The term is actually a bit older, see this blog post by Paul, and the links therein:
http://www.pilcrowtype.com/blog/the-ever-useful-rotalic

Here’s my ‘Rückwärts Rotalic’:
http://kaune.hardwig.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/filiale-6.jpg

I remember that some typedesigner did a ‘true Rotalic’, i.e. one where subsequent letters rotate increasingly, so that, within a line, a full Roly Poly is performed. Can’t find it back, though – must have been on Twitter.

Edit: Here it is, preserved by Indra. It was Frederik:
http://kupferschrift.de/cms/2011/07/new-ideas-for-book-typography/

Ah, thanks for the correction, and the links!

BTW, I remember seeing a photo of a London Olympics merchandise store where -like you've done- they had rotated a line of Hague's font so the letters look upright (sitting on a diagonal line). I wonder if they'd done that to make it look "normal".

hhp

Just hit me: maybe this is what a Latin font subordinate to [traditional] Arabic is supposed to look like...

hhp

Everything old is new again. My copy of Alphabete: Ein Schriftaltas von A biz Z from 1989 has a showing of Rotalic Medium with Swash, which is an obliqued sans without rotation.

So the term is at least that old, but that example hardy deserves it (it's just an Oblique).

BTW is it possible the font was called "Rotalic"? Although I don't know if that would disqualify it as a terminological precedent.

hhp

Hrant: Just hit me

Okay. Istanbul?

You might have to stand in line...

hhp

is it possible the font was called "Rotalic"? Although I don't know if that would disqualify it as a terminological precedent.

Indeed, it was—as, once upon a time, a cougar was simply a largish member of the feline family…

I'd love to see that 50 line Python script.

Just a few more recent samples - Dan Zadorozny (Iconian Fonts) includes rotalic versions of many of his fonts, including, I think, just about all that he's done since 2008.

- Herb

Perfect.

hhp