George Lois (June 26, 1931 – November 18, 2022) was an American
art director
Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film industry, film and television, the Internet, and video games.
It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and ...
, designer, and author. Lois was perhaps best known for over 92 covers he designed for ''
Esquire
Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title.
In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...
'' magazine from 1962 to 1973.
Background
Lois was born in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
on June 26, 1931, the son of Greek immigrants. Lois attended
The High School of Music & Art
The High School of Music & Art, informally known as "Music & Art" (or "M&A"), was a public specialized high school located at 443-465 West 135th Street in the borough of Manhattan, New York, from 1936 until 1984. In 1961, Music & Art and the High ...
, and received a basketball scholarship to
Syracuse University
Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...
, although he chose to attend
Pratt Institute
Pratt Institute is a private university with its main campus in Brooklyn, New York (state), New York. It has a satellite campus in Manhattan and an extension campus in Utica, New York at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute. The school was ...
. Lois attended only one year at Pratt, then left to work for Reba Sochis until he was drafted six months later by the Army to fight in the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
.
Career
CBS
After the Korean war, Lois went to work for the advertising and promotions department at
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
where he designed print and media projects. In 1959 he was hired by the advertising agency
Doyle Dane Bernbach
DDB Worldwide Communications Group LLC, known internationally as DDB, is a worldwide marketing communications network. It is owned by Omnicom Group, one of the world's largest advertising holding companies. The international advertising networks ...
. After one year there,
Lois was recruited by
Fred Papert
Fred may refer to:
People
* Fred (name), including a list of people and characters with the name
Mononym
* Fred (cartoonist) (1931–2013), pen name of Fred Othon Aristidès, French
* Fred (footballer, born 1949) (1949–2022), Frederico Rodr ...
and
Julian Koenig
Julian Norman Koenig (; April 22, 1921 – June 12, 2014) was an American copywriter. He was inducted into The One Club Creative Hall of Fame in 1966.
Early life and education
Koenig was born to a Jewish family[Papert Koenig Lois
Papert Koenig Lois, also known as PKL, was an advertising agency founded by Fred Papert, Julian Koenig and George Lois in January 1960. Its first office was in the Seagram Building in Park Avenue in Manhattan. Early clients included Peugeot a ...]
in 1960. PKL, as it was known, was also the first advertising agency to ever go public.
Lois Holland Callaway Agency
In 1967 he left to form Lois, Holland, Callaway. His last agency, Lois/USA, which created memorable campaigns for clients such as
Minolta
was a Japanese manufacturer of cameras, camera accessories, photocopiers, fax machines, and laser printers. Minolta Co., Ltd., which is also known simply as Minolta, was founded in Osaka, Japan, in 1928 as . It made the first integrated autofocu ...
,
Tourneau
Tourneau, LLC, is a luxury watch retailer established in 1900 and based in the United States. In 2018 Tourneau was purchased by the European retailer, Bucherer AG. The company carries over 8,000 styles of men’s and women’s watches from nearly ...
, and The Four Seasons, ended its run in 1999.
Braniff Airways Account
On December 1, 1968, Lois obtained the coveted
Braniff International Airways
Braniff Airways, Inc., operated as Braniff International Airways from 1948 until 1965, and then Braniff International from 1965 until air operations ceased, was an airline in the United States that once flew air carrier operations from 1928 un ...
account (Mr. Lois's website incorrectly dates his time at Braniff was in 1967). Advertising doyenne Mary Wells Lawrence left the Braniff account for a new airline account with TWA. At Braniff, he formulated the revolutionary "When You Got It, Flaunt It" campaign for the airline that resulted in an 80 percent increase in business as a result of the new advertising. Lois incorporated a series of memorable and unique television commercials that paired unlikely celebrities as
Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationsh ...
and
Sonny Liston
Charles L. "Sonny" Liston ( 1930 – December 30, 1970) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1953 to 1970. A dominant contender of his era, he became the world heavyweight champion in 1962 after knocking out Floyd Patterson i ...
sitting on Braniff aircraft seats discussing unique and unlikely subjects.
The Big Idea
Lois developed what he called "
The Big Idea". He claimed to have created the "I Want My
MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
" campaign; helped create and introduce
VH1; named
Stouffer's
Stouffer's is a brand of frozen prepared foods currently owned by Nestlé. Its products are available in the United States and Canada. Stouffer's is known for such popular fare as lasagna, macaroni and cheese, meatloaf, ravioli, and salisbury ste ...
