The records of the Richard York Gallery, a New York gallery specializing in American art from early 1800s to 1950, measure 87.5 linear feet and date from circa 1865-2005, with the bulk of the material dating from 1981 to 2004. The collection contains artists' artwork files, documenting the sale and consignment of nearly 6,500 works of art. The gallery's activities are also recorded through correspondence, artists' files, client files, gallery invoices, inventories, business and financial records, printed materials, scrapbooks, photographic materials of artwork, and estate records for the John Marin estate and Sergio Stella estate (Joseph Stella).
Scope and Content Note:
The records of the Richard York Gallery, a New York gallery specializing in American art from early 1800s to 1950, measure 87.5 linear feet and date from circa 1865-2005, with the bulk of the material dating from 1981 to 2004. The bulk of the records are artists' artwork files, documenting the sale and consignment of nearly 6,500 works of art. The gallery's activities are also recorded through correspondence, artists' files, client files, gallery invoices, inventories, business and financial records, printed materials, scrapbooks, photographic materials of artwork, and estate records for the John Marin estate and Sergio Stella estate (Joseph Stella).
Correspondence includes both incoming and outgoing correspondence with collectors, clients, galleries and museums, primarily regarding appraisals, consignments, exhibitions, general inquiries, loans, and sales. Also found are scattered transactional records, information sheets for artwork, and photographic materials. Correspondence from the mid-late 1980s is poorly represented.
The sale and consignment of nearly 6,500 pieces of artwork at the Richard York Gallery are documented through transactional records, photographic materials, correspondence, and scattered printed materials found in the Artists' Artwork Files. Artists for which there are significant quantities of materials (over 50 folders) include Joseph Goldyne, Ellen Day Hale, John Henry Hill, John William Hill, Lester George Hornby, Louis Lozowick, Luigi Lucioni, Emma Fordyce MacRae, John Marin, Joseph Stella, William Henry Stevens, and Steve Wheeler. Also included are the files of the Richard York photography collection, which contained works by Robert Mapplethorpe.
Similar to the Artists' Artwork Files, Client Files document the sale and consignment of artwork, but are arranged by artist's and client's name. Materials found are primarily from the early 1990s and include correspondence, notes, photographic materials, photocopied client information cards, and printed materials.
The Richard York Gallery represented the John Marin estate and the Sergio Stella estate (Joseph Stella). The records of the John Marin estate are primarily artwork in-take sheets from 1998 and inventory lists from 2001. The Sergio Stella Estate records include correspondence, inventories of artwork by Joseph Stella, and some photographic materials.
Sales and inventory records contain a nearly complete set of gallery invoices from 1995-2000, and 2004. Inventories includes gallery inventory lists, and inventory cards of sold artwork from 1981-1997 (bulk 1981-1991).
The business and financial records include accounting records, bank deposit records, corporate records, index cards for contacts, invoices for gallery expenses, materials related to Richard York's involvement in the ADAA, mailing lists, records of payments to consignors, receipts, shipping records, and tax records. The gallery migrated from paper records to Artbase, an artwork management system, around 2000-2002. Included are two CDs of database data and digital images from Artbase, as well as inventories of the digital file names.
Printed materials contain advertising tear sheets from 1998-2002, exhibition catalogs, magazine and newspaper clippings of reviews and announcements, and other miscellaneous printed materials. Printed materials are also found in eight scrapbooks which document the activities of the Richard York Gallery, Richard York, and the gallery's exhibitions from 1981-2002. Materials in the scrapbooks include clippings, correspondence, photographs, exhibition catalogs, announcements, and invitations.
Photographic materials includes color photographs, transparencies, digital prints, and scattered printed materials, as well as over 600 slides of artwork, primarily works of art which were sold or consigned by the gallery. Artists for which there is significant volume of transparencies include Houghton Cranford Smith and Lockwood de Forest, Sr.
Artists' files consist mostly of photocopied newspaper and magazine clippings, writings about the artist, and exhibition catalogs. Some original copies of printed material, correspondence with collectors, curators, and gallerists, photographic materials, artwork records, and some exhibition records are also present.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 10 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Correspondence, 1975-2005 (Boxes 1-7, 81; 6.4 linear feet)
Series 2: Artists' Artwork Files, circa 1865-2004 (Boxes 7-64; 56.85 linear feet)
Series 3: Client Files, 1965, circa 1981-circa 2004 (Box 64; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 4: Estate Records, 1983-circa 2004 (Boxes 64-65; 1.0 linear feet)
Series 5: Sales and Inventory Records, 1977-2004 (Boxes 65-70; 5.0 linear feet)
Series 6: Business and Financial Records, 1974-2005 (Boxes 70-77, 81; 6.25 linear feet)
Series 7: Printed Materials, 1980-2004 (Boxes 77-78; 1.1 linear feet)
Series 8: Scrapbooks, 1981-2002 (Boxes 78, 80; 1.0 linear feet)
Series 9: Photographic Materials, 1977-2004 (Boxes 78-79; 1.2 linear feet)
Series 10: Artists' Files, 1922-2008 (Boxes 81-89; 8 linear feet)
Historical Note:
Richard T. York (circa 1950-2003) opened his eponymous gallery in the spring of 1981 on East 65th Street in New York City. Specializing in American painting and sculpture from early 1800s to 1950, the Richard York Gallery dealt in the artwork of hundreds of artists including Albert Bierstadt, Charles Demuth, Arthur Dove, Lockwood de Forest, John Graham, Georgia O'Keeffe, John Singer Sargent, Charles Sheeler, and Steve Wheeler. It also represented the estates of artists John Marin and Joseph Stella.
Richard York passed away in April 2003, and the gallery closed in May 2004.
Provenance:
The Richard York Gallery records were donated to the Archives of American Art in 2006 by Kevin Scott, the executor of Richard York's estate; and in 2015 by Lisa Bush Hankin, former gallery director.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
The Maid of Cotton (MOC) beauty pageant was sponsored by the National Cotton Council, Memphis Cotton Carnival, and the Cotton Exchanges of Memphis, New York, and New Orleans from 1939-1993. The contest was held annually in Memphis, Tennessee until the National Cotton Council and Cotton Council International moved to Dallas, Texas. Beginning with the 1985 pageant (held December 1984) the competition was held in Dallas. The pageant was discontinued in 1993 due to lack of funds, a sponsor, and changes in marketing strategies. The records include files on contestants, photographs, and scrapbooks.
Scope and Contents:
The collection contains the records for the Maid of Cotton pageant (1939-1993) sponsored by the National Cotton Council (NCC), Memphis Cotton Carnival, and the Cotton Exchanges of Memphis, New York, and New Orleans. The collection consists of approximately 38 cubic feet of records created by the NCC in the course of operating the Maid of Cotton contest from 1939 to 1993. The records form the complete archive of this fifty-four year program. The records include administrative files, scrapbooks, photographs, slides, and videotapes.
"One of the main values of the Maid of Cotton collection is its completeness. These are all of the official records of the program, documenting all of its activities throughout its entire existence from 1939 to 1993. As such, it represents a truly unique documentary record and opportunity for research.
Beauty contests have been the subject of serious scholarly study for many years. A search of WorldCat reveals over fifty books on the topic. Scholars have found the subject to be a fruitful springboard from which to study a wide variety of topics, primarily centered around issues of beauty, femininity, culture values, national identity, racism, and feminism.
Beauty pageants serve as symbols that reflect the values of American culture. For example, pageant winners have symbolized the advances made by formerly disenfranchised groups. Vanessa Williams, the first African American to win the Miss America crown (1983), rewrote the definition of beauty in America, and Heather Whitestone, the first deaf Miss America (1995), proved that physical handicaps need not hold anyone back from their dreams. Pageants can provide a focus for the re-examination of our society and culture. The tragic murder of six-year-old Jonbenet Ramsey in 1996 provided a window into what author Susan Anderson calls "the extravagant world of child beauty pageants," that led to public debate about issues of motherhood and adolescence.
In addition, beauty pageants can be viewed in advertising terms: they are the ultimate expression of the tried and true adage that sex sells. All pageants have sponsors and all sponsors want their products to be seen in a positive light. Some sponsors are content to contribute goods and services to the contestants --a new car, a trip to the Caribbean, a fur coat, etc. --so that their generosity can be noted in the publicity surrounding the contest. Others prefer to sponsor the entire program. The Miss Universe contest, for example, was created in 1952 by the Jantzen Company specifically to enable the company to showcase pretty girls wearing its swimsuits. Jantzen abruptly withdrew its previous support of the Miss America pageant when Yolande Betbeze refused to wear a bathing suit during her reign as Miss America 1951. The Maid of Cotton pageant is a highly organized, year-long, very visible public relations program that allows the National Cotton Council to showcase the wonders of cotton through the wonders of young beauty queens. Attractive young women are the perfect vehicle for promoting fashionable fabrics made from cotton.
Cotton --the product at the heart of the Maid of Cotton program --has been central to American economic and political history. NMAH's collecting and research interests reflect this. The Division of Work & Industry contains numerous cotton-related objects and much documentation on the subject. The Archives Center holds several cotton-related collections, including the Peter Paul Haring Papers, 1897-1935, documenting Haring's development of cotton picking machinery; the Lockwood Greene collection of thousands of engineering drawings, many of which were for textile mills; the Robert L. Shurr Script and Scrapbook for a 1939 biographical motion picture on Dr. George Washington Carver; and the Southern Agriculture Oral History Project Records, 1985-1992, which documents modern cotton farming through photography and oral history interviews. In addition, all aspects of cotton production, from farm to factory to finished goods, are documented in several hundred photos in the Underwood & Underwood Agricultural Photonegative Collection, the Underwood & Underwood Glass Stereograph Collection, the Division of Work & Industry Lantern Slide Collection, and the Donald Sultner-Welles Photograph Collection. Cultural aspects of cotton can be discovered in both the Warshaw Collection of Business Americana and in the DeVincent Collection of Illustrated American Sheet Music." (Orr, Craig. "NMAH Collections Committee", memorandum, 2009)
Series 1, Organizational and Pageant Files, 1939-1993, undated., is arranged chronologically by year. Files may contain correspondence, photographs, news clippings, radio commercial scripts, tear sheets, itineraries, trip reports, sheet music, legal documents, waivers, and permissions, and other material related to the Maid of Cotton pageant for that year. Files may also contain subsequent personal information on the Maid of Cotton for that year, for example change of address, news clippings, and the like. This series contains finalist files, trip files and tour report files.
