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|death_cause =
|death_cause =
|resting_place =
|resting_place =
|nationality = Canadian
|nationality =
|known_for = Designing novelty computer fonts
|known_for = Designing novelty computer fonts
|alma_mater =
|alma_mater =
|occupation = [[Typographer]]
|occupation = [[Typographer]]
|years_active = 1996–present
|years_active = 1996–present
|home_town =
}}
}}


'''Raymond Larabie''' (born 1970) is a [[Canadians|Canadian]] designer of [[TrueType]] and [[OpenType]] [[computer fonts]]. He owns Typodermic Fonts, which distributes both commercially licensed and [[shareware]]/[[freeware]] fonts.
'''Raymond Larabie''' (born 1970) is a Canadian designer of [[TrueType]] and [[OpenType]] [[computer fonts]]. He owns Typodermic Fonts, which distributes both commercially licensed and [[shareware]]/[[freeware]] fonts.


==Biography and career==
==Biography and career==
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Larabie was born in [[Ottawa, Ontario]], Canada. He graduated from [[Sheridan College]] with a degree in classical animation. He moved to [[Nagoya, Japan]] in 2008; he maintains Canadian citizenship.
Larabie was born in [[Ottawa, Ontario]], Canada. He graduated from [[Sheridan College]] with a degree in classical animation. He moved to [[Nagoya, Japan]] in 2008; he maintains Canadian citizenship.


Beginning in 1996, Larabie distributed his designs over the [[internet]] as [[freeware]], operating as his own independent [[type foundry]] LarabieFonts.<ref>Cabarga, Leslie. ''Logo, Font, & Lettering Bible: A Comprehensive Guide to the Design, Construction, and Usage of Alphabets and Symbols.'' Cincinnati, OH: HOW Design, 2004. 237.</ref> He released much of his Larabie Fonts library into the [[public domain]] in 2020 after he determined the designs were no longer of any commercial value.<ref>[https://typodermicfonts.com/public-domain/ 142 Early Typodermic Fonts Released Into the Public Domain]. Retrieved December 25, 2020.</ref> Larabie was employed at [[Rockstar Canada]] and had contributed his designs to multiple video game titles, including the hit series' ''[[Grand Theft Auto]]'' and ''[[Max Payne (video game)|Max Payne]]'', before he quit the company in 2002 to focus full-time on type design.{{Citation needed|date=July 2009}}
Beginning in 1996, Larabie distributed his designs over the [[internet]] as [[freeware]], operating as his own independent [[type foundry]] LarabieFonts.<ref>Cabarga, Leslie. ''Logo, Font, & Lettering Bible: A Comprehensive Guide to the Design, Construction, and Usage of Alphabets and Symbols.'' Cincinnati, OH: HOW Design, 2004. 237.</ref> He released much of his Larabie Fonts library into the [[public domain]] in 2020 (with additional dedications following in 2022 and 2024) after he determined the designs were no longer of any commercial value.<ref name=pdfonts>[https://typodermicfonts.com/public-domain/ 142 Early Typodermic Fonts Released Into the Public Domain]. Retrieved December 25, 2020.</ref> Larabie was employed at [[Rockstar Canada]] and had contributed his designs to multiple video game titles, including the hit series' ''[[Grand Theft Auto]]'' and ''[[Max Payne (video game)|Max Payne]]'', before he quit the company in 2002 to focus full-time on type design.{{Citation needed|date=July 2009}}


Larabie primarily specializes in novelty typefaces that are intended for use in [[desktop publishing]] and [[graphic design]]. The logo for ''Grand Theft Auto'', for instance, uses Larabie's Pricedown font, which is based on the logo for the international game show ''[[The Price Is Right]]'', as well as for the Disney animated series ''[[Fillmore!]]''. In addition to game shows, Larabie has also used 1960s and 1970s graphic logos, computer emulation, and other inspirations to design his fonts; most of his designs are display faces not meant for body text. He is particularly known for his “ubiquitous futuristic and sci-fi fonts”; Larabie specialized in that style early in his career because he felt that, other than a few examples such as [[Bank Gothic]], [[Microgramma (typeface)|Microgramma]] and [[Eurostile]], the market for that style was underserved.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.howdesign.com/design-creativity/typodermic-fonts-raymond-larabie-type-technology-sci-fi-fonts/|title=Typodermic's Raymond Larabie Talks Type, Technology & Science Fiction|first=Jason|last=Tselentis|date=August 28, 2017|work=How|access-date=October 29, 2017}}</ref>
Larabie primarily specializes in novelty typefaces that are intended for use in [[desktop publishing]] and [[graphic design]]. The logo for ''Grand Theft Auto'', for instance, uses Larabie's Pricedown font, which is based on the logo for the international game show ''[[The Price Is Right]]'', as well as for the Disney animated series ''[[Fillmore!]]''. In addition to game shows, Larabie has also used 1960s and 1970s graphic logos, computer emulation, and other inspirations to design his fonts; most of his designs are display faces not meant for body text. He is particularly known for his “ubiquitous futuristic and sci-fi fonts”; Larabie specialized in that style early in his career because he felt that, other than a few examples such as [[Bank Gothic]], [[Microgramma (typeface)|Microgramma]] and [[Eurostile]], the market for that style was underserved.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.howdesign.com/design-creativity/typodermic-fonts-raymond-larabie-type-technology-sci-fi-fonts/|title=Typodermic's Raymond Larabie Talks Type, Technology & Science Fiction|first=Jason|last=Tselentis|date=August 28, 2017|work=How|access-date=October 29, 2017|archive-date=April 18, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180418150848/http://www.howdesign.com/design-creativity/typodermic-fonts-raymond-larabie-type-technology-sci-fi-fonts/|url-status=dead}}</ref>


