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Inventory of the J. Walter Thompson Company. Arnold Grisman Papers, 1934-1997 and undated, bulk 1969-1987

Abstract

The J. Walter Thompson Company (JWT), founded in 1864, is one of the oldest and largest enduring advertising agencies in the United States. Arnold Grisman joined JWT as a copywriter in 1955. Grisman held a number of positions during his career with JWT, and rose to become Creative Director of the New York Office and an Executive Vice President. A prolific writer, Grisman produced numerous short stories, three published novels, and speeches for other JWT executives.

The Arnold Grisman Papers span the years 1934-1997, with the bulk of materials spanning 1969-1987, and includes correspondence, speeches, presentations, memoranda, manuscripts, photographs, videocassettes and publications that document Grisman's work on a number of projects. Materials in collection represent work on a proposed collection of the writings of early JWT executive James Webb Young; research on the JWT London Office; Grisman's consultant work for the 1969 NASA Space Task Force Report; interviews with Dick Lord, Frank Stanton, John Goodyear, Bob Dilenscheider, Ron Kovas, Joe O'Donnell, and Jack Peters, for JWT's 1986 Annual Report; internal executive reports; publications by and about JWT; proceedings from an experimental TV commercial workshop; a 1973 presentation to the Ford Motor Company; a typescript of We aim to bring results by John Philip Jones (later edited and published as Does It Pay To Advertise? by Lexington Books, Lexington, Mass., 1989); and notes and early drafts of a writing project entitled Rush Hour. Other JWT staff represented in the collection include George Black, George Butler, Sidney Bernstein, Steve Darland, Colin Dawkins, Ken Hinks, Marion Howington, Don Johnston, Stephen King, Howard Kohl, Denis Lanigan, Burt Manning, Sam Meek, Donald Marschner, and Nancy Stephenson.

Descriptive Summary

Repository
David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University
Creator
J. Walter Thompson Company.
Title
J. Walter Thompson Company. Arnold Grisman Papers, 1934-1997 and undated, bulk 1969-1987
Language of Material
English
Extent
4.2 Linear Feet, 3150 Items
Location
For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.

Series Quick Links

Collection Overview

The Arnold Grisman Papers span the years 1934-1997, with the bulk of materials spanning 1969-1987, and includes correspondence, speeches, presentations, memoranda, manuscripts, photographs, videocassettes and publications that document Grisman's work on a number of projects. Materials in collection represent work on a proposed collection of the writings of early JWT executive James Webb Young; research on the JWT London Office; Grisman's consultant work for the 1969 NASA Space Task Force Report; interviews with Dick Lord, Frank Stanton, John Goodyear, Bob Dilenscheider, Ron Kovas, Joe O'Donnell, and Jack Peters, for JWT's 1986 Annual Report; internal executive reports; publications by and about JWT; proceedings from an experimental TV commercial workshop; a 1973 presentation to the Ford Motor Company; a typescript of We aim to bring results by John Philip Jones (later edited and published as Does It Pay To Advertise? by Lexington Books, Lexington, Mass., 1989); and notes and early drafts of a writing project entitled Rush Hour. Other JWT staff represented in the collection include George Black, George Butler, Sidney Bernstein, Steve Darland, Colin Dawkins, Ken Hinks, Marion Howington, Don Johnston, Stephen King, Howard Kohl, Denis Lanigan, Burt Manning, Sam Meek, Donald Marschner, and Nancy Stephenson.

The Collection is organized into three series: Printed Materials, Photographs, and Audiovisual Materials. The Printed Materials Series consists primarily of speeches, presentations and memoranda, as well as research materials for a proposed collection of the writings of early JWT executive James Webb Young. The Photographs Series includes transparencies, prints, and negatives of JWT's U.S. and European staff. The Audiovisual Materials Series consists of 5 videotapes that accompanied Mr. Grisman's major presentations.

Administrative Information

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warning Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

However, original audiovisual materials are closed to researchers; Use Copies are available in the collection.

Collection may contain materials to which the Acknowledgment of Legal Responsibilities and Privacy Rights form applies. Patrons must sign this form before using this collection.

Also, all or portions of this collection may be housed off-site in Duke University's Library Service Center. Consequently, there may be a 24-hour delay in obtaining these materials.

Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library to use this collection.

warning Use Restrictions

The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

Contents of the Collection

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Contains speeches, interviews, presentations, proceedings, clippings, and correspondence that document the work of key JWT staff, including that of Grisman. Also contains a proposed collection of writings by James Webb Young dating from the 1930s through 1960s. Arranged alphabetically.