Series 2, Photographs, Slides, and Transparencies, 1939-1994, undated., is arranged chronologically by year. This series contains photographs, slides, and transparencies related to the Maid of Cotton and her travels throughout the United States and overseas. It also contains photographs of the fashions worn by each Maid.
Series 3, Scrapbooks, 1951-1988, contains the scrapbooks created by the National Cotton Council office as well as scrapbooks created by the Maids themselves or others for her. Scrapbooks most often contain news clippings, ephemera, and sometimes correspondence.
Series 4, Audio-Visual, 1991-1993. This series contains video and audio related to the Maid of Cotton. It is currently unprocessed.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged into four series.
Series 1: Organizational and Pageant Files, 1939-1993, undated
Subseries 1.1: Maid of Cotton files, 1939-1993
Subseries 1.2: Little Miss Cotton, 1956-1963, undated
Series 2: Photographs, Slides, and Transparencies, 1939-1994, undated
Subseries 2.1: Photographic Negatives and Transparencies, 1939-1993, undated
Subseries 2.2: Slides, 1939-1993, undated
Series 3: Scrapbooks, 1951-1988
Series 4: Audio-Visual, 1991-1993, undated
Biographical / Historical:
The Maid of Cotton pageant began in 1939. The annual pageant was sponsored by the National Cotton Council (NCC), Memphis Cotton Carnival, and the Cotton Exchanges of Memphis, New York, and New Orleans. The pageant was held in Memphis, Tennessee, in conjunction with the Carnival until the 1980s.
In mid-December every year the NCC released a list of contestants. Contestants were required to have been born in one of the cotton-producing states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, North and South Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas or Virginia. They might have also been born in the cotton-producing counties of Alexander, Jefferson, Massac, Pulaski, Williamson or Madison, Illinois or in Clark or Nye counties of Nevada. There were usually twenty contestants each year.
Contestants were judged on personality, good manners, intelligence, and family background as well as beauty and an ability to model. A Top Ten were chosen and then a Top Five, and finally second and first runners up and a winner. Winners served as goodwill and fashion ambassadors of the cotton industry in a five-month, all-expense tour of American cities. In the mid-1950s the tour expanded globally. In the late 1950s a Little Miss Cotton pageant was begun but lasted only until 1963 before being discontinued. In the mid-1980s Dallas,Texas took over the pageant, in conjunction with the NCC and its overseas division, Cotton Council International. In 1986, to bolster interest and participation, the NCC eliminated the rule requiring contestants to be born in a cotton-producing state. The pageant was discontinued in 1993, one of the reasons being that Cotton Inc. stopped contributing scholarship money as well as waning public interest and changing marketing strategies. (pageantopolis.com website accessed April 2012.)
"The National Cotton Council is the official trade association of the cotton industry. The NCC was founded in 1939 to promote the interests of cotton farmers, ginners, brokers, and manufacturers from the Southern, cotton-growing states. Its mission evolved over the years as new uses for cotton and its byproducts have been found; as competition from synthetic fibers developed; as fashion tastes changed; as government regulation increased; and in response to foreign competition in both farming and manufacturing . The NCC website states that its modern-day mission is "to ensure the ability of all U.S. cotton industry segments to compete effectively and profitably in the raw cotton, oilseed and U.S.-manufactured product markets at home and abroad." Throughout its existence, the NCC has been the contact point for issues affecting its members, legislators in Congress, allied agribusiness, and consumers.
One of the first NCC programs undertaken by to promote the versatility and value of cotton to consumers was the Maid of Cotton program, begun in 1939. This consisted of a beauty pageant open to young women born in one of the seventeen southern cotton growing states. The contestants were evaluated on the basis of beauty, personality, poise, good manners, and intelligence; a family background in cotton production was especially helpful. The girls had to apply for selection to compete in the program. At first this was done directly to the Memphis-based program but eventually a system of state Maid of Cotton programs were established, whose winners went on to compete in the national Maid of Cotton contest. The Maid of Cotton received numerous prizes, whose value and variety tended to increase over the years. In the late 1940s, the program added a scholarship prize, probably in emulation of the Miss America contest. The Maid of Cotton pageant was held each December in Memphis as part of that city's Cotton Carnival festivities. The winner was featured prominently on her own float in the Cotton Carnival parade, was feted at prestigious Carnival events, and was treated as royalty wherever she went. Selection as the Maid of Cotton carried a high degree of status and mature ladies in the South to this day proudly identify themselves as such.
The Maid of Cotton's main function, once crowned, was to serve as a goodwill and fashion ambassador for cotton; any publicity she gained was automatically positive publicity for the cotton industry. Accompanied by an NCC-appointed manager, the Maids embarked on an all-expenses-paid tour. The Maids appeared in full regalia at public events such as county fairs, parades, and holiday events; starred in fashion shows featuring all-cotton outfits; gave speeches to local chambers of commerce and other groups; and in general were the attractive personification of the cotton industry wherever they went. At first, the tours concentrated on the cotton states but they were later extended to major cities outside the cotton belt and came to include visits to legislators on Capitol Hill. Beginning in the mid-1950s, the Maids began touring internationally and in the 1970s and 1980s they frequently headed up fashion shows in Asia.
Over time, however, the publicity value of an industry-anointed beauty queen lost its attraction both to the public and --more importantly --to the press. In addition, the role of cotton in the South, particularly in Memphis, declined. In 1986 the contest was moved from Memphis to Dallas. Eventually the cotton industry withdrew its support for the program's scholarships; the 1993 Maid of Cotton was the last to be crowned." (Orr, Craig. "NMAH Collections Committee", memorandum, 2009)
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
National Cotton Council Records, circa 1960s-1980s (AC1177)
Southern Agriculture Oral History Project Records, 1986-1991 (AC0773)
Provenance:
This collection was donated by the Cotton Museum at the Memphis Cotton Exchange on October 14, 2009.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the negatives are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection consists of records documenting one of the oldest advertising agencies created in Philadelphia. The company then moves to New York and expanses to international markets. During its history NW Ayer & Sons acquires a number of other advertising agencies and is eventually purchased. The largest portion of the collection is print advertisements but also
includes radio and television. NW Ayer is known for some of the slogans created for major American companies.
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists primarily of proof sheets of advertisements created by NW Ayer & Son, Incorporated for their clients. These materials are in series one through thirteen and consist primarily of print advertisements. There are also billboards, radio and television commercials. The advertisements range from consumer to corporate and industrial products. The majority of the advertisements were created for Ayer's New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and international offices. Printed advertisements created by Cunningham & Walsh, Hixson & Jorgensen and Newell-Emmett are also included among these materials. Researchers who are interested in records created by Ayer in the course of operating an advertising agency will find these materials in Series fourteen-nineteen.
Series fourteen consists of advertisements created by NW Ayer & Son to promote their services to potential clients.
Series fifteen are scrapbooks of some of the earliest advertisements created by the company. Series sixteen are publications. Some of the publications were created by Ayer while others were about Ayer or the advertising industry in general. Provides good background materials and puts the company in perspective. Series eighteen are the legal records. Materials relating to employees including photographs, oral histories etc. are found in series nineteen.
Series twenty is one of the smallest amounts of materials and includes information relating to the history of NW Ayer & Son.
The container lists for series one-thirteen are part of a database and are searchable. The list has been printed for the convenience of the researcher and is included in this finding aid. Series fourteen-twenty container lists are also a part of the finding aid but are not in a searchable format.
Series 1, Scrapbooks of Client Advertisements, circa 1870-1920, is arranged into three boxes by chronological date. There are two bound scrapbooks and one box of folders containing loose scrapbook pages. NW Ayer & Son compiled an assortment of their earliest ads and placed them into scrapbooks. Besides the earliest advertisements, the scrapbooks contain requests to run advertisements, reading notices and listings of papers Ayer advertised in. The early advertisements themselves range from medical remedies to jewelry to machines to clothing to education and more. Most of the advertisements in the bound scrapbooks are dated.
Series 2, Proofsheets, circa 1870-1930, NW Ayer was fond of creating scrapbooks containing proofsheets. The series contains proofsheets created between 1892 and 1930, organized into 526 boxes. For convenience of storage, access and arrangement, the scrapbooks were disassembled and the pages placed in original order in flat archival storage boxes. The proofsheets are arranged by book number rather than client name. Usually the boxes contain a listing of the clients and sometimes the dates of the advertisements to be found within the box.
Series 3, Proofsheets, circa 1920-1975, is organized into 532 oversize boxes, and contain proofsheets and tearsheets created between 1920 and 1972. Within this series, materials are arranged alphabetically by company name (occasionally subdivided by brand or product), and thereunder chronologically by date of production. Many major, national advertisers are represented, including American Telephone & Telegraph, Armour Company, Canada Dry, Cannon Mills, Carrier Corporation, Domino Sugar, Caterpillar tractor company, Ford Motor Company, General Electric, Goodyear, Hills Bros. Coffee, Ladies Home Journal, National Dairy, Plymouth (Chrysler Corporation), Steinway, TV Guide, United Airlines and the United States Army. Also contained in this series are three scrapbooks of client advertisements including Canada Dry, Ford Motor, and Victor Talking Machine.
Series 4, 2001 Addendum, circa 1976-2001, is organized into ninety three oversized boxes,one folder and contains proofsheets for select Ayer clients, created between 1975 and 2001. Within this series, materials are arranged alphabetically by client name and there under chronologically by date of production. Major national advertisers represented include American Telephone & Telegraph, Avon, the United States Army, DeBeers Consolidated Diamond Mines, Dupont, TV Guide, Sealtest, Kraft Foods, Gillette, General Motors, Cannon Mills.
