Patrick Bateman Business Card

Patrick Bateman's business card appears in one scene in American Psycho. Bone stock, serif type, watermark. He presents it with complete seriousness while one of his colleague at the table does the same. Then someone pulls out a card that is slightly better, better paper, better typeface, better print method, and Bateman quietly falls apart.

Bret Easton Ellis wrote the scene into the 1991 novel because it was true. In 1980s Wall Street the business card was something men actually competed over. Paper weight, typeface, finish. Ellis just removed the self-awareness from it and let it play straight.

The typeface referenced in the film is Silian Rail. The paper color is Bone. The print method is Romalian Type. None of these are real products. The specificity is the point. Bateman is unraveling over details that are entirely invented, in a world where everyone else is playing the same game with equal seriousness.

The free business card maker above lets you put your own name on the card. If you want to print it, Colorplan China White is the closest real-world match to the paper described in the film.