Desensitization of America, 1975-1976
(3 folders)
Box 1
Rush Hour draft and supporting materials, 1997 and undated
Box 1
What's New Pussycat? 1965; and The Restless Scene, 1966
Box 1
X-Rated Society, circa 1975
Box 1
Black, George, JWT Frankfurt Report, 1983
Box 1 (continued)
Butler, George, George Butler Remembers..., 1985 and A History of Berkeley Square, 1977
Box 1 (continued)
Biographical, 1986-1987
Box 1 (continued)
JWT history project, 1978-1980
Box 1 (continued)
Writings, 1986 and undated
Box 1 (continued)
Before and After, 1972
Box 1 (continued)
How to Keep Your Television Budget from Disappearing, drafts, 1985
Box 1 (continued)
Interviews for Annual Report, featuring Bob Dilenschneider and Ron Kovas; Dick Lord; Frank Stanton; Joe O'Donnell and Jack Peters; and John Goodyear, 1986
(5 folders)
Box 1 (continued)
Materials for NASA Space Task Force Assignment, 1969
(2 folders)
Box 2
Memoranda and other materials,
Box 2
Wrestling with the Corporate Conscience, 1983, with clipping about Grisman from issue of Madison Avenue, 1973
Box 2
Hinks, Ken, original script for talk on JWT history, 1982
Box 2
Howington, Marion, J. Walter Thompson: A Legend in his own Time, 1988
Box 2
American Association of Advertising Agencies: A Report from the Chairman to the AAA Annual Meeting 1982
Box 2
American Consumer 1970-1990: Great Expectations 1977 (Adapted from a speech by Johnston.)
Box 2
JWT Recruit Program (Original), 1981
Box 2
Look at the Company You Have Joined, 1984
Box 2
Marketing in the Global Village, 1985
Box 2
Quick Tour Through The Past, Present, and Future of Advertising, 1981
Box 2
Re-examination of the Process of Branding (Original), 1981
Box 2
Trends in American Advertising (Original), 1981
Box 2
Voice and Conscience of an Industry, 1983
Box 2
Jones, John Philip, We Aim To Bring Results, manuscript, circa 1989
(2 folders)
Box 2
King, Stephen, Market Modeling, circa 1978
Box 2
Kohl, Howard Through the Years with Howard Kohl, 1985
Box 2
Advertising in Crisis Situations (A Survival Manual for Bad Times), 1983-1984
Box 2
Advertising Wars, 1985
Box 3
Cola Wars, 1985-1986
Box 3
It's a Long Way Down to the Creative Department, or Information and its Discontents, 1986
Box 3
What is Multinationality? Can it be Cured? 1983-1984
Box 3
Where it Comes From, Where it is Today, Where it Appears to be Going, 1984
Box 3
Big Idea, 1988
Box 3
Birth of a Giant, essay by Donald Merschner with letter from Merschner to Manning, 1962, and 1988
Box 3
In Our Hands, circa 1987; The Soul of a Company, 1988; How Bad Is It? circa 1988
Box 3
Responses to Questions by Media Key, circa 1988; In Our Hands, 1987; presentation and notes, 1987
Box 3
Untitled presentation and notes, 1987
Box 3
Stephenson, Nancy, Why Women? 1962

Unilever conference paper.

Box 3
Wade, James, The Seventies: A Marketing View, 1971
Box 3
Biographical material, circa 1975-1986
(2 folders)
Box 3
Interviews, 1963-1986

[Interviewers: Colin Dawkins, Sidney Bernstein. Includes photocopy of Young's 1986 stockholder's affidavit]

