Keith Prentice tells us about his career installing and repairing Lionotype and Intertypes around New Zealand.
IN 1948 I was indentured as a Linotype mechanic apprentice at The Otago Daily Times in Dunedin, New Zealand and trained on Model 8 & 14 Linotypes as well as Intertype C3 , C4, and G4-4sm machines. I also operated an Elrod strip caster.
I went to Australia in 1954 and joined the mechanic staff at the Herald-Sun in Melbourne and maintained Linotype Model 8 and 48 machines and Intertype C4s. I spent a short period working with The Courier-Mail in Brisbane with a battery of similar machines.
Returning to New Zealand in 1957 I spent two years with a firm of Typesetters maintaining Linotype Model 32s, an Intertype Model F mixer and a C4 with a six mold disc.
In 1959 I joined Gollin Graphics, the NZ agency for Harris-Intertype. During a period of 23 years as Installation & Service Engineer I installed every model of Intertype including Monarch throughout the country. Pacific Island installations included, Fiji, Tonga and Tahiti.
I received Monarch machine training at Harris-Intertype in Furman St, Brooklyn, New York and installed 12 of these machines in NZ, some of which were operated with Star Autosetter and Star Quadder.
42 em Intertypes
Over the years I rebuilt a number of Intertypes including Model A & B machines. We even had a few 42 em Intertypes in the country but I preferred to steer clear of them. My work in the field included installing Mohr Saw units, Star Quadders and Autosetters.
My last Intertype installation took place in Tahiti in 1974 but I was kept employed by the company, importing spare parts and matrices until 1982. The change in technology at this point made it necessary for me to seek new challenges outside of the industry.
I have enjoyed the experience and have been fortunate being able to work in many locations and work along side a huge variety of people, many of them unforgettable characters.
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