Series 5, Billboards, circa 1952-1956, consists of mounted and un-mounted original art/mock-ups. Twenty-two pieces of original art created as mock-ups for Texaco billboards.
Series 6, Film and Video Commercials, 1967-1970,
Series 7, Radio and Television Materials, 1933-1993, undated, is arranged into eight boxes and includes radio scripts, television scripts, and story boards for commercials.
Subseries 7.1, Scripts and storyboards for Radio and Television Commercials, dates Scripts for radio and television commercials includes title, date, length of commercial, advertising agency, client information
NW Ayer's radio and television materials mainly focus on the American Telegraph and Telephone account. Some of Ayer's materials relate to Bell Telephone Hours.
Storyboards are used in television and film to assist the director in working with crew to tell the story. To show the viewer through the use of figures, visual effects and camera angles. When directors first start thinking about their storyboard they create a story in their mind. They think of all the camera angles, visual effects and how the figures will interact in their mind. They try to create an extraordinary story in their head to attract the viewer (YOU) In order for the storyboard to be entirely effective it can't be a passive document. When done properly, a storyboard serves as a central design, meeting the needs of many team members including graphics artists, video personnel and programmers.
Another function of a storyboard is to help the team communicate during the training development process. This communication is very important in working with a large team as in the movie King, produced in 1996. Figures help the director explain to the crew how they are going to record the film and how to present it to the audience. Sometimes the director wants special effects to be added to the film, but his budget might not be that big so the director will have to change the story to fit their budget.
The Visual Effects are an important part in the storyboards it adds a special touch of creativity to your film. Camera angles are an important expects in your film because the camera angles determine where the viewing audience will look. If you want your audience to look at a certain object you must turn their attention to it by focusing on that object and maybe you might try blocking something out. Then you will have your audience's attention and you may do whatever else you have to, it could be scaring them are just surprising them or whatever you do.
Also included is talent information and log sheets relating to the storage of the commercials.
Bell Telephone Hour Program, 1942-[19??], The Bell Telephone Hour, also known as The Telephone Hour, was a five minute musical program which began April 29, 1940 on National Broadcasting Company Radio and was heard on NBC until June 30, 1958. Sponsored by Bell Telephone showcased the best in classical and Broadway music, reaching eight to nine million listeners each week. It continued on television from 1959 to 1968.
National Broadcasting television specials sponsored by the Bell System, 1957-1987includes information relating to Science series, Bell system Theshold Series, Bell telephone hour and commercial and public sponsored programs
Series 8, Chicago Office Print Advertisements, 1954-1989, is arranged alphabetically by the name of the client in ninety boxes and six oversize folders. Clients include Illinois Bell Telephone (1955-1989), Microswitch (1969-1989), Teletype (1975-1984), John Deere (1974-1989) and Caterpillar (1966-1972) are particularly well represented. Other clients of interest include Dr. Scholl's shoes (circa 1968-1972), the Girl Scouts (1976-1980), Sunbeam Personal Products Company (1973-1981), Bell and Howell (1974-1983) and Alberto Culver shampoos (1967-1971), Honeywell, Incorporated, Blue Cross and Blue Shield Associations, Kraft, Incorporated, Sears, Roebuck and Company, and YMCA.
Series 9, Los Angeles Office Materials, 1950s-1987, include printed advertisements created by this office and information relating to the employees.
Subseries 9.1, Print Advertisements, 1977-1987, printed advertisements arranged in one box alphabetically by client. There is a sparse sampling of clients from this particular Ayer branch office. The majority of the advertisements contained within this series are from Pizza Hut (1986-1987). Also included are Computer Automation (1977-1978), State of the Art, Incorporated (1982) and Toshiba (1986).
Subseries 9.2, Personnel Files, 1950s-1970s, includes cards of employees who worked in the Los Angeles office. Information on the cards includes name, address, telephone number, birthday, date hired, departure date and why (retired, terminated, resigned, etc) and position. Not all cards have all information. There is also a photograph of the employees on the cards.
Series 10, Foreign Print Advertisements, 1977-1991, undated, NW Ayer maintained partnerships with international companies such as Sloanas Ayer in Argentina, Connaghan & May Paton Ayer in Australia, Moussault Ayer in Belgium, NW Ayer, LTD. in Canada, GMC Ayer in France, Co-Partner Ayer in Germany, Wong Lam Wang in Hong Kong, MacHarman Ayer in New Zealand, Grupo de Diseno Ayer in Spain, Nedeby Ayer in Sweden, and Ayer Barker in United Kingdom. This group of material is a small sampling of advertisements created from these International offices. It is arranged alphabetically by client. There are quite a few automobile advertisements (i.e. Audi, Fiat, General Motors, Mercedes-Benz, and Volkswagen). In addition there are numerous advertisements for various personal items from MacLean's toothpaste to Quick athletic shoes to Labello lip balm, etc. Most of the advertisements have the creator's name printed on the advertisements.
Series 11, Cunningham & Walsh, Incorporated Materials, 1915-1987, undated contains 98 boxes 11 folders materials from the New York advertising agency acquired by NW Ayer in the 1960s. The company began with Newel-Emmett, an agency of nine men which broke up in 1949. Two of the men Fred Walsh and Jack Cunningham formed this agency in bearing their names in 1950. The agency created "let your fingers for the walking campaign for American Telephone & Telegraph, Mother Nature for Chiffon, and Mrs. Olson for Folgers's coffee and let the good times roll for Kawasaki motorcycle. In 1986, NW Ayer Incorporated purchased Cunningham & Walsh Incorporated.
Subseries 11.1, Print Advertisements, 1915-1987, are contained in ninety eight boxes of primarily print advertisements arranged alphabetically by client name. Clients that are particularly well represented are Graybar (electrical implements, circa1926-1937), Johns-Manulle (circa1915-1971), Smith and Corono typewriters (circa 1934-1960), Sunshine Biscuit Company (circa 1925-1961), Texaco Company (circa 1936-1961), Western Electric (circa 1920- 1971) and Yellow Pages (circa 1936-1971). Cunningham and Walsh also represented several travel and tourism industry clients, including Cook Travel Services (circa 1951-1962), Italian Line (circa 1953-1961), Narragansett and Croft (circa 1956-1960) and Northwest Airlines (circa 1946-1955). There are photographs of Texaco advertisements dating from 1913-1962. There is also a scrapbook of advertisements from the Western Electric Company dating from 1920-1922.
Subseries 11.2, Radio and Television Advertisements, 1963-1967, consist of materials created for Western Electric. Materials are arranged in chronological order.
Subseries 11.3, Company Related Materials, 1962-1986, undated include client lists, information relating to NW Ayer purchase and annual report 1962.
Series 12, Hixson & Jorgensen Materials, 1953-1971, a Los Angeles advertising company, merged with Ayer in 1969. This series is housed in one box. Within the box are four scrapbooks and folders with a hodgepodge of materials relating to advertising. Of most interest are the scrapbooks. Two scrapbooks deal with Hixson and Jorgensen's self promotion ad campaign "the right appeal gets action" (1953-1957). The other two scrapbooks contain news clippings about the company and its activities (1959-1971).
Series 13, Newell-Emmet, 1942-1957, founded in 1919 and governed in the 1940s by a partnership of nine men. The partnership broke up in 1949 when the men went their separate ways. The materials consist of print advertisements for one of client, Permutit Company, a water conditioning company. The materials are arranged in one box in chronological order.
Series 14, House Print Advertisements, 1870-1991, 16 boxes consists of advertisements or self-promotion advertisements to campaign for new clients. The series is arranged chronologically by date into fifteen boxes. Within the series are two scrapbooks containing self promotion ads from 1888-1919 and 1892-1895. Numerous house ads relate to Ayer's "Human Contact" campaign. In addition to the self promotion ads, Ayer ran advertisements expounding about particular concepts or themes for example, one month the concept would "understand" while another month would be "teamwork" and yet another would be on "imagination". Some of the self promotion ads target specific groups like Philadelphia businessmen. Other advertisements incorporate the fine arts.
Series 15, Scrapbooks, 1872-1959, relates to company events, records and news clippings about Ayer's history. The six boxes are arranged by chronological date. Two of the boxes focus solely on the death of founder F.W. Ayer (1923). Another box houses a scrapbook that showcases Ayer's annual Typography Exhibition (1931-1959). One box contains a scrapbook that specifically deals with correspondences relating to Ayer's advertising. Yet another box's contents are folders of loose pages from scrapbooks that have newspaper clippings, order forms, correspondences and other company records. In one box, a bound scrapbook houses a variety of materials relating to Ayer and advertising (i.e. newspaper clippings, competitor's advertisements, NW Ayer's advertisements, correspondences for advertisements, clippings regarding the "theory of advertising."
Series 16, Publications, 1849-2006, are housed in thirty four boxes and are arranged into three main categories.
Subseries 16.1, House Publications, 1876-1994, covers diverse topics; some proscriptive works about the Ayer method in advertising, some commemorating people, anniversaries or events in the life of the agency. Materials consist of scattered issues of the employee newsletter The Next Step 1920-1921. The materials are arranged in chronological order by date of publication. Ayer in the News, The Show Windows of an Advertising Agency, 1915, book form of advertisements published on the cover of Printer's Ink, highlighting Ayer's relations with advertisers. The Story of the States, 1916, Reprint in book form of a series of articles published in Printer's Ink for the purpose of adding some pertinent fact, progressive thought and prophetic vision to the Nationalism of Advertising highlights major businesses, manufacturer, natural resources and other qualities or attractions of each state. The Book of the Golden Celebration, 1919, includes welcome address and closing remarks by founder F. Wayland Ayer, The Next Step, 1920 employee newsletter with photographs, employee profiles, in-house jokes, etc., Advertising Advertising: A Series of Fifty-two Advertisements scheduled one time a week. Twenty-seven, thirty and forty inches, a day of the week optional with publisher, 1924
Subseries 16.2, Publications about NW Ayer, 1949-2006, includes a book first published in 1939. Includes articles, documenting events and is arranged chronologically by date of publication.
