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John W. Hartman Center for Sales, Advertising, and Marketing History

Advertising Agency Records in the Hartman Center

Alka Seltzer Ad from Wells Rich Greene Ad Agency

Bates Worldwide Records, 1934–2003 [Finding Aid]
Advertising agency founded in 1940, noted for a hard-sell advertising philosophy it called the "Unique Selling Proposition." Contains office files, correspondence, new business proposals, as well as print advertisements and graphic designs. Principal clients represented include Carter-Wallace (Arrid deodorants, Trojan condoms), Footlocker, Hyundai, and Wendy's. Finding aid available in the reading room.
Brouillard Communications, Inc. Vertical Files, ca. 1973–2000 [Finding Aid]
Advertising agency founded in 1968 as a division of the J. Walter Thompson Company, specializing in corporate advertising for major American and multinational firms. Contains corporate image advertisement clippings and proofs, primarily in the computer, fashion, liquor, insurance, mutual funds, and telecommunications industries. Major clients represented include AT&&T, Du Pont, General Electric, IBM, Kodak, RJR Nabisco, and Xerox. Also includes articles and unpublished reports on major industries and corporate clients.
Charles W. Hoyt Company Records, 1894–1973 and undated (bulk 1909–1928) [Finding Aid]
Primarily documents the founding and operation of the company, in addition to the personal activities of the Hoyt family (Charles, Effie, Winthrop, and Everett), particularly Winthrop's service during World War II in the U.S. Army Air Force. Includes correspondence, scrapbooks, company publications and manuals, financial records, clippings, diaries, writings, drawings, photographs, house advertisements, Nazi medals, song lyrics, and printed material. Scrapbooks contain materials for Arnold Bakers, Golden Blossom Honey, Jamaica Tourist Board, KLM, Stanley Home Products, the Charles B. Woolson Co. and the State of New Hampshire. The collection includes limited client material; the only surviving client advertisements are for Merck & Co.
D'Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles Archives, 1929-1989 (bulk 1950s–mid 1980s) [Finding Aid]
Contains Benton & Bowles agency and client files, print and television advertisements, films, photographs, audio tapes, clippings, research notes, and financial papers primarily created by the New York office. Documents the advertising careers of William B. Benton and Atherton W. Hobler and the 1985 merger of the D'Arcy-MacManus & Masius agency with Benton & Bowles to form DMB&B. Also contains research and publications on the history of Benton & Bowles by Gordon Webber and Frank Smith; television programs created by B & B in the 1950s; materials on employee training, recruitment, and management; and marketing research.
Foote Cone & Belding Television Commercial Scripts, 1976-1978 [Catalog]
Advertising agency based in Chicago. Collection contains television commercial transcripts and radio/television reports for a variety of nationally advertised branded products. Also includes photoboards and storyboards created for commercials.
Gotham, Inc. Records, 1973-1996 [Catalog]
Advertising agency founded in 1995, successor to several agencies including Laurence Charles Free & Lawson and Daniel & Charles. Collection primarily contains videotapes of commercials produced from 1973-1996 for Gotham's clients, including Bristol Myers, Gorton's, American Tobacco products, and Heublien. Also includes slides of print advertisements, laminated print ads, and miscellaneous articles and brochures about Gotham's predecessor agencies.
J. Walter Thompson Company Archives, 1862-2003 (bulk 1890s-1990s) [Collection Guide]
Originally founded by William James Carlton in 1864 under the name Carlton & Smith, the J. Walter Thompson Company grew to become the largest multinational agency in the world. The JWT Archives represents the most extensive surviving historical record of any advertising agency, and contain over 80 individual collections. Materials represented include: account files and advertisements for major clients such as Andrew Jergens, Chesebrough-Pond's, Eastman Kodak, Ford Motor Company, Kellogg's, Kraft, Lever Brothers, Pan American, Seven-Up, and Warner Lambert; international and competitive print advertisements; corporate, financial, and personnel files; correspondence and memoranda; records for the Chicago, Detroit, Frankfurt, London, and New York offices; the papers of various JWT executives; writings and speeches; research and marketing reports; press clippings, newsletters, and JWT publications; microfilms; and audio-visual materials. For a comprehensive listing of collections included in the JWT Archives, please consult the Principal Collections-JWT page.
Warwick Baker O'Neill Records, 1931-2000 (bulk 1985-2000) [Finding Aid]
Records of the agency founded in 1939 by John P. Warwick, which operated under various names until its closing in 2001: Warwick & Legler (1939-1972), Warwick Welsh & Miller (1972-1982), Warwick Advertising (1982-1988), Warwick Baker Fiore (1988-1996). Includes new business documents and pitches, case studies and qualitative research, account planning, employee office files, memoranda and correspondence, storyboards and audio/videotapes of radio/television commercials, print advertisements, scrapbooks, and public relations materials. The major campaign represented is "Crafted With Pride in the USA;" other products and clients include Driver's Mart, WestPoint Pepperell, Benjamin Moore Paint, US Tobacco (Skoal and Copenhagen brands), Panasonic, Fruit of the Loom, Bausch & Lomb, Bacardi, Heineken, Amstel Light, and Van Munching.
Wells Rich Greene Archives, 1966-1997 [Catalog]
Advertising agency founded in 1966 by Mary Wells (former copy writer for Doyle Dane Bernbach), this fast-growing creative firm was renowned for groundbreaking advertising campaigns from the 1960s until it closed its doors in 1998. Influenced by the countercultural youth movement of the late 1960s, WRG adopted a progressive approach to advertising, epitomized in campaigns for Love Cosmetics. Archives primarily contain print advertisements for clients including American Motors (1969-1972), Benson & Hedges (1960s), Ford (late 1970s), Max Factor (1978-1985), Miles Laboratories (1971-1982), Pan American (1982-1988), and Philip Morris (1972-1990); also includes advertisements for clients represented by WRG during the technology boom of the late 1980s, such as IBM, MCI Communications, and Atari. In addition to print ads, also contains press clippings, promotional materials, and films/videotapes of commercials. Box lists for the Wells Rich Greene print advertisements and films can be found in the reading room finding aid drawer.