Two of his typeface families, Marion and [[Clarendon (typeface)|Superclarendon]], are released with [[macOS]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Fonts included with Mavericks|url=https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT201375|publisher=Apple|access-date=8 July 2015}}</ref><ref name="Marion MyFonts">{{cite web|last1=Larabie|first1=Ray|title=Marion|url=https://www.myfonts.com/fonts/typodermic/marion/|website=MyFonts|publisher=Monotype|access-date=8 July 2015}}</ref> Larabie's "Canada 150" is an extended version of his previous font Mesmerize (in turn based on 1920s calligraphic German sans-serifs such as [[Semplicità]] and [[Kabel (typeface)|Kabel]]) with Cyrillic and First Nations alphabets included; it was commissioned by the [[Government of Canada]] to be the official typeface for the country's [[150th anniversary of Canada|sesquicentennial]]. The government paid him nothing for the custom work,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://qz.com/574312/canadas-official-new-united-font-was-designed-to-include-aboriginal-languages/|title = Canada's new national font was designed to include aboriginal languages}}</ref> which he subsequently placed into the [[public domain]].
Two of his typeface families, Marion and [[Clarendon (typeface)|Superclarendon]], are released with [[macOS]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Fonts included with Mavericks|url=https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT201375|publisher=Apple|access-date=8 July 2015}}</ref><ref name="Marion MyFonts">{{cite web|last1=Larabie|first1=Ray|title=Marion|url=https://www.myfonts.com/fonts/typodermic/marion/|website=MyFonts|publisher=Monotype|access-date=8 July 2015}}</ref> Larabie's "Canada 150" is an extended version of his previous font Mesmerize (in turn based on 1920s calligraphic German sans-serifs such as [[Semplicità]] and [[Kabel (typeface)|Kabel]]) with Cyrillic and First Nations alphabets included; it was commissioned by the [[Government of Canada]] to be the official typeface for the country's [[150th anniversary of Canada|sesquicentennial]]. The government paid him nothing for the custom work,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://qz.com/574312/canadas-official-new-united-font-was-designed-to-include-aboriginal-languages/|title = Canada's new national font was designed to include aboriginal languages}}</ref> which he subsequently placed into the [[public domain]].
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==Typefaces==
==Typefaces==
*Coolvetica—an eccentric neo-grotesque sans-serif based on Chalet and 1970s [[Helvetica]], Larabie's most popular font
*Coolvetica—an eccentric neo-grotesque sans-serif based on Chalet and 1970s [[Helvetica]], Larabie's most popular font
*Foo—used for ''[[Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars]]''
*Foo—used for ''[[Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars]]'' ({{abbr|PD|public domain}})<ref name=pdfonts/>
*Neuropol—a modified version of which was used in the wordmark for the [[2006 Winter Olympics]]<ref name=neuropol-olympics>{{cite web|url=https://www.behance.net/gallery/6451631/Corporate-Identity-XX-Olympic-Winter-Games-Torino-2006|title=Corporate Identity XX Olympic Winter Games Torino 2006|first=Antonino|last=Benincasa|work=behance.net|date=March 4, 2014|access-date=December 28, 2020}}</ref>
*Neuropol—a modified version of which was used in the wordmark for the [[2006 Winter Olympics]]<ref name=neuropol-olympics>{{cite web|url=https://www.behance.net/gallery/6451631/Corporate-Identity-XX-Olympic-Winter-Games-Torino-2006|title=Corporate Identity XX Olympic Winter Games Torino 2006|first=Antonino|last=Benincasa|work=behance.net|date=March 4, 2014|access-date=December 28, 2020}}</ref> ({{abbr|PD|public domain}})<ref name=pdfonts/>
*Pricedown—used for the logo of ''[[Grand Theft Auto]].'' Based upon Pinto Flare.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Pinto Flare in use |url=https://fontsinuse.com/typefaces/38256/pinto-flare |access-date=2024-06-29 |website=Fonts in Use |language=en}}</ref>
*Pricedown
*[[Stereofidelic]]
*[[Stereofidelic]] ({{abbr|PD|public domain}})<ref name=pdfonts/>
*Mesmerize ({{abbr|PD|public domain}})<ref name=pdfonts/>
*Mesmerize
*Kawashiro Gothic, Japanese gothic typeface based on the Mesmerize typeface
*Kawashiro Gothic, Japanese gothic typeface based on the Mesmerize typeface
*Canada 1500, based on the Mesmerize typeface; supports Greek, Cyrillic, Vietnamese, and Canadian Aboriginal syllabics<ref>{{cite web|title=Canada 1500|url=https://typodermicfonts.com/canada1500/|publisher=Typodermic Fonts|access-date=18 September 2020}}</ref>
*Canada 1500, based on the Mesmerize typeface; supports Greek, Cyrillic, Vietnamese, and [[Canadian Aboriginal syllabics]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Canada 1500|url=https://typodermicfonts.com/canada1500/|publisher=Typodermic Fonts|access-date=18 September 2020}}</ref> ({{abbr|PD|public domain}})<ref name=pdfonts/>
*Blue Highway, based upon the [[Highway Gothic|American highway sign typeface]] ({{abbr|PD|public domain}})<ref name=pdfonts/> and its commercial counterpart Expressway
*Ethnocentric