Subseries 16.3, General Publications about Advertising, 1922-1974, are arranged chronologically by date of publication and relate primarily to the history of advertising.
Subseries 16.4, Publications about Other Subjects, 1948-1964, include four books about the tobacco industry primarily the history of the American Tobacco Company and Lorillard Company from the Cunningham and Walsh library.
Series 17, Business Records, circa 1885-1990s
Subseries 17.1, Contracts, 1885-1908, undated, are arranged alphabetically and span from 1885-1908. The majority of the contracts are with newspaper and magazine publishers from around the country.
Subseries 17.2, General client information, 1911-1999, undated, including active and cancelled lists with dates, client gains, historical client list, (should move this to series 20) Ayer Plan User Guide Strategic Planning for Human Contact, undated
Subseries 17.3, Individual Client Account Information, 1950s-1990s, undated, contain information used by Ayer to create advertisements for some of its clients. American Telephone &Telegraph Corporate Case History, American Telephone &Telegraph Corporate advertisement memo, commissioned artists for DeBeers advertisements, DeBeers information relating to the creative process and photography credits, a case history for DeBeers Consolidated Mines, Ltd., The Diamond Engagement Ring, Managing Communication at all levels, DuPont publications, JC Penny Marketing Communication Plan Recommendation, Leaf, Incorporated, Saturn presentation, and USAREC oral presentation.
Subseries 17.4, Potential Clients, 1993, includes grouping has a questionnaire sent to Ayer by a potential client. Questionnaire response for Prudential Securities, 1993 Prudential Securities advertising account review, 1993.
Subseries 17.5, Financial Records, 1929-1938, includes balance sheet, 1929 May 1 Balance sheet and adjustments Consolidated statement of assets and liabilities, Expenses 191936-37 Business review and expenses, 1937 and 1938 Business review and expenses comparative statement, 1937 and 1938.
Series 18, Legal Records, circa 1911-1982, Ayer's legal records are arranged by twelve subject groupings within four boxes. The twelve groupings are advertising service agreements (circa 1918-1982), bylaws, copyright claims, correspondences, international correspondences, dissolution of trusts, stock information, agreements between partners, incorporation materials, reduction of capital, property information and miscellaneous materials. The bulk of the materials are the advertising service agreements. These agreements are between Ayer and their clients and state the services Ayer will offer and at what cost. The bylaws are Ayer's company bylaws from 1969 and 1972. The copyright claims are certificates stating Ayer's ownership over certain published materials (i.e. "Policy", Media Equalizer Model, and Don Newman's Washington Square Experiment). The correspondences relate to either the voting trust and receipts for agreement or the New York Corporation. The international correspondences are from either Ayer's Canadian office or London office. The dissolutions of trusts contains materials about the dividend trust of Wilfred F. Fry, the investment trust of Winfred W. Fry, the voting trust, and the New York corporation. The stock information has stock certificates and capital stock information. The agreements between partners (1911-1916) specify the terms between F.W. Ayer and his partners. The incorporation materials (circa 1929-1977) deal with Ayer advertising agency becoming incorporated in the state of Delaware. The reduction of capital grouping is a notification that shares of stock have been retired. The property information grouping contains property deeds and insurance policy (circa 1921-1939), a property appraisal (1934), and a bill of sale (1948). The miscellaneous grouping contains a house memo regarding a set of board meeting minutes and a registry of foreign companies in Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (1929-1954).
Subseries 18.1, Advertising Service Agreements, 1918-1982
Subseries 18.2, Bylaw Materials, 1969-1972
Subseries 18.3, Copyright Claims, 1962-1969
Subseries 18.4, Correspondence, 1928-1933
Subseries 18.5, International Office Correspondence, 1947-1948
Subseries 18.6, Dissolution of Trusts, 1934-1937
Subseries 18.7, Stock Information, 1934-1974
Subseries 18.8, Agreements between Partners, 1911-1916
Series 19, Personnel Records, circa 1889-2001, are arranged into eight groupings within eight boxes. The groupings are employee card files, photographs, Ayer alumni, biographies, speeches, recollections, oral histories, and miscellaneous. Typed manuscript of book A Copy Writer Speaks by George Cecil, NW Ayer, Incorporated copy head 1920s-1950s
Subseries 19.1, Employee card files, circa 1892-1915; 1929-1963, consists of index cards with the name, age, job title, date and wage increases, date of hire/fire, as well as remarks about the employee's service and/or reasons for seeking or leaving the job. Materials are arranged alphabetically by the last name of the employee within three boxes.
Subseries 19.2, Photographs, circa 1924-1984, undated, are housed in two boxes. The photographs grouped together by subjects i.e. personnel, company events, Ayer buildings, and miscellaneous. This grouping primarily consists of personnel photographs. Includes a glass plate negative dated 1924 of NW Ayer.
Subseries 19.3, Ayer Alumni, circa 1989-98, include employees who have left Ayer. There is a listing of Ayer "graduates" and their current job. Emeritus, Ayer's alumni newsletter 1989-1996, makes up the majority of materials in this grouping. The newsletter keeps the alumni up to date with the happenings of Ayer and what has become of former Ayer employees. Emeritus is a quarterly newsletter devoted to the activities, thoughts and feelings of Ayer alumni a body of people who consists of retirees and former employees.
Subseries 19.4, Biographical Information, circa 1889-1994, undated, prominent members of Ayer's operations had biographical sketches completed of them. This was true for the bio sketches of Robert Ervin, Louis T. Hagopian, and George A. Rink. There is a substantial file on Dorothy Dignam ("Mis Dig"), a leading woman in the advertising world from the 1930s to the 1950s. Also of interest is a video ("The Siano Man") compiled by Ayer employees to commemorate Jerry Siano's retirement from Ayer in 1994. The series is arranged alphabetically by last name.
Subseries 19.5, Speeches, circa 1919-1931; 1975, contains speeches made by Wilfred W. Fry and Neal W. O'Connor. Wilfred W. Fry had various speaking engagements connected with Ayer. Contained in this group is a sampling of his speeches from 1919 to 1931. Neal O'Connor's speech "Advertising: Who Says It's a Young People's Business" was given at the Central Region Convention for the American Association of Advertising Agencies in Chicago on November 6, 1975. The speeches are arranged alphabetically by the speaker's last name.
Subseries 19.6, Recollections, 1954-1984, undated, are arranged alphabetically by last name. These are recollections from Ayer employees about the company and its advertisements. Some recollections are specifically about certain types of advertisements, like farm equipment while others reflect on F. W. Ayer and the company.
Subseries 19.7, Oral History Interview Transcripts, 1983-1985; 1989-1991, include interviews with key NW Ayer personnel, conducted by Ayer alumnae Howard Davis, Brad Lynch and Don Sholl (Vice President creative) for the Oral History Program. The materials are arranged alphabetically by the last name of the interviewee.
Subseries 19.8, Oral History Interview Audio Tapes, 1985-1990, include interviews on audiotape the materials are arranged alphabetically by the last name of the interviewee.
Subseries 19.10, General Materials, 1940; 1970, includes agency directory entry including a list of the employees, 1970s, annual banquet program for the Curfew Club May 22, 1940 a group formed by the Philadelphia employee in 1938. It sponsored numerous sports, social and educational activities. Groups were formed in public speaking, music appreciation and a series of talks on Monday evenings title the modern woman. The front page was a series of talks for general interest. A list of officers, 1991, Twenty five year club membership, 1973 December 1, List of NW Ayer graduates, 1970, List of Officers, 1991 May 31, Obituary for Leo Lionni, 1999 October 17, List of photographers of advertisements, 2001
Series 20, Background and History Information, 1817-1999, undated includes a chronology, 1817-1990, quick reference timeline, 1848-1923, loose pages from a scrapbook containing examples of correspondence, envelopes, advertisements dating from 1875-1878; slogans coined by NW Ayer & Sons, Incorporated, 1899-1990, history of management, 1909-1923, articles and photographs about the building and art galleries, 1926-1976, publications about the Philadelphia building, 1929, pamphlet relating to memories of NW Ayer & Sons, Incorporated, 1930s-1950s, television history, 1940-1948, Article about the history of the company, 1950 January, pocket guide, 1982, AdWeek reports about standings for advertising agencies, information relating to Human Contact which is NW Ayer's Information relating to Human Contact, undated which is their philosophy on advertising.
Series 21, Materials Created by other Advertising Agencies, 1945-1978, undated, consists of print advertisements collected by Ayer from other major advertising companies. The companies include Doyle Dane Bernback, Incorporated, Leo Burnett Company, Grey Advertising Agency, D'Arcy Ad Agency, Scali, McCabe, Sloves, Incorporated and Erwin Wasey Company. The materials are arranged in alphabetical order by client and include products from Ralston Purina and Van Camp (Chicken of the Sea), Kellogg, American Export Lines and No Nonsense Fashions.
Series 22, 2010 Addendum of Print Advertisements, circa 1879s-1999, undated, includes material given to the Archives Center in 2010. It is organized into seventy one oversized boxes and contains proofsheets of print advertisements for select Ayer clients. These are arranged alphabetically by client name and include substantial quantities of materials from American Telephone &Telegraph (1945-1996), Bahamas Ministry of Tourism (1967-1987), Carrier (1971-1981), Citibank (1973-1991), DeBeers (1940s-1960s and1990s), Electric Companies Advertising Program [ECAP] (1942-1970s), General Motors (1989-1998), J.C. Penney (1983-1986), Newsweek (1966-1975), and Proctor and Gamble (1980s-1890s). There are also numerous other clients represented by smaller quantities of materials.
