![]() ![]() Because the resolution of TV screens of the period was relatively poor and the techniques used to display text made corners and serifs appear rounded, ZDF had decided from the outset that it wanted a rounded font. In 1973, the German TV broadcaster ZDF based in Mainz was given a new face by Otl Aicher who, inspired by Univers, designed ZDF Rounded. The popularity of rounded fonts in the 1970s and 1980s resulted in an absolute deluge of commercial image rebranding. And ITC Benguiat Gothic from 1979 is another follower of the fashion for rounded fonts. When it comes to this synthetic grotesque, the underlying geometrical forms are completely round, as in the case of Pump and the 1970 Blippo by Robert Trogman. ![]() Another typeface that did not have rounded corners but was otherwise fully in line with trends was ITC Bauhaus dating to 1975. Despite its somewhat unusual shapes, one of the first uses of the font was on tax return forms. For ITC, for example, Ed Benguiat designed ITC Souvenir in 1972, a revival of an older American font originally conceived by Morris Fuller Benton in 1914. Of course, fonts were also influenced by this passion for curves and several rounded versions of grotesque typefaces were created. Even paper was cut in such as way to ensure that its corners were no longer sharp. In the 1970s, it became common practice not only to give all designs a rounded finish but also to round the corners of table borders. But not all of them fell from grace: the logo used for the long-running German TV entertainment show Wetten dass.? (’You Bet!’) has remained (largely) unchanged for more than 30 years. ![]() There are definite ups and downs to be seen in the popularity curve of rounded fonts throughout the 20th century, whereby their heyday was in the 1970s and 1980s. But rounded fonts are rather like flared trousers and kidney-shaped tables - after a while, things that are flavour of the month tend to fall out of favour although sometimes they manage to make a comeback. ![]()
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