The Lester Wunderman Papers span the years 1946-2010 and include writings, speeches, correspondence, reports, photographs, audiocassettes, videocassettes, 16mm films, and other materials relating to Wunderman's career in direct marketing and direct-mail advertising, his work on Boards of Directors and Trustees, and as a consultant. Included are drafts, proofs and correspondence relating to Wunderman's 1996 book Being Direct: Making Advertising Pay. Advertising agencies represented in the collection include Caspar Pinsker, Maxwell Sackheim, Wunderman Cato Johnson, Wunderman Ricotta & Kline and Young & Rubicam. Also included are correspondence, photographs, negatives and other materials relating to Wunderman's collection of Dogon (Mali) art works, carvings and sculptures, and their use in museum exhibits, catalogs and books on African art. Firms and institutions represented in the collection include American Express, Children's Television Workshop (Sesame Street, Electric Company), Columbia House record club, Ford (including Lincoln-Mercury and Merkur), IBM, Jackson & Perkins mail order nursery, Mitchell Madison Group, Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.), National Observer Correspondence Schools (Famous Artists School, Famous Writers School) and Time, Inc. magazines. Languages present include Spanish, French, Danish, German and Japanese, and have not been translated into English.
Chronology List
Date |
Event |
1920 June 22 | Born, New York, N.Y. |
1939 | Co-founder, with brother Irving, Coronet Advertising Service |
1942-1947 | Vice President, Caspar Pinsker Advertising Agency |
1947 | Joined Maxwell Sackheim & Co. advertising agency; eventually promoted to Executive Vice President |
1958 | President and Founder, Wunderman Ricotta & Kline (WRK) |
1961 Oct. 1 | Speech to Hundred Million Club (precursor to Direct Marketing Club of New York); first documented use of the term "direct marketing" in a speech by Wunderman |
1967 | Mail Order Man of the Year, Advertising Club of New York MIT speech, elaboration of the "direct marketing" concept before the American Marketing Association; speech later read into the Congressional Record |
1973 | WRK merged with Young & Rubicam |
1973-1976 | Travels to Africa; photography of Dogon life and sculpture |
1977 | Chairman, WRK |
1981 | Frontiers of Direct Marketing published |
1982 | Direct Marketer of the Year, Direct Marketing Day in New York |
Circa 1982-1989 | Chairman, Visiting Committee of the Arts of Africa, Oceania and the Americas, Metropolitan Museum of Art |
1983 | Direct Marketing Association Hall of Fame |
1984 | Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters, Brooklyn College, City University of New York |
1985 | Focus Award, Montreux Symposium of Direct Marketing |
Circa 1986-1992 | Trustee, Children's Television Workshop |
1987 | WRK name change to Wunderman Worldwide |
1988 | Special Exhibition of Wunderman's Dogon art collection, Metropolitan Museum of Art, N.Y., and the Louvre, Paris |
1992 | Wunderman Worldwide merger with Cato Johnson to form Wunderman Cato Johnson |
1994 | Edward N. Mayer, Jr. Award for Educational Leadership, Direct Marketing Educational Foundation |
1996 | Being Direct: Making Advertising Pay published Wunderman LLC consulting firm |
1997 | Lifetime Achievement Award, Direct Marketing Day in New York |
1998 | Advertising Hall of Fame |
1998 | Retired from Wunderman Cato Johnson |
2001 | Wunderman Cato Johnson renamed Wunderman, NY; Wunderman named Chairman Emeritus |
2004 | Being Direct: Making Advertising Pay, second edition, published |
2010 | Chairman Emeritus, Visiting Committee, Rockefeller Wing at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, N.Y. |
In addition, Wunderman has been involved in a range of professional and personal activities:
Education: Adjunct Professor of Marketing, Columbia University School for Continuing Education; Visiting Clinical Professor of Direct Marketing, School for Continuing Education, New York University; Chairman, Executive Committee, Center for Direct Marketing, New York University; Editorial Review Board, Journal of Direct Marketing, Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern University; Lectured on direct marketing, primitive art, communications and advertising. Attended New York University, City University of New York, Brooklyn College, Columbia University.
Professional organizations: Director, The Advertising Council; Board of Directors, Direct Marketing Association; Secretary/Treasurer, American Association of Advertising Agencies; Founding Chairman, DMA International Strategic Forum on Direct Marketing; Director, The Marketing Consortium; Founder, Lester Wunderman Instituut, Amsterdam. Co-Founder (with Cornell Capa and Jacqueline Kennedy), International Center of Photography
Specialist in Dogon (Mali) art: Assembled the largest privately held collection of Dogon art, which toured several museums before a large portion of the collection was donated to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Louvre; the collection formed the illustrations on several books on African art.
Humanitarian work: Administrative Council, UNESCO International Fund for the Promotion of Culture; Co-Chairman, Friends of Leopold Senghor Foundation; President, Wunderman Foundation, which funds research in developing regions. Member, UNICEF, Paris.
The collection has been arranged into six series: Administrative Files; Speeches; Writings; Memorabilia; Oversize Materials; and Audiovisual Materials. Administrative Files include biographical materials as well as materials relating to awards, travel, Wunderman's activities as a consultant and member of the Boards of Directors and Trustees of various institutions, publicity notices and samples of direct marketing items. Speeches include typed and hand-written drafts of speeches given by Wunderman, along with alternate versions and correspondence relating to speaking engagements. Writings includes drafts, proofs and published articles, notes and correspondence, as well as a Book File related to Wunderman's book Being Direct: Making Advertising Pay. Memorabilia includes plaques, trophies, certificates and other commemorative items. Oversize Materials comprise large-format items removed from previous series. Their logical location is noted in the Detailed Description with entries in square brackets, cross referenced to their physical location in this Series. Audiovisual Materials include audiocassettes, videocassettes and films. Materials not in English have not been translated. Where possible, original folder titles have been retained.