Subseries 22.2, Print Advertisements on Glass Plate Negatives, 1879-1881, undated, include Cannon towels, Cheny Brothers silks, Cornish & Company organs and pianos, Enterprise Manufacturing Company, 1879 sad iron, an ad from Harper's Weekly 1881 for ladies clothing, Ostermoor & Company mattresses, Pear's soap, Porter's cough balsam, Steinway pianos.
Series 23, Microfilm of Print Advertisements, circa 1908-1985, consists of three boxes of printed advertisements for the American Telephone and Telegraph Company. Some of the same advertisements might also be found in series two, three and four.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into twenty-three series.
Series 1: Scrapbooks of Client Print Advertisements, circa 1870-1920
Series 2: Proofsheets, circa 1870-1930
Series 3: Proofsheets, circa 1920-1975
Series 4: 2001 Addendum, circa 1976-2001
Series 5: Billboards, circa 1952-1956
Series 6: Audiovisual Materials
Series 7: Radio and Television Materials, 1933-1993, undated
Series 8: Chicago Office Print Advertisements, 1954-1989
Series 9: Los Angeles Office Materials, 1950s-1987
Subseries 9.1: Printed Advertisements, 1977-1987
Subseries 9.2: Personnel Files, 1950s-1970s
Series 10: Foreign Print Advertisements, 1977-1991, undated
Series 11: Cunningham & Walsh Incorporated Materials, 1915-1987, undated
Subseries 11.1: Printed Advertisements, 1915-1987
Subseries 11.2: Radio and Television Advertisements, 1963-1967
Subseries 11.3: Company Related Materials, 1962-1986, undated
Series 12: Hixson & Jorgensen Materials, 1953-1971, undated
Series 13: Newell-Emmet, 1942-1957
Series 14: House Print Advertisements, 1870-1991
Series 15: Scrapbooks, 1872-1959
Series 16: Publications, 1849-2006
Subseries 16.1: House Publications, 1876-1994
Subseries 16.2: Publications about NW Ayer, 1949-1995
Subseries 16.3: General Publications about Advertising, 1922-2006
Subseries 16.4: Publications about other Subjects, 1948-1964
Series 17, Business Records, circa 1885-1990s
Subseries 17.1: Contracts, 1885-1908, undated
Subseries 17.2: General Client Information, 1911-1999, undated
Subseries 22.2: Print Advertisements on Glass Plate Negatives, 1879-1881, undated
Series 23: Microfilm of Print Advertisements, circa 1908-1985
Biographical / Historical:
Founded in Philadelphia in 1869, NW Ayer & Son is one of the oldest and largest advertising agencies in America. For most of its history, it was the undisputed leader and innovator in the field of advertising. In 1876, NW Ayer & Son pioneered the "open contract", a revolutionary change in the method of billing for advertising which became the industry standard for the next hundred years. NW Ayer pioneered the use of fine art in advertising and established the industry's first art department. It was the first agency to use a full-time copywriter and the first to institute a copy department. The agency relocated to New York City in 1974. During its long history, the agency's clients included many "blue-chip" clients, including American Telephone & Telegraph, DeBeers Consolidated Diamond Mines, Ford Motor Company, Nabisco, R. J. Reynolds and United Airlines. However, in later years, the Ayer's inherent conservatism left the agency vulnerable to the creative revolution of the 1960s and 1970s, the advertising industry restructuring of the 1980s and the economic recession of the early 1990s. The agency was bought out by a Korean investor in 1993. In 1996, NW Ayer merged with another struggling top twenty United States advertising agency, Darcy, Masius, Benton & Bowles, under the umbrella of the McManus Group. Ayer continues to operate as a separate, full-service agency.
Through a series of buyouts and mergers, Ayer traces its lineage to the first advertising agency founded in the United States, a Philadelphia agency begun by Volney Palmer in 1841. Palmer began his career in advertising as a newspaper agent, acting as middleman between newspaper publishers and advertisers across the country. By 1849, Palmer had founded his own newspaper, V. B. Palmer's Register and Spirit of the Press, and had developed a complete system of advertising which included securing advertising space and placing ads in scores of commercial, political, religious, scientific and agricultural journals across the country. Palmer went one step further than the "space jobbers" of the day when he began offering "advertisements carefully drawn for those who have not the time to prepare an original copy." Always an enthusiastic promoter of advertising as an incentive to trade and American economic growth, Palmer promised advertisers that "every dollar paid for advertising in country newspapers will pay back twenty-fold" and encouraged skeptical consumers that "he who wishes to buy cheap should buy of those who advertise." When Palmer died in 1863, the agency was bought by his bookkeeper, John Joy, who joined with another Philadelphia advertising agency to form Joy, Coe & Sharpe. That agency was bought out again in 1868 and renamed Coe, Wetherill & Company. In 1877, Coe, Wetherill and Company was bought out by the newly formed NW Ayer & Son.
Francis Wayland Ayer was an ambitious young schoolteacher with an entrepreneurial streak. Having worked for a year soliciting advertisements on a commission basis for the publisher of the National Baptist weekly, Francis Ayer saw the potential to turn a profit as an advertising agent. In 1869, Ayer persuaded his father, Nathan Wheeler Ayer, to join him in business, and with an initial investment of only $250.00, NW Ayer & Son was born. Notwithstanding a smallpox epidemic in Philadelphia in 1871 and the general economic depression of the early 1870s, the agency flourished. The senior Ayer died in 1873, leaving his interest in the agency to his wife, but Francis W. Ayer bought her out, consolidating his interest in the company's management. In 1877, with Coe, Wetherill & Company (the successor to Palmer's 1841 agency) on the verge of bankruptcy and heavily indebted to Ayer for advertising it had placed in Ayer publications, Ayer assumed ownership of that agency. Thus did NW Ayer lay claim to being the oldest advertising agency in the country.
Both Nathan Wheeler and Francis Wayland Ayer began their careers as schoolteachers, and one of their legacies was a commitment to the cause of education: correspondence schools and institutions of higher learning were historically well-represented among Ayer clients. Just after World War I, the agency was heralded as "co-founder of more schools than any citizen of this country" for its conspicuous efforts to advertise private schools. Well into the 1960s, an "Education Department" at Ayer prepared advertisements for over three hundred private schools, camps and colleges, representing almost half the regional and national advertising done for such institutions. In fact, to its clients Ayer presented advertising itself as being akin to a system of education. In 1886, Ayer began promoting the virtues of the Ayer way advertising with the slogan, "Keeping Everlastingly at It Brings Success."
The agency's goals were simple: "to make advertising pay the advertiser, to spend the advertiser's money as though it were our own, to develop, magnify and dignify advertising as a business." Initially, Ayer's fortunes were tied to newspapers, and the agency began to make a name for itself as compiler and publisher of a widely used American Newspaper Annual. During the first years, Ayer's singular goal was "to get business, place it [in newspapers] and get money for it"; after several years as an independent space broker, however, Francis Ayer resolved "not to be an order taker any longer." This decision led NW Ayer and Son to a change in its mode of conducting business which would revolutionize the advertising industry: in 1876, Ayer pioneered the "open contract" with Diggee & Conard, Philadelphia raised growers and agricultural suppliers. Prior to the open contract, NW Ayer & Sons and most agencies operated as "space-jobbers," independent wholesalers of advertising space, in which the opportunities for graft and corrupt practices were virtually unlimited. In contrast, the open contract, wherein the advertiser paid a fixed commission based on the volume of advertising placed, aligned the advertising agent firmly on the side of the advertiser and gave advertisers access to the actual rates charged by newspapers and religious journals. The open contract with a fixed commission has been hailed by advertising pioneer Albert Lasker as one of the "three great landmarks in advertising history." (The other two were Lasker's own development of "reason-why" advertising copy and J. Walter Thompson's pioneering of sex appeal in an advertisement for Woodbury's soap.) Although the transition to the open contract did not happen overnight, by 1884, nearly three-quarters of Ayer's advertising billings were on an open contract basis. Since Ayer was, by the 1890s, the largest agency in America, the switch to direct payment by advertisers had a significant impact on the advertising industry, as other agencies were forced to respond to Ayer's higher standard. Just as important, the open contract helped to establish N W Ayer's long-standing reputation for "clean ethics and fair dealing" -- a reputation the agency has guarded jealously for over a century.
The open contract also helped to establish Ayer as a full service advertising agency and to regularize the production of advertising in-house. From that point forward, Ayer routinely offered advice and service beyond the mere placement of advertisements. Ayer set another milestone for the industry in 1888, when Jarvis Wood was hired as the industry's first full-time copywriter. Wood was joined by a second full time copywriter four years later, and the Copy Department was formally established in 1900. The industry's first Art Department grew out of the Copy Department when Ayer hired its first commercial artist to assist with copy preparation in 1898; twelve years later Ayer became the first agency to offer the services of a full time art director, whose sole responsibility was the design and illustration of ads.
Ayer's leadership in the use of fine art in advertising has roots in this period, but achieved its highest expression under the guidance of legendary art director Charles Coiner. Coiner joined Ayer in 1924, after graduating from the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts. Despite early resistance from some clients, Coiner was adamant that "the use of outstanding palette and original art forms bring a greater return in readership, in impact and prestige for the advertiser." To this end, Coiner marshaled the talents of notable painters, illustrators and photographers, including N.C. Wyeth and Rockwell Kent (Steinway), Georgia O'Keefe (Dole), Leo Lionni (DuPont), Edward Steichen (Steinway, Cannon Mills), Charles Sheeler (Ford), and Irving Penn (DeBeers). Coiner believed that there was a practical side to the use of fine art in advertising, and his success (and Ayer's) lay in the marriage of research and copywriting with fine art, an arrangement Coiner termed "art for business sake." Coiner's efforts won both awards and attention for a series completed in the 1950s for the Container Corporation of America. Titled "Great Ideas of Western Man" the campaign featured abstract and modern paintings and sculpture by leading U.S. and foreign artists, linked with Western philosophical writings in an early example of advertising designed primarily to bolster corporate image. In 1994, Charles Coiner was posthumously named to the American Advertising Federation's Hall of Fame, the first full time art director ever chosen for that honor.
