Royal Sprite/Astronaut/Swinger/Fleetwood

In 1965, Silver-Reed, a Japanese manufacturer of knitting machines, branched into manufacturing portable typewriters. They hired GK Design Group to design their new portable, a simple, metal bodied compact typewriter. Within two years, Litton Industries, parent company of Royal Typewriter, began importing these machines in large numbers, and relabeling them as Royal portables for the American market, and Imperial for the British market.

Silver-Reed portable typewriter. Image source: gk-design.co.jp

The first of these portables to be introduced was the Royal Mercury, a compact, carriage-shifted portable typewriter, with a 44-key keyboard, touch adjuster, and a two-color ribbon. It was launched in 1966, and began to be heavily advertised in 1968. The Royal Signet, a simple portable, with a single-color ribbon, and a 42-key keyboard, was sold as a cheaper alternative. However, it appears from period advertising in the Seattle Times, that both models could be purchased for the same price, depending on which store was having a sale.

Royal Swinger advertisement, from the Athens (OH) Sunday Messenger, December 1, 1968

For 1968, an additional series of portable typewriter was introduced. This was a plastic-bodied portable, with carriage shift, ribbon color selector, touch adjuster, and a preset tabulator. It was offered in two different versions. One, in blue and off-white was known under several model names, including the Astronaut, the Sprite, and the Swinger. The Swinger, seen in the advertisement above, was equipped with an AM radio housed in its Console Carrying Case. (Royal's name for a snap-on lid.)

1970 Royal Fleetwood. Bodemer Typewriter Collection

The other version was called the Fleetwood. It was identical to the Astronaut/Sprite/Swinger, except for its finish. It was black, with a walnut-grained ribbon cover, and had matching accent panels on its Console Carrying Case. Models equipped with a radio were $10 more than those without; it appears that models with radios are more common than those lacking them.

These models appear to have been discontinued by 1972, with the exception of the Mercury, which was given a taller ribbon cover, and a two tone color scheme in blue-and-white. The Sprite was replaced by the Tab-o-Matic, which had a brown metal body. (Royal called the color "Royal Autumn Haze"). This model appears to have been produced through 1974.