Sheldon B. Sosna papers, 1922-2005 and undated bulk 1948-1991

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Summary

Creator:
Sosna, Sheldon B.
Abstract:
Retired advertising executive. Collection documents Sosna's long career as an advertising executive and consultant, and contains materials from a wide variety of formats, including correspondence, writings, printed material, advertisement proofs and clippings, sketches, scrapbooks, slides, negatives, and film. The collection primarily provides a record of advertising campaigns Sosna developed as a copy supervisor, creative director, and advertising executive at Gershuny Associates, Leo Burnett, Grant Advertising, Doherty Clifford Steers & Shenfield, Sullivan Stauffer Colwell & Bayles, Norman Craig & Kummel, and J.M. Mathes, from 1948 to 1973; the collection has limited material relating to the specific agencies for which he worked. In addition, the collection documents Sosna's later writings, lectures, and seminars as an independent consultant in retail and supermarket advertising from the 1970s through 2001, including a complete run of the Supermarket Advertising Newsletter (1981-2000) and a copy of his book Dodge #9: How to Never Make a Mistake: Achieving Success in a World That Is Always Looking for Someone to Blame (2001). Major advertising campaigns represented in the collection include: American Tobacco Company (Bull Durham and Silva Thins cigarettes); Bristol-Myers Company; Bulova Corporation; Dr Pepper Co.; Food Fair/Pantry Pride; Hoover Company; Ladies' Home Journal; Martex; Pabst Brewing Company; Procter & Gamble; Pure Oil Company; and Joseph Schlitz Brewing Co. The collection also documents Sosna's role as supervisor of the Peace Corps advertising campaign in its first two years, from 1961 to 1963. Peace Corps materials include print advertisements; "Volunteer Radio Kits" distributed to broadcasters; one promotional film originally aired on American television; and a letter from Robert Sargent Shriver, Jr., first director of the Peace Corps.
Extent:
8.6 Linear Feet
2600 Items
Language:
English.
Collection ID:
RL.01233

Background

Scope and content:

The Sheldon B. Sosna Papers span the years 1922 to 2001, with the bulk of the material dating from 1948 to 1991. The collection documents Sosna's long career as an advertising executive and consultant, and contains materials from a wide variety of formats, including correspondence, writings, printed material, advertisement proofs and clippings, sketches, scrapbooks, slides, negatives, and film. The collection primarily provides a record of advertising campaigns Sosna developed as a copy supervisor, creative director, and advertising executive at Gershuny Associates, Leo Burnett, Grant Advertising, Doherty Clifford Steers & Shenfield, Sullivan Stauffer Colwell & Bayles, Norman Craig & Kummel, and J.M. Mathes, from 1948 to 1973; the collection has limited material relating to the specific agencies for which he worked. In addition, the collection documents Sosna's later writings, lectures, and seminars as an independent consultant in retail and supermarket advertising from the 1970s through 2001, including a complete run of the Supermarket Advertising Newsletter (1981-2000) and a copy of his book Dodge #9: How to Never Make a Mistake: Achieving Success in a World That Is Always Looking for Someone to Blame (2001). Major advertising campaigns represented in the collection include: American Tobacco Company (Bull Durham and Silva Thins cigarettes); Bristol-Myers Company; Bulova Corporation; Dr Pepper Co.; Food Fair/Pantry Pride; Hoover Company; Ladies' Home Journal; Martex; Pabst Brewing Company; Procter & Gamble; Pure Oil Company; and Joseph Schlitz Brewing Co. The collection also documents Sosna's role as supervisor of the Peace Corps advertising campaign in its first two years, from 1961 to 1963. Peace Corps materials include print advertisements; "Volunteer Radio Kits" distributed to broadcasters; one promotional film originally aired on American television; and a letter from Robert Sargent Shriver, Jr., first director of the Peace Corps. The collection is organized into six series: Correspondence, Writings and Speeches, Printed Materials, Advertisements, Scrapbooks, and Visual Materials.

The Correspondence Series includes limited business correspondence, advertising strategy memoranda, and mailings and solicitations specifically related to Sosna's supermarket consulting. The Writings and Speeches Series includes scripts of lectures and seminars Sosna delivered on retail and supermarket advertising throughout the United States from 1983 to 1994, limited market and client reports, and an account of his work with President Kennedy and Robert Sargent Shriver, Jr. on an early promotional film for the Peace Corps. The Printed Materials Series includes Sosna's professional writings on advertising (including an installment of "Sosna on Advertising," a long-standing column featured in Grocery Marketing Magazine); a copy of his 2001 book Dodge #9: How to Never Make a Mistake; client materials (letterhead, brochures, mailings, including Peace Corps promotional materials); conference programs; and magazines. Most notably, the series includes a complete set of the Supermarket Advertising Newsletter, a monthly serial which Sosna wrote, edited, and published from January 1981 through December 2000. The Advertisements Series includes original page proofs, newspaper and magazine clippings, and concept sketches for client advertisements, with an emphasis on consumer/home products, cigarette, beer, and apparel industries. The Scrapbooks Series includes six scrapbooks of advertisement clippings, original page proofs, client brochures, and catalog mailings, primarily documenting clients in women's apparel and consumer/home products. The Visual Materials Series includes over 700 seminar slides originally used in Sosna's presentations on supermarket advertising, a set of color negatives documenting the "Pabst Red Beer" advertising campaign, and the only existing copy of a promotional film for the Peace Corps which Sosna wrote, produced, and edited. Large-format materials (clippings, proofs, sketches) have been removed from their original series location and relocated to Oversize Materials locations.