Coiner and fellow art director Paul Darrow also created legendary advertising with the "A Diamond Is Forever" campaign for DeBeers; ads featured the work of Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali and other modernist painters. The "A Diamond is Forever" tagline was written in 1949 by Frances Gerety, a woman copywriter at Ayer from 1943 to 1970. In 1999, Ad Age magazine cited "A Diamond is Forever" as the most memorable advertising slogan of the twentieth century.
Coiner also earned respect for his volunteer government service during World War II; he designed the armbands for civil defense volunteers and logos for the National Recovery Administration and Community Chest. As a founding member of the Advertising Council in 1945, Ayer has had a long-standing commitment to public service advertising. In the mid-1980s, Ayer became a leading force in the Reagan-era "War on Drugs". Lou Hagopian, Ayer's sixth CEO, brokered the establishment of the Partnership for a Drug-Free America, a media coalition which generated as much as a million dollars a day in donated advertising space and time to prevent the use and abuse of illegal drugs. Famous names appear among NW Ayer's clientele from the very earliest days of the agency. Retailer John Wanamaker, Jay Cooke and Company, and Montgomery Ward's mail-order business were among the first Ayer clients. The agency has represented at least twenty automobile manufacturers, including Cadillac, Chrysler, Ford, General Motors, Plymouth, and Rolls-Royce. Other major, long-term clients through the years have included American Telephone & Telegraph, Canada Dry, Cannon Mills, Hills Bros. Coffee Company, Kellogg's, R. J. Reynolds, Steinway and Sons, United Airlines, and the United States Army. By the time of Ayer's hundredth anniversary in 1969, some of these companies had been Ayer clients for decades if not generations, and the longevity of those relationships was for many years a source of Ayer's strength.
But the advertising industry began to change in the late 1960s and 1970s, due in part to a "creative revolution." Small advertising agencies won attention with provocative copywriting and art direction that more closely resembled art than advertising. Advances in market research allowed clients to more narrowly tailor their advertising messages to distinct groups of consumers, and this led to a rise in targeted marketing which could more readily be doled out to specialized small agencies than to larger, established firms like NW Ayer & Son. The civil rights and anti-war movements also contributed to increasing public skepticism with the values of corporate America, and by extension, with some national advertising campaigns. Older, more conservative firms like Ayer were hard pressed to meet these new challenges.
About 1970, in an effort to meet these challenges and to establish a foothold on the West Coast, Ayer bought out two smaller agencies--Hixson & Jorgenson (Los Angeles) and Frederick E. Baker (Seattle). The agency relocated from Philadelphia to New York City in 1974 in an attempt both to consolidate operations (Ayer had operated a New York office since the 1920s) and to be closer to the historic center of the advertising industry. Riding the wave of mergers that characterized the advertising industry in the late 1980s and 1990s, Ayer continued to grow through the acquisition of Cunningham & Walsh in 1986 and Rink Wells in 19xx.
During this transitional period, Ayer received widespread acclaim for its work for the United States Army, which included the widely recognized slogan "Be All You Can Be". Ayer first acquired the Army recruitment account in 1967 and with help from its direct marketing arm, the agency was widely credited with helping the Army reach its recruitment goals despite an unpopular war and plummeting enlistments after the elimination of the draft in 1973. Ayer held the account for two decades, from the Vietnam War through the Cold War, but lost the account in 1986 amid government charges that an Ayer employee assigned to the account accepted kickbacks from a New York film production house. Despite Ayer's position as the country's 18th largest agency (with billings of $880 million in 1985), the loss of the agency's second largest account hit hard.
NW Ayer made up for the loss of the $100 million dollar a year Army account and made headlines for being on the winning end of the largest account switch in advertising history to date, when fast food giant Burger King moved its $200 million dollar advertising account from arch-rival J. Walter Thompson in 1987. Burger King must have had drive-thru service in mind, however, and Ayer made headlines again when it lost the account just eighteen months later in another record-breaking account switch. Another devastating blow to the agency was the loss of its lead position on the American Telegraph and Telephone account. Ayer pioneered telecommunications advertising in 1908, when the agency was selected to craft advertising for the Bell System's universal telephone service. Despite valiant efforts to keep an account the agency had held for most of the twentieth century, and for which they had written such memorable corporate slogans as American Telephone &Telegraph "The Voice with a Smile" and "Reach Out and Touch Someone", the agency lost the account in 1996.
After a wave of mergers and acquisitions in the late 1980s, the economic recession of the early 1990s hit Madison Avenue hard, and Ayer was particularly vulnerable. Despite the agency's long history and roster of "blue-chip" clients, Ayer was not known for cutting-edge creative work. Moreover, though the agency had offices overseas, Ayer had never built a strong multinational presence, and many of the smaller international offices were sold during the financial turmoil of the 1980s. This left a real void in the new climate of global marketplace consolidation. By about 1990, earnings were declining (although Ayer was still among the top twenty United States agencies in billings), and the agency was suffering from client defections, high management turnover, expensive real estate commitments and deferred executive compensation deals, all fallout of the high-flying 1980s. This was the atmosphere in 1993, when W.Y. Choi, a Korean investor who had already assembled a media and marketing empire in his homeland, began looking for an American partner to form an international advertising network. Jerry Siano, the former creative director who had recently been named Ayer's seventh CEO, was in no position to refuse Choi's offer of $35 million to buy the now floundering agency. The infusion of cash was no magic bullet, however. Choi took a wait-and-see approach, allowing his partner Richard Humphreys to make key decisions about Ayer's future, including the purging of senior executives and the installation of two new CEOs in as many years.
The agency's downward trend continued with the loss of another longtime client, the DeBeers diamond cartel in 1995. Adweek reported that Ayer's billings fell from $892 million in 1990 to less than $850 million in 1995. Several top executives defected abruptly, and the agency failed to attract major new accounts. Ayer was facing the loss not merely of revenue and personnel, but the loss of much of the respect it once commanded. Ayer remained among the twenty largest U.S. agencies, but an aura of uncertainty hung over the agency like a cloud. A new CEO was appointed, and Mary Lou Quinlan became the agency's first woman CEO in 1995. A year later, Ayer and another struggling top twenty agency, D'arcy, Masius, Benton & Bowles, combined as part of the McManus Group of companies. In 1998, the McManus Group had worldwide billings of more than $6.5 billion.
Under the McManus Group, Ayer was able to expand its international operations and begin to rebuild a stronger global presence. Several important new clients were won in 1997 and 1998, including Avon, General Motors, Kitchenaid, several Procter & Gamble brands and, most notably, Continental Airlines worldwide accounts. Born in the nineteenth century, Ayer may be one of a very few advertising agencies to successfully weather the economic and cultural transitions of both the twentieth and twentieth first centuries. Ayer was eventually acquired by the Publicis Groupe based in Paris, France which closed down the N.W. Ayer offices in 2002.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
Warshaw Collection of Business Americana (AC0060)
Hills Bros. Coffee Incorporated Records (AC0395)
Provenance:
The collection was donated by N W Ayer ABH International, April 15, 1975 and by Ayer & Partners, October 30, 1996.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use.
Physical Access: Researchers must use microfilm copy. Researchers must handle unprotected photographs with gloves. Researchers must use reference copies of audiovisual materials. When no reference copy exists, the Archives Center staff will produce reference copies on an "as needed" basis, as resources allow.
Technical Access: Viewing the film portion of the collection without reference copies requires special appointment, please inquire; listening to audio discs requires special arrangement. Do not use original materials when available on reference video or audio tapes.
Rights:
Publication and production quality duplication is restricted due to complex copyright, publicity rights, and right to privacy issues. Potential users must receive written permission from appropriate rights holders prior to obtaining high quality copies. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Contents: Extracts from journal of Mr. Lusser, January 12-March 23, 1730. Typescript document. 5 pages; extract from Le Clerque de Milfort, (date), pages 288-310. Typescript document. 12 pages; extract from letter of February 8, 1733 about number of Choctaw warriors. Typescript document. 1 slip. "A Choctaw Tradition," by Reverend C.C. Copeland, tear-sheets from American Ethnological Society Transactions, volume 3 (date), pages 170-171. Printed document. 4 pages.
One reproduces Rivers's self-portrait on the Chrysler Building, indicates (in English) that he was a winner in the 1986 International Year of Peace Contest, and invites entries for its 1987 Man, Humanism, and Humanity contest. The other page reproduces the photograph in a larger size with a text in Spanish.
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
Archives Center claims copyright. Rights were conveyed to the Archives Center through a Deed of Gift signed by the donor.
Collection Citation:
Charles Rivers Photographs, 1929-1963, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
The Nike Advertising Oral History and Documentation Collection is the result of a two-year study of advertising of Nike athletic shoes. The effort was supported in part by a grant from Nike, Inc. Thirty-one oral history interviews were conducted with advertising, marketing and product development executives at Asics, Nike, John Brown & Co., Chiat/Day/Mojo and Wieden & Kennedy. A variety of related materials were gathered by the Center for Advertising History staff. The objective of the project was to create a collection that documents, in print and electronic media, the history and development of the company and its advertising campaigns.
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of thirty-one oral history interviews conducted by historian Scott Ellsworth with advertising, marketing and product development executives at Asics, Nike, John Brown & Co., Chiat/Day/Mojo and Wieden & Kennedy and related materials collected by the Center for Advertising History staff. There are audiocassettes (original and reference), 1/4" open reel audiotape (master), 3/4" videotapes, and VHS videotapes.
Arrangement:
The collection is rganized into seven series.
