The classic yellow legal pad. I've loved these since way back. No movie court room scene is without a yellow pad somewhere. Strictly speaking, ours aren't legal pads - the official line on those is that they are a different dimension to A4 at 8.5 x 14 inches and they should have a red margin (or 'down line') for notes (requested by a judge around 1900, which explains their name).
Invented by Thomas Holley in 1888, a papermill worker who decided to bind together all the offcuts (aka 'sortings' isn't that a great word?). They were so successful he left his job and founded the American Pad and Paper Company (Ampad).
Anyway I love them. Many a great writer... Read More
The classic yellow legal pad. I've loved these since way back. No movie court room scene is without a yellow pad somewhere. Strictly speaking, ours aren't legal pads - the official line on those is that they are a different dimension to A4 at 8.5 x 14 inches and they should have a red margin (or 'down line') for notes (requested by a judge around 1900, which explains their name).
Invented by Thomas Holley in 1888, a papermill worker who decided to bind together all the offcuts (aka 'sortings' isn't that a great word?). They were so successful he left his job and founded the American Pad and Paper Company (Ampad).
Anyway I love them. Many a great writer insists on them for first drafts in longhand. Truman Capote and Maya Angelou did. And Barak Obama's memoirs were started on one.
The jury's out (see what I did there) on exactly why they're yellow. Some say the paper was dyed to hide imperfections. And most agree that the yellow reduces glare when working under harsh light. It's certainly why they're so distinctive-looking. A new legal pad gives you the thrill of the possibility that you might discover your potential, as yet hidden, writing genius - more than any other new pad of paper or notebook. Something about the binding at the top (specifically for tearing off sheets cleanly) lessens the pressure of having to get something right first time.
For a beautiful example of a memorable document written on a legal pad, take a look at President Nixon's notes for his phone call to the Apollo 11 astronauts' wives. From this fascinating blog.