Box 3
Lectures 1934
Box 3
Posthumous publishing efforts by Grisman, et. al., 1985-1988
(2 folders)
Box 4
What Jim Young Said and What He Didn't Say, speech given by Jeremy Bullmore, European Managers Meeting, 1978
Box 4
Close-Up London (A and B), 1985
Box 4 (continued)
Explanatory letter from Hilda to Colin Dawkins about Sam Meek, 1986
Box 4 (continued)
For OCT/NOV JWT News: Before Berkeley Square, JWT London, undated
Box 4 (continued)
JWT London Office History, 1966-1983
Box 4 (continued)
JWT London Post WWII, 1965-1983
Box 4 (continued)
JWT London research materials, 1958-1977 and undated
Box 4 (continued)
The New Sam Meek Piece, 1986 and undated
Box 4 (continued)
Around the World in 80 Years,circa 1984 and J. Walter Thompson Company, 1987
Box 4 (continued)
European Managers' meeting, 1969
Box 4 (continued)
Ford presentation, 1973
(1-3 of 4 folders)
Box 4 (continued)
Ford presentation (continued), 1973
(4 of 4 folders)
Box 5
How Long Should an Advertisement Be? 1956-1962 and undated
Box 5
The Image of an Imaging Company, Kodak presentation, 1983
Box 5
Institutional Investors, JWT Presentation, 1994 Aug. 24
Box 5
Managers' meeting (Don Johnston and Denis Lanigan), 1984
Box 5
The Process of Self-Regulation in Advertising: A Presentation by the National Advertising Review Council to the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee, 1981
Box 5
Project Alpha Experimental TV Workshop, 1971
Box 5
Speeches, 1970-1979
(5 folders)
Box 5
The T-Plan File, 1973
Box 5
Trouble at the Credibility Gap, 1974
Box 5
Worldwide Slide Presentation/Profile Book, 1985
Box 5
Ad Week and Advertising Age,

[Features cover stories on JWT]

Box 6
Recent Events, (clipping collection), 1982
Box 6
Recent Events Book VI, News Coverage, JWT Syndication Situation, (clipping collection), 1982
Box 6
Recent Events VII, Second Quarter, Gray Lawsuit, (clipping collection), 1982
Box 6

Includes color transparencies, black-and-white and color prints of JWT American and European staff.

J. Walter Thompson, undated
Box 6 (continued)
JWT European offices and staff, circa 1980
Box 6 (continued)
JWT European offices and staff, circa 1980
Box 6 (continued)
JWT New York, undated
Box 6 (continued)
Latin American Manager's Meeting, 1982
Box 6 (continued)

Consists of videotapes that accompanied Grisman's major presentations, Originals are closed to researchers; use copies are available in the collection.

OR 1. Kraft 75th Anniversary, part one. Format: Umatic. Undated. See use copy, UC1.
Box 7
OR 2. Kraft 75th Anniversary, part two. Format: Umatic. Undated. See use copy, UC2.
Box 7
OR 3. Roots of Human Communication. Format: Umatic. Undated. See use copy, UC3.
Box 7
OR 4. Desensitization of America, 1976. Format: Umatic. 1976. See use copy, UC4.
Box 7
OR 5. Desensitization of America. Format: Umatic. Undated. See use copy, UC5.
Box 7
MC1-MC5. Masters for OR1-OR5. Format: Betacam SP. Created: 2008.
Box 8
UC1-UC5. Use copies for OR1-OR5. Format: DVD. Created: 2008.
Box 6 (continued)

Historical Note

DateEvent(s)
1920 Sept. 5Born, Arnold Ellis Grisman
1941B.A. in English, Harvard University
1942M.A. in English, Columbia University
1947Left Columbia University without completing Ph.D in English
1955Joined JWT as copywriter; worked primarily for Ford Thunderbird account
1960 Feb. 15Leave of Absence to work on Ford Canadian Car X account
1960 May 16Worked on Shell Oil Co. account
1963Elected vice president of JWT
1966Named Creative Supervisor
1971Appointed Creative Director, New York and elected Executive Vice President of JWT
1985Celebrated 30th anniversary of employment with JWT
2008 Mar. 12Died, Albany, N.Y.

In addition, Grisman wrote extensively and published three novels: Early to Rise (1958); Bongo (1961); and The Winning Streak (1985).

Subject Headings

Related Material

Related Material

For further research, other materials relating to this collection may be found in the following collections within The J. Walter Thompson Company Archives: the Colin Dawkins Papers, the Sidney Ralph Bernstein Company History Files, the Don Johnston Papers, the Frankfurt Office. Denis Lanigan Papers, the Frankfurt Office. George Black Papers and the World War II Advertising Collection.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], J. Walter Thompson Company. Arnold Grisman Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.

Provenance

The J. Walter Thompson Company. Arnold Grisman Papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library as a transfer in 1987, with additions in 2001.

Processing Information

Processed by Stacy Lavin, May 2007; additional processing by Richard Collier, March 2008

Encoded by Richard Collier, Ruth E. Bryan, and Stacy Lavin, May 2007 and March 2008

Accessions 870305, 810908, 831209, 2001-0149 were merged into one collection, described in this finding aid.

Descriptive sources and standards used to create this inventory: DACS, EAD, NCEAD guidelines, and our local Style Guide.

This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.