Series 1, Research Files, 1979-1992
Subseries 1.1, Materials Compiled by the Center for Advertising History, 1979-1992
Subseries 1.2, Material Compiled by Nike, 1982-1992
Series 2, Interviewee Files, 1990-1992
Series 3, Oral History Interviews, 1990-1992
Subseries 3.1, Original Audiotapes (audio cassette), 1990-1992
Subseries 3.3, Preservation masters (1/4 inch audiotape), 1990-1992
Series 4, Television Commercials, 1977-1990 and undated
Subseries 4.1, Master Copies, 1977-1990 and undated
Subseries 4.2, Researcher copies, 1977-1990 and undated
Series 5, Print Advertisements, 1985-1993
Subseries 5.1, Ad Slicks, 1985-1993
Subseries 5.2, Slides, 1989 and undated
Series 6, Trade Catalogues and Photographs, 1958-1982
Series 7, Administrative Files, 1982-1990
Biographical / Historical:
The Nike Advertising Oral History and Documentation Collection is the result of a two-year study of advertising of Nike athletic shoes. The effort was supported in part by a grant from Nike, Inc. Thirty-one oral history interviews were conducted with advertising, marketing and product development executives at Asics, Nike, John Brown & Co., Chiat/Day/Mojo and Wieden & Kennedy. A variety of related materials were gathered by the Center for Advertising History staff. The objective of the project was to create a collection that documents, in print and electronic media, the history and development of the company and its advertising campaigns.
The consistently high quality of this advertising, its award-winning artistic and creative innovations, and its contribution to the fitness movement in America combine to make this a significant chapter in the history of contemporary American advertising.
One aim of the project was to record the process of decision-making in the creation of successful ad campaigns, a process not often documented in the surviving records. Topics addressed in the oral history interviews include the origins of Nike and Nike advertising, the relationship between corporate culture and advertising, the place of advertising in overall marketing strategy, the development of brand image and identity, the nature of the creative process in producing effective advertising images, the use of athletes as endorsers, and Nikes's impact on the popular culture. Well-known campaigns are examined in depth, including Nikes's, use of the Beatles tune "Revolution", the "I Love L.A Spots" produced in conjunction with the 1984 Olympics, the controversial billboards campaign, the award-winning "Bo Knows" spots, and a series of commercials directed by African-American filmmaker Spike Lee. The collection is also a rich source of visual imagery for researchers interested in the portrayal of athletes, women and African-Americans.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
Alka-Seltzer Documentation and Oral History Collection, 1953-1986 (AC0184)
N. W. Ayer Advertising Agency Records, 1849-1851, 1869-1996 (AC0059)
Campbell Soup Advertising Oral History and Documentation Project, 1904-1989 (AC0367)
Cover Girl Make-Up Advertising Oral History and Documentation Project, 1959-1990 (AC04374)
Federal Express Oral History and Documentation Project Collection, 1972-1987 (AC0306)
Caroline R. Jones Collection, circa 1942-1996 (AC0552)
Marlboro Oral History and Documentation Project, circa 1926-1986 (AC0198)
Pepsi Generation Oral History and Documentation Collection, 1938-1986 (AC0092)
Rob and Julie Strasser Collection, 1970-1990 (AC0525)
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Nike, Inc. in 1991 and 1992.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the master (preservation) tapes are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The Cover Girl Make-Up Advertising Oral History and Documentation Project, 1923-1991, is the result of a year-long study in 1990, which examined the advertising created for Noxell Corporation's Cover Girl make-up products from 1959 to 1990. The objective of the project was to document, in print and electronic media, the history of Cover Girl make-up advertising since its inception in 1959.
Scope and Contents:
Twenty-two oral history interviews (conducted by Dr. Scott Ellsworth for the Archives Center) and a variety of print and television advertisements, photographs, scrapbooks, personal papers, business records and related materials were gathered by the Center for Advertising History staff. The objective was to create a collection that provides documentation, in print and electronic media, of the history and development of advertising for Cover Girl make-up since its inception in 1959.
Collection also includes earlier material related to other Noxell products, including Noxzema, with no direct connection to the Cover Girl campaign.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into eight series.
Series 1: Research Files
Series 2: Interviewee Files
Series 3: Oral History Interviews
Series 4: Television Advertising Materials
Series 5: Print Advertising Materials
Series 6: Company Publications and Promotional Literature
Series 7: Photographs
Series 8: Scrapbooks
Biographical / Historical:
George Avery Bunting founded the Noxzema Chemical Company in Baltimore, Maryland in 1917. In the 1890s, he left behind a teaching job on Maryland's Eastern shore to move to Baltimore, where he hoped to pursue a career as a pharmacist. He landed a job as errand boy and soda jerk at a local drugstore, where he worked while attending classes at the University Of Maryland College of Pharmacy. Valedictorian of the Class of 1899, Bunting was promoted to manager of the drugstore, which he purchased. Bunting began to experiment with the formulation of medicated pastes and compounds, which he marketed to his customers. In 1909, he began refining a medicated vanishing cream, which he introduced in 1914. "Dr. Bunting's Sunburn Remedy," an aromatic skin cream containing clove oil, eucalyptus oil, lime water, menthol and camphor, was mixed by hand at his pharmacy. Marketed locally as a greaseless, medicated cream for the treatment of a variety of skin conditions, including sunburn, eczema, and acne, the product was renamed "Noxzema" for its reputed ability to "knock eczema." By 1917, the Noxzema Chemical Company was formed. During the 1920s, distribution of the product was expanded to include New York, Chicago, and the Midwest and, by 1926, the first Noxzema manufactory was built in northwest Baltimore to accommodate the demand for nearly a million jars a year.
Having achieved a national market by 1938, Noxzema Chemical Company executives pursued product diversification as a means to maintain the corporate growth of the early years. In the 1930s and 1940s, line extensions included shaving cream, suntan lotion and cold cream, all with the distinctive "medicated" Noxzema aroma.
In the late 1950s, Bill Hunt, director of product development at Noxzema, suggested a line extension into medicated make-up. Creatives at Sullivan, Stauffer, Colwell & Bayles, Incorporated (SSC&B), Noxzema's advertising agency since 1946, suggested that the advertising for the new product focus on beauty and glamour with some reference to the medicated claims made for other Noxzema products. In contrast to other cosmetics, which were sold at specialized department store counters, Noxzema's medicated make-up would be marketed alongside other Noxzema products in grocery stores and other mass distribution outlets. After experimenting with names that suggested both glamour and the medicated claims (including Thera-Blem and Blema-Glow), Bill Grathwohl, Noxell's advertising director, selected Carolyn Oelbaum's "Cover Girl," which conveyed the product's usefulness as a blemish cover-up, while invoking the glamorous image of fashion models. These three elements of the advertising, wholesome glamour, mass marketing, and medicated make-up, remain central to Cover Girl advertising nearly a half-century later.
Beginning with the national launch in 1961, American and international fashion models were featured in the ads. The target audience was identified as women between eighteen and fifty-four and, initially, the "glamour" ads were targeted at women's magazines, while the "medicated" claims were reserved for teen magazines. Television ads featured both elements. Cover Girl advertising always featured beautiful women -- especially Caucasian women, but the Cover Girl image has evolved over time to conform to changing notions of beauty. In the late 1950s and 1960s, the Cover Girl was refined and aloof, a fashion conscious sophisticate. By the 1970s, a new social emphasis on looking and dressing "naturally" and the introduction of the "Clean Make-up" campaign created a new advertising focus on the wholesome glamour of the "girl next door," a blue-eyed, blonde all-American image. In the 1980s, the Cover Girl look was updated to include African-American, Hispanic and working women.
In January 1970, SSC&B bought 49% of the Lintas Worldwide advertising network. After SSC&B was acquired by the Interpublic Group of Companies in 1979, the entire Lintas operation was consolidated under the name SSC&B/Lintas in 1981. With the Procter & Gamble buy-out of the Noxell Corporation in September 1989, the cosmetics account was moved to long-time P&G agency Grey Advertising, in order to circumvent a possible conflict of interest between P&G competitor Unilever, another Lintas account. In 1989 SSC&B/Lintas, Cover Girl's agency since its launch in 1961, lost the account it helped to create and define, but the brand continues to dominate mass-marketed cosmetics.
This project is the result of a year-long study of advertising created for the Noxell Corporation's Cover Girl make-up products, 1959-1990. The effort was supported in part by a grant from the Noxell Corporation. The target audience was identified as women 18-54, and initially, the "glamour" ads were targeted at women's magazines, while the "medicated" claims were reserved for teen magazines. Television ads featured both elements. Cover Girl advertising has always featured beautiful women (especially Caucasian women), but the Cover Girl image evolved over time to conform with changing notions of beauty. In the late 1950s-1960s, the Cover Girl was refined and aloof, a fashion conscious sophisticate. By the 1970s, a new social emphasis on looking and dressing "naturally" and the introduction of the "Clean Make-up" campaign created a new advertising focus on the wholesome glamour of the "girl next door," a blue-eyed, blonde all-American image. Through the 1980s, the Cover Girl look was updated to include African-American and Hispanic models and images of women at work.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
Warshaw Collection of Business Americana (AC0060)
N W Ayer Advertising Agency Records (AC0059)
Separated Materials:
"The Division of Home and Community Life, Costume Collection (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) holds eighty-six cosmetic items and one computer that were also donated by the Noxell Corporation in 1990 in conjunction with the oral history project. These artifacts include lipstick, manicure sets, brushes, make-up, eye shadow, blush, powder puffs, eyelash curler, nail polish, and mascara. See accession number 1990.0193.
"
Provenance:
Most of the materials in the collection were donated to the Center for Advertising History by the Noxell Corporation, 1990. All storyboards and videoscripts, and a large collection of business records and proofsheets were donated by George Poris in June 1990. All mechanicals were donated by Art Weithas in June 1990. (These contributions are noted in the finding aid).
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but a portion of the collection is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Lilian Swann Saarinen papers, circa 1909-1977. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by The Walton Family Foundation; and John R. & Barbara Robinson and Deborah Schmidt Robinson & Dr. R. Perry Robinson, The Widgeon Point Charitable Foundation.
Patent and trademark documents, advertisements, sales and marketing material, market research, photographs, packaging, company newsletters and magazines, and business records documenting the history of the Maidenform Company from 1922 to1997.
Arrangement:
Collection organized into eleven series.
