I created a test font that I name after my stepdaughter, Kristen (now ITC Kristen). Not wanting to offend my wife I started on a font project and gave her name to this new set of glyphs, Roberta. Unfortunately, the name was already in use so I needed to find another name for the fonts. After September 11th I decided that there were people I'd met during my life who were truly cut from the cloth of the hero. Master Sargent McLemore of the 75th Ranger Battalion was one of these people. I met the Sarge when I was in basic training at Fort Gordon. I saw him 2 weeks before he died in 1970. All of the heroes we see on the silver screen pale in comparison to this man. John Wayne and Clint Eastwood both have played the type well, both could have taken lessons from the Sarge.

Based on the lettering used on Alan Turing’s famous code-breaking machine at Bletchley Park, the “Bombe”, and the subsequent British answer to the German Enigma machine, the Typex. Research done at Bletchley Park on their restored and antique machines provided the inspiration. The unusual shapes for the capitals have all been retained - the square O, the monospaced characters and other eccentricities that make it unique. This reference material was then extended to the numerals (which did not exist in the original) and a full international character complement. The initial design of the bombe was produced in 1939 at the UK Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) at Bletchley Park by Alan Turing, with an important refinement devised in 1940 by Gordon Welchman. It was based on a device that had been designed in 1938 in Poland at the Biuro Szyfrów (Cipher Bureau) by cryptologist Marian Rejewski, and known as the "cryptologic bomb" (Polish: bomba kryptologiczna). The Bombe was used to break the German Enigma code on a daily basis, and was a vital part of the Allied war effort. The British “Typex" (alternatively, Type X or TypeX) machines were an adaptation of the commercial German Enigma with a number of enhancements that greatly increased its security. It was used from 1937 until the mid-1950s, when other more modern military encryption systems came into use.

Western Americana is a unique collection of signatures of 72 famous American frontiersmen, gunslingers, Wild West personalities, outlaws, and Indians in a high-quality font. A must-have for autograph collectors, desktop publishers, lovers of history, or anyone who has ever dreamed of sending a letter, card, or e-mail "signed" as if by one of these famous Western celebrities. This font includes signatures from the following American West personalities: William Frederick Cody ("Buffalo Bill"), George Armstrong Custer, Meriwether Lewis, William Clark, Kit Carson, Joseph Brant, David Crockett, Wyatt Earp, Geronimo, James Bowie, Daniel Boone, Sam Houston, Calamity Jane, Sitting Bull, William H. Bonney ("Billy the Kid"), Cole Younger, Bob Younger, Jim Younger, Pat Floyd Garrett, James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok, Squire Boone, Samuel Colt, Gordon William Lillie ("Pawnee Bill"), Annie Oakley, William Barret Travis, Allan Pinkerton, Jose de Galvez, George Rogers Clark, George Crook, John Charles Fremont, George Croghan, Simon Kenton, Maj. Frederick Benteen, James Wilkinson, Nelson Appleton Miles, Philip Kearny, Chief G.H.M. Johnson, William George Fargo, William Barclay "Bat" Masterson, King Philip, Frank James, Eleazer Williams, Henry Wells, Junipero Serra, John Sevier, John Ross, Joseph Virgo, Chief Joseph, Red Jacket, Manuel Lisa, Julian Dubuque, John Augustus Sutter, Manuel Lisa, Jesse James, Jesse James alias Thomas Howard, Manasseh Cutler, Robert Newton Ford, Emmett Dalton, Henry McCarty alias Greenville Mellen Dodge, Edward Zane Carroll Judson ("Ned Buntline"), Rain-in-the-Face, James Robertson, Zebulon Pike, Chief Two Guns White Calf, Pierre Chouteau Jr., Frank Butler, Isaac Shelby, Moses Austin, Moses Cleveland, Rufus Putnam, Pierre Chouteau Sr., Father Pierre Jean De Smet, and Auguste Chouteau. This font behaves exactly like any other font. Each signature is mapped to a regular character on your keyboard. Open any Windows application, select the installed font, and type a letter, and the signature will appear at that point on the page. Painstaking craftsmanship and an incredible collection of hard-to-find signatures go into this one-of-a-kind font. Comes with a character map.

For much of the world, the last half of December encompasses the beginning of winter and the a season of gift-giving, marked by Hanukkah and Christmas. It is generally accepted that the tradition of giving of gifts at this time was begun by The Three Wisemen. As described in The Gospel According to Matthew, the wisemen, led by a star from a distant land to the east, found the baby Jesus. First, they worshipped him and then, "they presented him with gifts: gold, frankincense and myrrh." (Matthew 2:11). Thus began the tradition of celebrating the birth of Christ with the giving of gifts. There is a parallel tradition in the Jewish faith of the giving of gelt or gold at Hanakkuh to help support poor students, in keeping with the rich history of scholarship that is fundamental to the rabbinic system. Inevitably, in our secular culture, there has been a blending and a secularization of these traditions. The reasons have gotton lost in the “gimme.” What is often overlooked is what Paul realized when he told Timothy, “Neglect not the gift that is in thee.” The most importent gift is the gift inside of us, the gift of sacrificial love for others. When we let that gift be diminished in our minds amid the clutter of modern day material seeking, we can recall the prophesy of Micah over 2800 years ago, But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel: whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." (Micah 5:2 KJV) Never underestimate the impact you have on others. Words of kindness can change people’s lives. The Talmud says that the highest form of wisdom is kindness. Be wise this holiday season. The font BETHLEHEM STAR was originally designed for the church to which I belong, The Star Bethlehem Church of Ansonia, Connecticut, USA and is based on the typeface Accent with the permission of URW++ of Hamburg, Germany. You might choose BETHLEHEM STAR for your personal greetings as well as for flyers and programs at your church this holiday season. Like most display fonts, it is most effective at 18 points and larger. Like most script fonts, it is most effective when set with both upper and lower case. All caps with this font is like eating two pieces of pecan pie — too much of a good thing.