Writer, photographer, musician, actor, and glittering bon vivant fridrix (Frederick Ingram) is back on his blog Corporate History International after a hiatus of nearly four years. This time, he offers up a look at the “Schaeffer Legacy,” a fountain pen that was once a sign of class and sophistication (and smooth writing).

He links a video from a guy who I think is from Iowa, who gives a rather detailed overview of the Schaeffer company’s history, as well as their various innovations in the world of fountain pens; you can view it here:

The reason I surmise this gentleman (with the very writerly name of “Hemingway Jones“) is from Iowa is because a.) someone said it in the comments and b.) he looks a lot like a very smarmy Iowan I went to graduate school with (the smarmy Iowan would make fun of me for saying “cut on the lights” or “cut on the air-conditioner” instead of “turn on”; of course, he was from Iowa, so who really had the last laugh?). Regardless, his video is interesting, even though he’s a bit unsettling to look at (something about how his mouth moves, and those crooked teeth, along with the appearance—perhaps illusion?—of wearing stage makeup).

But I digress. Before “Schaeffer Legacy,” fridrix wrote “KitKats & all that” about the plethora of Japanese Kit Kat bar flavors. It was the first time in about two years that he’d posted, and I obligingly made mention of the appearance in an installment of Phone it in Friday (which fridrix then obligingly reblogged—blogging Inception!). I hope at the time that Frederick/fridrix might be making a comeback with Corporate History International, but it proved not to be the case.

Could this time be different? Could the flow of ink from a classic fountain pen lead to the flow of words on the screen? Or will our enigmatic polymath pursue his other pursuits?

Perhaps yours portly’s breathless reporting of his reappearance might tip the scales in favor of the former. Only time will tell.

In the meantime, I highly encourage that you check out Frederick’s music; Elements is one of my favorite EPs of all time:

Happy Wednesday, dear readers! Keep creating cool stuff like fridrix/Frederick!

—TPP