==Samples==
==Samples==
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|File:Grand Theft Auto logo series.svg|Pricedown, as seen in the ''Grand Theft Auto'' wordmark
|File:Grand Theft Auto logo series.svg|Pricedown, as seen in the ''Grand Theft Auto'' wordmark
|File:Coolvetica.png|Coolvetica (top, compared to its inspiration [[Helvetica]] below) is, according to Larabie, his most downloaded font by far.
|File:Coolvetica.png|Coolvetica (top, compared to its inspiration [[Helvetica]] below) is, according to Larabie, his most downloaded font by far.
|File:Logo of Mass Effect.png|Korataki, Larabie's most purchased commercial font, is used in the wordmark for video game ''[[Mass Effect]]''.
|File:Logo Mass Effect.svg|Korataki, Larabie's most purchased commercial font, is used in the wordmark for video game ''[[Mass Effect]]''.
|File:Stereofidelic.png|[[Stereofidelic]]
|File:Stereofidelic.png|[[Stereofidelic]]
|File:Torino 2006 logo at Palavela.jpg|Neuropol (modified) in use in the [[2006 Winter Olympics|Torino 2006]] wordmark
|File:Torino 2006 logo at Palavela.jpg|Neuropol (modified) in use in the [[2006 Winter Olympics|Torino 2006]] wordmark
|File:Canada 150 Street Banner on the Alexandra Bridge in Ottawa, Canada.jpg|Canada1500 (Mesmerize) in use for its original purpose on the [[150th anniversary of Canada|Canada 150]] wordmark
|File:Canada 150 Street Banner on the Alexandra Bridge in Ottawa, Canada.jpg|Canada1500 (Mesmerize) in use for its original purpose on the [[150th anniversary of Canada|Canada 150]] wordmark
|File:WVTT25.png|Anklepants, a font based on [[Westinghouse Broadcasting]] wordmarks, in use in a former logo for [[WVTT-CD|WVTT]] in [[Olean, New York]]
}}
}}


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*[https://www.myfonts.com/foundry/Typodermic/ Typodermic on MyFonts]
*[https://www.myfonts.com/foundry/Typodermic/ Typodermic on MyFonts]
*[http://www.fontspring.com/foundry/typodermic Typodermic on Fontspring]
*[http://www.fontspring.com/foundry/typodermic Typodermic on Fontspring]
*{{IMDB name|nm2391669}}


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}

Revision as of 13:07, 29 June 2024

Ray Larabie
Born1970 (age 53–54)
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
OccupationTypographer
Years active1996–present
Known forDesigning novelty computer fonts

Raymond Larabie (born 1970) is a Canadian designer of TrueType and OpenType computer fonts. He owns Typodermic Fonts, which distributes both commercially licensed and shareware/freeware fonts.

