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Lester Wunderman papers, 1946-2010 and undated

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Restrictions:
Collection is restricted. Unpublished materials are closed to non-Wunderman researchers for 15 years from the date of creation. Original audiovisual materials are closed to patron use. Use of...

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Summary

Creator:
Wunderman, Lester
Abstract:
Lester Wunderman is an advertising executive primarily in the direct marketing industry, founder of an agency in his name now a subsidiary of Young & Rubicam, and a noted collector of Dogon (Mali) art works. 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. Acquired as part of the John W. Hartman Center for Sales, Advertising & Marketing History.
Extent:
60 Linear Feet
42000 Items
Language:
Material in English French, Spanish, Danish, German, Japanese
Collection ID:
RL.01417

Background

Scope and Content:

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.

Biographical / Historical:
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.

Acquisition Information:
The Lester Wunderman Papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library as a gift in 2010.
Processing information:

Processed by Richard Collier, November 2010

Encoded by Richard Collier, November 2010

Accession 2010-0189 is described in this finding aid.

Arrangement:

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.

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

Contents

Using These Materials

RESTRICTIONS:

Collection is restricted.

Unpublished materials are closed to non-Wunderman researchers for 15 years from the date of creation.

Original audiovisual materials are closed to patron use. Use of these materials may require production of listening or viewing copies. Please contact Research Services before coming to use this collection.

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. The library may require up to 48 hours to retrieve these materials for research use.

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

USE & PERMISSIONS:

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], Lester Wunderman Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University

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Collection

Lester Wunderman papers, 1946-2010 and undated
Request
Collection ID RL.01417
EAD ID wundermanlester
Catalog record
Total components 803
Last indexed 2023-09-06

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