Writers and their tools, in their workspaces. We could probably date this photo by the stuff in Ellison’s office — the Cheshire Cat cutout? Wasn’t that from an Edward Gorey-illustrated version of the Alice in Wonderland story? What year was that? The telephone on the wall, the desk scissors design . . . none of those fall into any expertise I have. Someone else will have to date it. My TinEye search didn’t shed any useful light.
I found the photo at Richard Polt’s fun site at Xavier University, The Classic Typewriter Page. Polt is clearly working toward a MacArthur Foundation genius grant with this material. Well, he would be, were I a judge. (Who should get credit for the photo? I don’t know — can you help identify who gets credit? See comment from Mr. Ellison: ” . . . image was captured for my 1974 STORY collection, APPROACHING OBLIVION, by MAX KATZ and KAREN FRIEDRICH.” Credit for the photo gleefully acknowledged here.)
Oh, by the way, stay tuned: Ellison is trying to sell his first typewriter. That is a topic worthy of its own post.
Tip of the old scrub brush to the unfortunately moribund The Wit of the Staircase.
Posted by Ed Darrell 
Millard Fillmore's Bathtub 