Biography and career

Snasm
Sample

Larabie was born in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. He graduated from Sheridan College with a degree in classical animation. He moved to Nagoya, Japan in 2008; he maintains Canadian citizenship.

Beginning in 1996, Larabie distributed his designs over the internet as freeware, operating as his own independent type foundry LarabieFonts.[1] He released much of his Larabie Fonts library into the public domain in 2020 (with additional dedications following in 2022 and 2024) after he determined the designs were no longer of any commercial value.[2] Larabie was employed at Rockstar Canada and had contributed his designs to multiple video game titles, including the hit series' Grand Theft Auto and Max Payne, before he quit the company in 2002 to focus full-time on type design.[citation needed]

Larabie primarily specializes in novelty typefaces that are intended for use in desktop publishing and graphic design. The logo for Grand Theft Auto, for instance, uses Larabie's Pricedown font, which is based on the logo for the international game show The Price Is Right, as well as for the Disney animated series Fillmore!. In addition to game shows, Larabie has also used 1960s and 1970s graphic logos, computer emulation, and other inspirations to design his fonts; most of his designs are display faces not meant for body text. He is particularly known for his “ubiquitous futuristic and sci-fi fonts”; Larabie specialized in that style early in his career because he felt that, other than a few examples such as Bank Gothic, Microgramma and Eurostile, the market for that style was underserved.[3]

Two of his typeface families, Marion and Superclarendon, are released with macOS.[4][5] Larabie's "Canada 150" is an extended version of his previous font Mesmerize (in turn based on 1920s calligraphic German sans-serifs such as Semplicità and Kabel) with Cyrillic and First Nations alphabets included; it was commissioned by the Government of Canada to be the official typeface for the country's sesquicentennial. The government paid him nothing for the custom work,[6] which he subsequently placed into the public domain.

Larabie has drawn controversy for releasing fonts freely; other professional designers took particular umbrage at Canada 150, stating that the government should have paid for a professionally drawn type since, it was posited, a government has the money to do so. Larabie responded to the criticism by saying "You can’t just throw a couple hundred grand at a problem and that’s the solution for every problem."[7]

Typefaces

Samples

Fonts by Ray Larabie
  • Pricedown, as seen in the Grand Theft Auto wordmark
    Pricedown, as seen in the Grand Theft Auto wordmark
  • Coolvetica (top, compared to its inspiration Helvetica below) is, according to Larabie, his most downloaded font by far.
    Coolvetica (top, compared to its inspiration Helvetica below) is, according to Larabie, his most downloaded font by far.
  • Korataki, Larabie's most purchased commercial font, is used in the wordmark for video game Mass Effect.
    Korataki, Larabie's most purchased commercial font, is used in the wordmark for video game Mass Effect.
  • Stereofidelic
    Stereofidelic
  • Neuropol (modified) in use in the Torino 2006 wordmark
    Neuropol (modified) in use in the Torino 2006 wordmark
  • Canada1500 (Mesmerize) in use for its original purpose on the Canada 150 wordmark
    Canada1500 (Mesmerize) in use for its original purpose on the Canada 150 wordmark
  • Anklepants, a font based on Westinghouse Broadcasting wordmarks, in use in a former logo for WVTT in Olean, New York
    Anklepants, a font based on Westinghouse Broadcasting wordmarks, in use in a former logo for WVTT in Olean, New York

See also

References

  1. ^ Cabarga, Leslie. Logo, Font, & Lettering Bible: A Comprehensive Guide to the Design, Construction, and Usage of Alphabets and Symbols. Cincinnati, OH: HOW Design, 2004. 237.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g 142 Early Typodermic Fonts Released Into the Public Domain. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  3. ^ Tselentis, Jason (August 28, 2017). "Typodermic's Raymond Larabie Talks Type, Technology & Science Fiction". How. Archived from the original on April 18, 2018. Retrieved October 29, 2017.
  4. ^ "Fonts included with Mavericks". Apple. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  5. ^ Larabie, Ray. "Marion". MyFonts. Monotype. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  6. ^ "Canada's new national font was designed to include aboriginal languages".
  7. ^ Daubs, Katie (12 January 2016). "Designers fume over free font for Canada's 150th birthday | The Star". The Toronto Star.
  8. ^ Benincasa, Antonino (March 4, 2014). "Corporate Identity XX Olympic Winter Games Torino 2006". behance.net. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
  9. ^ "Pinto Flare in use". Fonts in Use. Retrieved 2024-06-29.
  10. ^ "Canada 1500". Typodermic Fonts. Retrieved 18 September 2020.
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