I recently accepted a job co-editing the Centennial Edition of the Speedball Textbook. So we are toying with the idea of making it interactive. I shot this video on using the “A Series” nib that was invented by Ross F. George and William Hugh Gordon more than 100 years ago.
This nib is really amazing because you use both sides of the nib. It was developed for speed in lettering on Sho Cards, Movie Title Cards and signs.
AV Graphics 
The U.S. Postal Service may want to celebrate calligraphy (and letter writing) more, and maybe somehow they could even celebrate “The Speedball Textbook — NEW Centennial Edition.”
Considering the benefits of cursive writing and how the educators are turning away from handwriting in order to embrace digital media, perhaps Speedball’s Centennial Edition is ready for prime-time. A well thought out advertising campaign and meaningful marketing could be most effective. The public might resonate in recognition, and the humble pen may yet make a mark as bold as the Orwellian sledgehammer did for Mac -back in 1984.
Manual typewriters have now been relegated to rusty junk-yards of history, and even the old rubber platens on typewriters have begun to petrify. Now may be the time for dip pens to write the last word and enjoy the true meaning of “Renaissance.”
People should buy the new Centennial edition, and then ask their local Boy Scouts of America troop leaders why they do not offer a merit badge for calligraphy, handwriting, penmanship, or cursive writing. After all, these skills enable us to “be prepared” for times when we may not have, or may not want, a digital connection.
Even if we embrace everything digital, now may be a good time for appreciating what can be still be cultivated by other means.
To ponder this matter further, consider a few links:
Why write? Penmanship for the 21st Century | Jake Weidmann | TEDxMileHigh
Reviving Penmanship | Euromaxx
Master Penman Jake Weidmann | HUMAN
Plus:
Why Cursive Is So Good For Your Brain!
and
Cursive is Dead!
Finally, a little Historical trivia:
Platt R. Spencer: Ashtabula County, Ohio, resident who taught the nation how to write
Palmer Method