Keyboards in movies/TV series!

mr_a500

28 May 2014, 21:11

By the way, the Wargames IMSAI was for sale a couple years ago for the low price of only $25,000 US - and it included the keyboard.

http://imsai.net/movies/wargames.htm

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Grond

30 May 2014, 23:32

A Model M and a portable computer from David Cronenberg's Dead Ringers (1988).

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webwit
Wild Duck

31 May 2014, 00:02

Seems to be a Toshiba T1200.

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Muirium
µ

31 May 2014, 00:27

Ooh: nice layout, too. HHKB style Fn candidate right there, and 3 mods a side. Plus an ANSI Shift instead of big ass for a change! As was the style of the time.

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jdcarpe

02 Jun 2014, 15:22

From last night's premiere of AMC's Halt and Catch Fire:

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Was being used by the sales consultants (engineers) at the fictional Cardiff Electric. I'll look again to see if I can identify any clear shots of the front of the terminal.

Looks to be a Zenith terminal of some sort. Maybe a Z-100?

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Grond

08 Jun 2014, 22:56

Side by Side (2012) is a great documentary about digital vs photochemical film, a must see if you're interested in the subject. And there are some keyboards as well.
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Muirium
µ

09 Jun 2014, 00:00

Nice! The first keyboard is one of Apple's worst (with custom video editing caps installed) but the Da Vinci keyboard is straight out of tall sphericals science fiction! I like the camera angle on the second last picture too. Every computer scene needs some of that.

mr_a500

09 Jun 2014, 00:02

I like the three trackballs. I need something like that. I think with three trackballs and three pointers I could be a lot more efficient.

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Muirium
µ

09 Jun 2014, 01:55

From what video editing I have seen, those guys probably are more efficient with several. I haven't watched the movie (but I intend to, thanks Grond!) but I suspect those trackballs are actually scrubbers, with maybe variable velocity between the X and Y axis, for coarse and fine movement through the time line. Put a hand on each, and you probably could trim things faster than with context switching, as cuts are naturally an A goes to B kind of event. The third one, though, well, hmm. Something about going to 11?

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Grond

09 Jun 2014, 13:04

The Da Vinci is a machine for color correction, as far as I know the trackballs are for regulating RGB values (one for each dominant).

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nathanscribe

14 Jun 2014, 22:08

mr_a500 wrote:Holy crap - my ideal computer setup! (yes, including the cows):
sweet dreams.jpg
(just kidding - I'd rather have that Demon Seed thing)
That's a Movement Drum Computer:

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The Mk II looked a little different, but equally funky:

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There's a Flickr set with a gut-shot showing a NASCOM board:

ImageMCDU1 opened by Waveterm, on Flickr

Gotta love the Zilog fraternity :)

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Grond

21 Jun 2014, 23:15

Pret-à-porter (1994) by Robert Altman. Quite a lousy movie if you ask me, but I spotted a keyboard at least. That may be from some french computer as the film is set in Paris. The laptop seems to be an Apple Powerbook 170.

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IvanIvanovich

22 Jun 2014, 01:36

jdcarpe wrote:From last night's premiere of AMC's Halt and Catch Fire:

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Was being used by the sales consultants (engineers) at the fictional Cardiff Electric. I'll look again to see if I can identify any clear shots of the front of the terminal.

Looks to be a Zenith terminal of some sort. Maybe a Z-100?
According to an article I read about the shows props, all the computers in the office are Zenith Z120. They mostly sourced real period appropriate complete vintage computers from ebay and etc with some stuff Frankenstein'd up by art department from various parts in a few cases like the 'Symphonic'. Kind of cool they went that way really as it makes it seem more realistic for those of us that know anything about that era of computing.

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Grond

22 Jun 2014, 23:07

"The Raid - Redemption" (2011) is a solid indonesian action/martial arts film, which I would recommend if you like the genre. There's an interesting looking keyboard here, but I could not identify. Also, a video control panel with Cherry legends.

