Finding the perfect font for your design isn’t always easy. That’s why we created the font series to introduce you to some of the most usable and interesting fonts available. If you’re looking for another font that is quite versatile, the Brody font is a good choice.
Brody falls into the category of a handwritten font. Its bold, almost italic-looking letters are reminiscent of a personal letter. While it is readily available, this font isn’t seen frequently in designs, so using it will give your project a unique element that competitors might not have. Let’s take an in-depth look at this font, a versatile font that works for websites as well as signs:
Origin
The publisher of Brody was originally the American Type Founders (ATF), and the designer was Harold Broderson. At the time, Broderson worked for ATF. He designed the font in 1953, just past the first half of the twentieth century when the world saw big changes in typefaces.
Broderson is an American typeface designer, but Brody font is sometimes confused with fonts created by another type designer named Neville Brody from the United Kingdom. However, Neville Brody does not have a font by this name. Neville Brody has quite a history as a typographer, creating fonts such as BF Bonn, BF Buffalo and Arcadia. It isn’t any surprise that people sometimes confuse his work and that of Harold Broderson.
Broderson was designing well before Brody was even born, and the font “Brody” is credited to him. The name similarity is just a coincidence and a play on his longer name, or perhaps even a nickname of his. Whatever his reason for naming the font “Brody,” he likely had no idea that someone named Brody would come along later and design fonts as well. Harold Broderson was born December 13, 1913.
Today, Brody is in the Linotype Library. Linotype has the font tagged with a number of different classifications. This includes retro, decorative, handmade, old-fashioned and brush classes. Some font repositories classify Brody as handwritten, while others classify it as script or graffiti. It certainly could be used for any of these looks.
Mechanics of Brody
Many of the typefaces designed in the 1950s are commonly used today. Other fonts created in the 50s include Helvetica, Palatino and Futura. Brody is part of a family of fonts, including SG Brody SB, SG Brody SH, EF Brody and Brody EF, and the differences between each typeface are minor. In all cases, the font has thick, bold strokes that are reminiscent of hand-painted graffiti art.
The brush-looking script is much like the show card lettering styles, a popular look in the early 1900s. If one took a flat lettering paint brush and sketched out the letters, they would appear similar to Brody font.
The footprint is fairly wide and short because of the heavy strokes of the letters, and the pitch is not monospaced. The look is almost cursive with some serifs — lowercase letters connect to each other, just as with cursive writing. Brody supports as many as 69 different languages and supports OpenType features.
What Does the Font Imply?
Brody has a fun, retro feel to it. If you want to create something that feels like it is out of the 1950s, this font would be a good choice. However, it could be used for any time period as well. It is a rather informal font, so is best used for casual uses or mixed with a more professional-looking font.
Where It’s Commonly Found/Used
Brody mimics the look of show cards, or posters used to advertise in store windows. It is commonly found on sales signage for this reason. Not only does it grab attention because of its bold strokes, but it fits perfectly on a poster-sized display.
You’ll find this font used on posters about summer picnics, local festivals and other events that bring a bit of nostalgia to the mix. You’re less likely to see it on movie posters or as part of a logo. Even though it works great for headings, it might be a bit too wide to work well as a logo. This is especially if the logo is used in places where the size must be reduced down.
What Should It Be Used As?
The regular Brody font has a max height of 1245 and max width of 921, so it is best suited for medium-sized projects. If you are having an apple pie baking contest, for example, the font would work perfectly for flyers about the event. It brings a touch of yesteryear without seeming dated and is reminiscent of summers past. It doesn’t translate well in smaller sizes because the letters are so bold, so it would almost be unreadable. However, it looks great on signs and as headings. You could, therefore, use the font on a website as an H1 heading. It would then add to an overall nostalgic feel and tone.
Brody works well for on-the-fly sales signs to let people know about specials in your store as well. Since it was developed with show cards in mind, it is ideal for quick designs of this nature and multiple signs about various specials. Using Brody in a series of signs provides a more cohesive look throughout a store or another location and ties everything together.
A Font Before Its Time
Even though Brody adds a bit of nostalgia to designs, it is still modern enough to be used for almost any type of design. Because it is a wide script, it stands out from many others that aren’t nearly as wide, even when bolded. While you can italicize Brody, the result may be too slanted.
The font already has a bit of a handwritten tilt to it. If you want to enhance that already-existing slant, though, give it a shot and see if the overall effect is what you seek. Brody is a great font to have in your design arsenal when you need something bold and fresh but classical to draw on.
The Font Series Guide: Introduction
Chapter 1: 15 Google Fonts You Should Be Using
Chapter 2: Times New Roman
Chapter 3: Roboto
Chapter 4: Georgia
Chapter 5: Verdana
Chapter 6: Helvetica
Chapter 7: Comic Sans
Chapter 8: Didot
Chapter 9: Arial
Chapter 10: Tahoma
Chapter 11: Garamond
Chapter 12: Century Gothic
Chapter 13: Brody
Chapter 14: Bromello
Chapter 15: Savoy
Chapter 16: Athene
Chapter 17: Calibri
Chapter 18: Proxima Nova
Chapter 19: Anders
Chapter 20: Monthoers
About The Author
Eleanor Hecks is the Editor-in-Chief of Designerly Magazine, an online publication dedicated to providing in-depth content from the design and marketing industries. When she's not designing or writing code, you can find her re-reading the Harry Potter series, burning calories at a local Zumba class, or hanging out with her dogs, Bear and Lucy.
