Sponsor (Jan-Apr 1958)

oHcited commercials written in the same vein by radio fans — and they're good ! It must sell Ed Graham, who with radio t\ -tarBob and Ray have formed the firm of Goulding-Efliott-Graham and are generally credited with the present creative surge in radio copy (they sired Piel Brothers. Bert and Harry, and the more recent sensation (see page 39 I — Emily Tipp for Tip Top Bread), points out one pitfall of the present trend of humor commercials. "A good salesman." says Graham, "has a sense of humor, hut he never loses sight of the fact that he's out to sell. Just being fimm is not enough. And to try to be too funny can backfire. A straight com. mercial well done is still preferable to a comedy commercial that falls flat." G-E-G never forgets the sell; the humor of Bert and Harry Piel. for instance, comes naturally from their very earnest effort to sell beer. Goodman Ace, tv and radio's highest-paid comedy writer, has done a series of five commercials for Lady Borden's Ice Cream and five for Borden's Coffee. But he has worked closely with Harry Bressler. vice president and director of radio/tv commercials for Borden's agency. Doherty, Clifford. Steers & Shenfield. Ace and his wife. Jane, have revived the characters that were a sensation in radio programing during the 1930's — Easy Aces — for these commercials, and Bressler makes sure that Borden ice cream or coffee get consistent mention in the scripts. Bressler likes to call commercials of this type "off-beat" rather than "funny" or "light touch." In his own shop he sees a trend away from jingles, although he feels a good jingle in a saturation campaign is still a great tiling. "W ith the resurgence of radio." says Bressler, "it's becoming a problem to get your commercial heard — hence the trend toward 'off-beats.' Where an account doesn't have the budget for saturating a jingle, they can often compensate with ingenuity by slotting less often with interesting and entertaining commercials that command listener attention." In short, the continuing trend toward quality commercials in radio points up one thing. In the face of tv dominance, the creative radio writer now emerges with a new -tature. Like murder, quality will out. ^ How Compton billing! ^ On 28 April, Compton celebrates its 50th anniversary, with a $75 million rate of billing, 60% in air media ^ Agency's development in past 10 years reflects big agency revolution to broad marketing service concepts By Evelyn Konrad 3ome 23 years ago, Jake Frazier, vhen a partner in the Blackman Co. advertising agency, wrote a letter to a former classmate in Cincinnati. By return mail. Frazier had landed the P&G account. Today, Compton, successor to the Blackman Co., is still a P&G anchor agency. It marks its 50th anniversaryon 28 April with billings 10 times bigger than a quarter of a century ago. But as Bart Cummings, Compton's crew-cut young president, puts it: "Attracting new accounts to an agency has turned from an art into a science." The aura of scientific specialization today permeates all phases of the agency's operation. Compton senior v.p. Al Flouton defines the agency this way : "Compton is a businessman's agency, approaching the total job of mar keting and using advertising and promotion to achieve profitable marketing goals." Under Cummings' leadership (he became president in 1955), the growth and change in Compton has reflected recent revolutions in the advertising industry and today puts in focus the role of the advertising agency in the future: • Agency growth in the past decade outstripped progress made during any comparable period in advertising history. Compton mushroomed from $17 million in the late forties to $75 million in 1958. • Compton's air billing accounts for the lions share of agency growth. Today it represents nearly 60% of total agency billing, or some $45 million. This is a rate comparable to or above the rate of air billings at the top 30 air media agencies. • Compton has capitalized on the CURRENT COMPTON TELEVISION ACTIVITIES Tv network shows Origination Sponsor \^ yatt Earp ABC Hollywood Gleem, Drene The Guiding Light CBS New York Ivory, Blue Dot Duz (Duncan Hines. Sectional) Doug Edwards & The News CBS New York American Can House Party CBS Hollywood Inst. & Reg. C&S Coffee This Is Your Life NBC Hollywood Ivory Bar Trackdown CBS Hollywood Socony Leave It To Beaver CBS Hollywood Remington Rand Edge of Night CBS New York Inst. & Reg. C&S Coffee Tv syndicated shows Markets Sponsor State Trooper Green Bay, Wis. Hieleman Sea Hunt 10 Midwest mkts. Hieleman Highway Patrol San Diego, Cal. Fizrin Last of the Mohicans 14 West Coast mkts Langerdorf Annie Oakley Roanoke, Va. Big Top Peanut Butter Annie Oaklev Charleston, W. Va. Big Top Peanut Butter Badge 714 Paducah, Ky. Sterling Current tv properties enjoy average low $2.98 cost-per-1,000 commercial r SPONSOR • 26 APRIL 1958