Series 1, Company History, 1922-1990
Series 2, News Articles, 1941-1997
Series 3, Patents, Trademarks, and Registrations, 1871-1979
Series 4, Publications, 1931-1997
Series 5, Sales and Marketing Materials, 1929-1997
Series 6, Advertising, 1929-1997
Series 7, Photographs, 1927-1993
Series 8, Patterns, circa 1950s
Series 9, World War II Activities, 1941-1946
Series 10, Labor Relations, 1937-1990
Series 11, Miscellaneous Unprocessed Materials
Biographical / Historical:
The history of Maidenform, Incorporated began at Enid Frocks, a small dress shop in New York City owned and operated by Enid Bissett. Ida Rosenthal was a Russian Jewish immigrant and seamstress at Enid's shop. In 1922, Ida and Enid decided that the fit and appearance of their custom-made dresses would be enhanced if improvements were made to the bandeaux style bras then in vogue. They gathered the bandeaux in the middle in a design modification that provided more support in a manner they believed enhanced, rather than downplayed, a woman's natural figure. Ida's husband, William, added straps and further refined the style. The called their bras "Maidenform", in counterpoint to the "Boyish Form" brand then in vogue. Initially, the bras were given away with each dress they sold. As the bras gained popularity they began selling them, and eventually the bras became so popular they stopped making dresses altogether and shifted to full-scale brassiere manufacturing. The first Maidenform plant opened in Bayonne, N.J. in 1925. After World War II, the company began marketing heavily in Europe and Latin America. Eventually, Maidenform operated plants in West Virginia, Florida, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.
Documentation for the development and manufacture of a "pigeon vest" is also included in the collection. The pigeon vest allowed troopers to carry homing pigeons with them as they parachuted behind enemy lines. During World War II, Maidenform manufactured these pigeon vests and silk parachutes for the war effort.
Maidenform advertising campaigns were enormously successful, and generated controversy as well as praise. The now famous "I Dreamed" campaign was launched in 1949; this campaign ran for 20 years, making it one of the longest running campaigns in the history of advertising. The advertisements featured models in everyday or fantastic situations, elaborately costumed but wearing only a Maidenform bra above the waist. This campaign was followed by the "Maidenform Woman" campaign which was credited with boosting sales by 200 percent in some stores. The "Dares to Dream" campaign played off the "I Dreamed" tagline in 1984, and in 1987, the "Celebrity" campaign began. The "Celebrity" ads were notable for the absence of women in lingerie; instead, well-known male actors discussed their feelings about women and lingerie in print and commercial advertisements. The tone of the advertising shifted in 1992 with a series of ads called "The Women's Advocacy" campaign.
Maidenform was family owned and operated until 1997. After the death of William Rosenthal in 1958, his wife, Ida, became the president of their company. In 1963, she suffered an incapacitating stroke. At this time, son-in-law Dr. Joseph Coleman became head of the company. Upon his death in 1968, his wife (the only surviving child of Ida and William) Beatrice Rosenthal Coleman, gained complete control over the business until her death in 1990.
The Ida and William Rosenthal Foundation, a philanthropic and charitable institution founded in 1953, is run by granddaughter Catherine Brawer.
Related Materials:
Materials at the National Museum of American History
The Division of Home and Community Life (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) holds Maidenform artifacts including brassieres, girdles, and "long-lines," and two of the costumes used in the "I Dreamed" campaign.
Other Resources
Undergarment ads in the United States, 1947-1970
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Maidenform, Incorporated in May 1997.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use. Only reference copies of audiovisual materials may be used for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The donor has imposed restrictions on reproduction, broadcast or use of the collection for commercial purposes of any kind by third parties. Reproduction, broadcast or other use of the collection for commercial purposes of any kind by third parties is subject to prior written consent. These permissions will be required until July 2047. Please see the repository for further details.
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Community Life Search this
Container:
Box 1, Folder 1
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1971
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Access and use of audiovisual materials available in the Archives Center reading room or by requesting copies of audiovisual materials at RightsReproductions@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees regarding intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Samuel Yellin Collection,1928-1975, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
This collection includes letters, sketches, style books, publicity photographs, tearsheets, articles and clippings, scrapbooks, and business documents relating to Priscilla Kidder, the Priscilla of Boston Company, and the American wedding industry. This collection is extraordinarily useful in documenting the development of wedding fashion during the last half of the 20th century. It also illustrates how a small, family-owned, woman-run business grew into a large, nationally known operation.
Scope and Contents:
The primary material in this collection consists of a few letters, mostly relating to fashion shows; photographic portraits of Priscilla Kidder, possibly from her days as a bridal gown model; sketches; and three different types of style books, one for store buyers containing information on ordering and on the various product lines, one for sales associates containing information helpful in selling the gowns and measuring and fitting the client, and one for factory Afloor girls" containing information about the construction of the gowns. Some of the style books were used by the company as "chicken books", i.e., annotated with scratch marks to indicate quantities of orders in each style, which designs were taken off line, etc. They also contain information on type of fabric and ornamentation used, yardage, measurements, available sizes, color, where advertised, and a brief description of each gown. These are arranged by line (i.e., Priscilla, Teeny, Contemporary Romantic) and thereunder by design number. Additionally, the collection contains some assorted internal business documents, but these are merely samplings of different kinds of company records and do not form a cohesive record of the business. The majority of the collection consists of secondary material from the 1950s to the 1990s, including publicity photographs, tear sheets from magazine advertising, newspaper clippings, and scrapbooks containing additional tear sheets and clippings and articles.
This collection is extraordinarily useful in documenting the development of wedding fashion during the last half of the 20th century. It also illustrates how a small, family-owned, woman-run business grew into a large, nationally known operation.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into ten series.
Series 1: Letters
Series 2: Items related to Priscilla Kidder
Series 3: Design sketches
Series 4: Style books
Series 5: Publicity photographs
Series 6: Advertising tear sheets
Series 7: Articles and clippings
Series 8: Scrapbooks
Series 9: Assorted business documents
Series 10: Miscellany
Biographical / Historical:
Priscilla Kidder actively participated in every aspect of the wedding industry for almost fifty years. She was a nationally known figure whom journalists often referred to as the "Dior" of bridal design. Priscilla Comins Kidder was born in Quincy, Massachusetts in 1918. After finishing high school she opened a small yarn shop in the community. After completing her education in retail design at the New England School of Design, she took a job at R.H. White's department store in Boston, Massachusetts. At R.H. White's she worked her way up from model to sales associate to assistant buyer in the bridal department.
The limited selection of bridal gowns available to women in the early 1940s moved Priscilla Kidder to leave R. H. White in 1945 to start her own bridal salon, which would offer a broader selection of bridal lines to a variety of brides. With the help of her husband, who became the financial consultant, she opened "The Bride's Shop" at 129 Newbury Street. It grossed $10,000 in its first week of business.
Priscilla of Boston Company grew at a rapid pace, and quickly established a national reputation. The company prided itself on innovation, and its designers blended ongoing fashion trends with classic looks to create various dress styles. One difference which distinguished Priscilla of Boston gowns from those of other bridal manufacturers in the 1940s was the decoration on the gowns. Wedding gowns at that time tended to be simple without a substantial amount of ornamentation. Priscilla was the first designer to use large amounts of lace to decorate her gowns.
Over the years Priscilla of Boston has had numerous bridal lines, in addition to the custom work that the company continued to do. In addition to the "Priscilla" line, the company started the "Betsy" line, named for Priscilla Kidder's daughter, which was created in 1960 for the woman who wanted an inexpensive dress. The "Teeny" line, later renamed the "Petite" line, was a more sophisticated title, created for the small woman. The most recent line created, in 1980, was the "Contemporary Romantic" line, a less formal gown for the refined woman. Priscilla of Boston also designed dresses for bridesmaids, mothers of brides, and debutantes.
Priscilla of Boston grew quite large, with stores and factories in Massachusetts and New York. Despite the growth of the business, which at one point manufactured more than two thousand dresses a month, the company always maintained a small, personal atmosphere. The company did not unionize, but instead functioned on a profit-sharing basis. Mrs. Kidder continuously attempted to influence the bridal industry in the United States. She stressed running a business that focused on New England morality and maintaining its family atmosphere. Priscilla Kidder also believed that a bridal showroom should hire a consultant who was near the age of the brides-to-be and was a person whom the customers could relate to.
Priscilla Kidder, along with her sister Natalie, designed the bridal gowns for the company when it first opened in 19434. She soon turned the duty over to a small team of designers. Priscilla Kidder's favorite designer was John Burbidge. His preference for elaborate gowns matched Priscilla Kidder's taste. Although she stopped designing, she stayed involved in the creative process, overseeing each sketch. Priscilla also was directly involved with the stores that marketed her gowns. She traveled throughout the United States to hold fashion shows or visit showrooms. On these trips she advised brides on how to make their weddings the most special day of their lives. She kept a high profile in the media and she created a distinctive image for herself that helped sell her products.
Among Priscilla Kidder's many accomplishments are: being chosen to design Grace Kelly's bridesmaids' gowns for her wedding to Prince Rainier in 1956; having one of her gowns selected by Luci Baines Johnson for her 1966 wedding; and designing Julie Nixon's bridal gown in 1968 and Tricia Nixon's in 1971. Priscilla Kidder credits herself with three innovations within the bridal industry. She was the first to create a petite line for the smaller woman. She also introduced gowns with pale pink coloring beneath the white fabric for a trompe l'oeil effect, and introduced a style with silk shantung. In 1993 Priscilla Kidder sold her family business to Priscilla Kaneb.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Priscilla Kidder, founder of Priscilla of Boston, December 17, 1996.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Priscilla of Boston Collection, 1940-1994, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Priscilla of Boston Collection, 1940-1994, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Priscilla of Boston Collection, 1940-1994, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Priscilla of Boston Collection, 1940-1994, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Priscilla of Boston Collection, 1940-1994, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Priscilla of Boston Collection, 1940-1994, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Priscilla of Boston Collection, 1940-1994, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