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JBert

23 Jun 2014, 21:37

Grond wrote: "The Raid - Redemption" (2011) is a solid indonesian action/martial arts film, which I would recommend if you like the genre. There's an interesting looking keyboard here, but I could not identify. Also, a video control panel with Cherry legends.

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Looks like the Mac M0110 keyboard?

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Grond

23 Jun 2014, 22:28

I don't think so, the one in the film has two tones of keycaps and the layout is not the same if you look closely. Also, the keyboard seems to be connected to a TV, so my guess it's some kind of Commodore or stuff.

Findecanor

23 Jun 2014, 23:02

Commodore or Atari did not have two-tone keys. Based on the layout, I think a MSX variant would be more probable.

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Dubsgalore

24 Jun 2014, 01:44

Grond wrote: "The Raid - Redemption" (2011) is a solid indonesian action/martial arts film, which I would recommend if you like the genre. There's an interesting looking keyboard here, but I could not identify. Also, a video control panel with Cherry legends.

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That's oddly satisfying to see

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Grond

28 Jun 2014, 18:21

Batman - Mask of the Phantasm (1993). Apparently Batman uses some kind of customized matrix Tipro with double, backlit, blank keycaps and some odd spacebar. F row looks unusual as well. :D

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Grond

03 Jul 2014, 19:01

And of course Mad Men is loaded with Selectrics. Don't be overwhelmed!

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Muirium
µ

03 Jul 2014, 19:03

Nice one! But a screen cap from Mad Men without serious skirts is, well, unexpected…

Findecanor

03 Jul 2014, 19:58

Grond wrote: Apparently Batman uses some kind of customized matrix Tipro with double, backlit, blank keycaps and some odd spacebar.
Ack pfft.. Most computer keyboards in cartoons are drawn as simple grids.

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Muirium
µ

03 Jul 2014, 20:07

NOT a cartoon!

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I don't think we're supposed to be looking at the BAT COMPUTER…

mr_a500

03 Jul 2014, 21:16

Grond wrote: And of course Mad Men is loaded with Selectrics. Don't be overwhelmed!

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Coincidentally, my desk looks almost exactly like that - with beige Selectric and black rotary phone - but original Selectric, not Selectric II.

The Selectric II didn't come out until 1971 and the show starts in the early 60's. Apparently, the set people knew this, but couldn't locate enough original Selectrics. They probably assumed nobody would notice. (or care... except for a few weirdo keyboard freaks)

I thought I would like Mad Men, but I hated it. It's a modern fake interpretation of the time period.
Last edited by mr_a500 on 03 Jul 2014, 21:20, edited 1 time in total.

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Grond

03 Jul 2014, 21:17

Of course my comment on the Batman cartoon keyboard was intented as a joke, but turns out Batman preferes non-staggered layouts even in the 1989 movie (still my favourite Batman by the way). The truth is, that thing doesn't even look like a keyboard, but something between a vintage POS and some pre-war airplane cockpit.

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Grond

05 Jul 2014, 23:25

Pc Xt from "Velvet Goldmine" (1998). This scene is set in New York, but the movie was actually shot in the UK, and it shows: the keyboard is ISO! :D

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Ozric

07 Jul 2014, 10:59

From last night's Halt & Catch Fire:

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Grond

07 Jul 2014, 11:30

Looks good, what's that?

Ozric

07 Jul 2014, 11:35

Grond wrote: Looks good, what's that?
First image is a Zenith Z-120, the second one I don't know.

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Halvar

07 Jul 2014, 15:47

Grond wrote: Pc Xt from "Velvet Goldmine" (1998). This scene is set in New York, but the movie was actually shot in the UK, and it shows: the keyboard is ISO! :D

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An IBM XT, a Cherry keyboard, and some no name monochrome monitor ... The 80s from the view of 1998 obviously.

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