8 8 2 f o 1 t e e h s / Y B U O Y O T T H G U O R B / l e u Brought toYou By m a S 2 [ 5 3 6 7 5 : 2 1 5 1 . 8 . 1 0 0 2 g n e s T 8 8 2 f o 2 t e e h s / Y B U O Y O T T H G U O R B / l e u m a S 2 5 3 6 7 5 : 2 1 5 1 . 8 . 1 0 0 2 g n e s T 8 8 2 f o 3 t e e h s / Y B U O Y O T LawrenceR.Samuel T H G U O R B / Brought to You By l e u m a S 2 5 3 6 [ Postwar Television Advertising and the American Dream     Austin 7 5 : 2 1 5 1 . 8 . 1 0 0 2 g n e s T 8 8 2 f o 4 t e e h s / Y B U O Y O T T H G U O R B Copyright©bytheUniversityofTexasPress / l e Allrightsreserved u am PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica S 2 Firstedition, 5 3 6 Requestsforpermissiontoreproducematerialfromthisworkshouldbesentto Permissions,UniversityofTexasPress,P.O.Box,Austin,TX-. (cid:8)Thepaperusedinthisbookmeetstheminimumrequirementsof /.-()(PermanenceofPaper). LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData Samuel,LawrenceR. Broughttoyouby:postwartelevisionadvertisingandthe Americandream/LawrenceR.Samuel. p. cm. Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex. ---(alk.paper)—---(alk.paper) .Televisionadvertising—UnitedStates—History. I.Title. .  .''—dc  7 5 : 2 1 5 1 . 8 . 1 0 0 2 g n e s T 8 8 2 f o 5 t e e h s / Y B OU Contents Y O T T H G U O R B / l e u m a S 2 5 3 6 vii [ Acknowledgments ix [ Introduction  [ P O: H S H  [ Chapter:ThePrecociousProdigy,–  [ Chapter:ShowerofStars,–  [ P T: K U   J  [ Chapter:TheSparkPlugofProsperity,–  [ Chapter:AMistSettlingonOurPond,–  [ P T: T N S  [ Chapter:ThinkYoung,–  [ Chapter:ThePsychicAirWeBreathe,–  [ Conclusion  [ Notes  [ Index 7 5 : 2 1 5 1 . 8 . 1 0 0 2 g n e s T THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK 8 8 2 f o 7 t e e h s / Y B OU Acknowledgments Y O T T H G U O R B / l e u m a S 2 5 3 6 Many thanks to Jim Burr, Allison Faust, Nancy Bryan, and the other fine folksattheUniversityofTexasPressaswellascopyeditordeluxeSueCarter forbringingBroughttoYouBytofruition.ThanksalsotoMarkHirsch,Ann Miller,RichardWentworth,DouglasArmato,SusanFerber,andtheanony- mousreaders,allofwhomcontributedvaluableideasalongtheway.Igreatly appreciatetheeffortsofthestaffsattheMuseumof TelevisionandRadio, Universityof Southern California Cinema-Television Library,UCLA Film and Television Archive, Libraryof Congress Print and Photographs Divi- sion,theNationalMuseumofAmericanHistoryArchivesCenter,theJohnW. HartmanCenterforSales,Advertising,andMarketingHistoryatDukeUni- versity,andCampbell-Ewald,whohelpedleadmetoimportantmaterials.I stilloweadebtofgratitudetoLaryMayandJohnFiske,bothofwhomwere instrumentalinhelpingmeforgemyownviewsofsocialhistoryandcultural theory.KudostoShereeBykofskyandJanetRosenforbeingthefirstones torecognizethiswasastoryworthtelling.ExtraspecialhugstoMaryEllen Muckermanandtomymomfortheirsupportandlove. 7 5 : vii 2 1 5 1 . 8 . 1 0 0 2 g n e s T THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK 8 8 2 f o 9 t e e h s / Y B OU Introduction Y O T T H G U O R B / l e u m a S Broughttoyouby... 2 5 63 BeginningofTheJackBennyProgram,Playhouse,andmanyothertelevisionshows Betweentheyearsand,Americantelevision—andmuchofAmeri- canculture—wasbroughttoyoubytelevisionadvertising.Theaimofthis bookistoshowhowtelevisionadvertisingwasgroundcentralforthepost- warAmericanDream,bothshapingandreflectingournationalethosofcon- sumption.BroughttoYouBy:PostwarTelevisionAdvertisingandtheAmeri- canDreamisdesignedtofillagapingholeinthehistoryofadvertisingand completeamissingchapteroftwentieth-centuryAmericansocialhistory.The postwaryearswerewhatIbelievetobethemostexcitinganddynamicperiod ofadvertisinginAmerica,asthedevelopmentofthemostpowerfulmediumin historydovetailedwithapatrioticcelebrationofconsumerismand,ofcourse, withthebabyboom.Althoughtelevisionadvertisingofthiseraisafascinat- ingandimportantculturalsite,thesubjectisconspicuouslyabsentfromboth popularandscholarlyliterature.Therearemanygoodbooksonpostwartele- vision,butpreciousfewresourcesdedicatedtotelevisionadvertising.This isunfortunatebecauseitwastelevisionadvertisingthatbroughttelevisionto usand,intheprocess,assumedacentralroleinpostwarculture.Onecan- nottrulyunderstandpostwarAmerica,Ibelieve,withoutunderstandingthe culturalhistoryofoneofitsloudestvoices. Televisionadvertisingisespeciallyfertilegroundtostudythesocialand cultural dynamics of postwar America because it was the perfect medium for and a perfect metaphor of the times, steeped in the values of consen- sus,conformity,and,ofcourse,consumption.Televisionadvertisingquickly emergedasanewvocabularyallAmericanscouldshare,acommonlanguage thatoftencrossedthesocialdivisionsofgender,race,class,andgeography. By the early sixties, both doctors and construction workers could tell you thatAjaxwasstrongerthandirtandthateverylitterbithurts,andpeoplein 7 5 : ix 2 1 5 1 . 8 . 1 0 0 2 g n e s T