Other materials related to this collection may be found in the J. Walter Thompson Company Archives: Competitive Advertisements Collection and the J. Walter Thompson Company Archives: Corporation Vertical Files. For materials specifically relating to the agencies Norman, Craig & Kummel and the Leo Burnett Company, consult the Robert S. Smith Papers and the Kensinger Jones Papers, respectively. For materials relevant to American Tobacco Company advertising, see the James Buchanan Duke Papers, the Benjamin Newton Duke Papers, and the John M. W. Hicks Papers. For materials on beer advertising for the Pabst Brewing Company and Schlitz Brewing Company, see the Howard Scott Papers. Materials relevant to Procter & Gamble Company advertising may be found in the D'Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles Advertisements, the D'Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles Archives, and the Wells Rich Greene, Inc. Records. Additionally, materials relating to Peace Corps advertising may be found in the David B. McCall Papers.

Biographical / historical:
Chronology
Date Event
1922 June 14 Born in Chicago
1942 Enlisted in the United States Army
1943-1946 Served three years in U.S. Army, Pacific Theater; achieved rank of Captain
1944 Married Relma B. Blevins
1946 Received MA from University of ChicagoReceived BA from Northwestern University (originally class of 1944, degree delayed by war)
1946-1948 Established sales firm, worked as manufacturers' sales representativeSelf-employed
1948-1953 Joined Gershuny Associates, a Chicago-based advertising firm, as Partner and Executive Vice-President; directed Gershuny's subsidiary companies DriJuice Corporation, Texto Products Corporation and Lewis & Clark Films
1953-1958 Joined the Leo Burnett Company as Senior Copywriter, promoted to Copy Supervisor. Supervised major accounts (Brown Shoe Company, Crane Plumbing, Hoover Company, Kellogg's, Pabst Beer, Pillsbury, Procter & Gamble, Pure Oil); worked as speechwriter for Mr. Burnett
1958-1960 Joined Grant Advertising, Chicago, as Creative Director. Supervised foreign operations and creative work within Grant's domestic offices, served as agency spokesman; supervised Grant's television production facilities in Chicago and Los Angeles, produced and directed several commercials (Archway Cookies, Comet Rice, Dr Pepper, Old Milwaukee Beer)
1960 Received American Television Festival Award for "Best Commercial: Health and Beauty Aid" (Bristol-Myers "Ipana" toothpaste commercial)
1960-1963 Joined Doherty, Clifford, Steers & Shenfield, a New York City advertising firm, as Vice-President and Creative Supervisor; responsible for Bristol-Myers account
1961-1963 Developed and supervised first two years of Peace Corps advertising and recruiting campaign
1963-1965 Joined Sullivan, Stauffer, Colwell & Bayles as Vice-President and Copy Supervisor; responsible for American Tobacco Company, Bache & Company Brokerage, Bulova accounts
1965-1968 Joined Norman, Craig & Kummel; served as Vice-President and Management Supervisor; responsible for American Tobacco Company, Hertz, Revlon accounts
1968-1971 Joined J.M. Mathes, Inc. as Executive Vice-President
1972 Became Vice President of Marketing for the supermarket chain Food Fair/Pantry Pride, based in Philadelphia
1978 Founder and President of The Sosna Company, consulting firm specializing in supermarket advertising and marketing; pioneered frozen food advertising for Keystone Foods
1979-1988 Contributed regular column to Grocery Marketing Magazine,"Sosna on Advertising"
1981-2000 Sponsored annual Supermarket Ad Expo at venues across the countryFounder, editor, and publisher of monthly Supermarket Advertising Newsletter; established Sosna as a leading voice in the supermarket advertising industry
2000 Retired after over fifty years in advertising
2001 Published Dodge #9: How To Never Make a Mistake: Achieving Success in a World That Is Always Looking for Someone to Blame
Acquisition information:
The Sheldon B. Sosna Papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library as gifts in 2003 and 2004.
Processing information:

Processed by Casey A. Jarrin

Completed January 3, 2005

Accessions 2003-0243 and 2004-0068 were merged into one collection, described in this finding aid.

Physical location:
For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.
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Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Contents

Using These Materials

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Restrictions:

Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection.

All or portions of this collection may be housed off-site in Duke University's Library Service Center. There may be a 48-hour delay in obtaining these materials.

Also, one phonograph recording in this collection is not immediately accessible, because it requires further processing before use.

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

Terms of access:

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.

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Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Sheldon B. Sosna Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University