Lean Cuisine
Lean Cuisine is a brand of frozen entrées and dinners sold in the United States and Canada by Nestlé, and in Australia by Vesco (under a licensing agreement with Nestlé). The brand began as low-fat, low-calorie versions of Stouffer's products ...
frozen food line; and developed marketing and messaging for
Jiffy Lube
Jiffy Lube International, Inc. is an American chain of automotive oil change specialty shops founded in Utah, United States, in 1971. It has been a subsidiary of Shell since 2002, and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
Overview
There are ...
stations. He created the initial advertising campaign to raise awareness of designer
Tommy Hilfiger
Thomas Jacob Hilfiger ( /hɪlˈfɪgər/; born March 24, 1951) is an American fashion designer and the founder of Tommy Hilfiger Corporation.
After starting his career by co-founding a chain of jeans/fashion stores called People's Place in upst ...
. His other clients purportedly included;
Xerox
Xerox Holdings Corporation (; also known simply as Xerox) is an American corporation that sells print and electronic document, digital document products and services in more than 160 countries. Xerox is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut (ha ...
,
Aunt Jemima
Pearl Milling Company (formerly known as Aunt Jemima from 1889 to 2021) is an American breakfast brand for pancake mix, syrup, and other breakfast food products. The original version of the pancake mix for the brand was developed in 1888–188 ...
, ''
USA Today
''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
'',
Mug Root Beer
Mug Root Beer is an American brand of root beer that was originally produced in 1940 under the name Belfast Root Beer. It is now made by New Century Beverage Company of San Francisco, California, which was acquired by PepsiCo in 1986.
History ...
for
Pepsi-Cola
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by PepsiCo. Originally created and developed in 1893 by Caleb Bradham and introduced as Brad's Drink, it was renamed as Pepsi-Cola in 1898, and then shortened to Pepsi in 1961.
History
Pepsi was ...
,
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
, and four U.S. Senators:
Jacob Javits
Jacob Koppel Javits ( ; May 18, 1904 – March 7, 1986) was an American lawyer and politician. During his time in politics, he represented the state of New York in both houses of the United States Congress. A member of the Republican Party, he a ...
(R-NY),
Warren Magnuson
Warren Grant "Maggie" Magnuson (April 12, 1905May 20, 1989) was an American lawyer and politician who represented the state of Washington in Congress for 44 years, first as a Representative from 1937 to 1944, and then as a senator from 1944 to 19 ...
(D-WA),
Hugh Scott
Hugh Doggett Scott Jr. (November 11, 1900 – July 21, 1994) was an American politician. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Pennsylvania in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1947 to 1959 and in the U.S. Senate, from 195 ...
(R-PA), and
Robert F. Kennedy
Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925June 6, 1968), also known by his initials RFK and by the nickname Bobby, was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 64th United States Attorney General from January 1961 to September 1964, ...
(D-NY). Lois and
Larry Sloman
Larry "Ratso" Sloman (born July 9, 1950) is a New York-based author.
Career
Sloman was born into a middle-class Jewish family from Queens. His nickname Ratso came from Joan Baez who said Sloman looked like Dustin Hoffman's character Ratso Rizzo ...
directed the
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
for
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
's song "
Jokerman."
In comments about ''
Mad Men
''Mad Men'' is an American period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on the cable network AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, lasting for seven seasons and 92 episodes. Its fict ...
'', a television drama that aspires to depict the advertising industry he worked in, Lois summarized his experiences of the times:
''Mad Men'' misrepresents the advertising industry of my time by ignoring the dynamics of the Creative Revolution that changed the world of communications forever ... That dynamic period of counterculture in the 1960s found expression on Madison Avenue
Madison Avenue is a north-south avenue in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, United States, that carries northbound one-way traffic. It runs from Madison Square (at 23rd Street) to meet the southbound Harlem River Drive at 142nd Stre ...
through a new creative generation—a rebellious coterie of art directors and copywriters who understood that visual and verbal expression were indivisible, who bridled under the old rules that consigned them to secondary roles in the ad-making process dominated by non-creative hacks and technocrats ... It was a testy time to be a graphic designer
A graphic designer is a professional within the graphic design and graphic arts industry who assembles together images, typography, or motion graphics to create a piece of design. A graphic designer creates the graphics primarily for published, ...
like me who had the rage to communicate and, to create icon rather than con. And, unlike the TV ''Mad Men'', we worked full, exhausting, joyous days: pitching new business, creating ideas, "comping" them up, storyboarding
A storyboard is a graphic organizer that consists of illustrations or images displayed in sequence for the purpose of pre-visualizing a motion picture, animation, motion graphic or interactive media sequence. The storyboarding process, in the ...
them, selling them, photographing them, and directing commercials.
Accolades
Lois is the only person to have been inducted into all of the following; The Art Directors Hall of Fame, The One Club Creative Hall of Fame, with Lifetime Achievement Awards from the American Institute of Graphic Arts, the Society of Publication Designers, as well as having been the subject of an edition of the Master Series at the
School of Visual Arts
The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design.
History
This school was started by ...
. He is also in the
American Advertising Federation Hall of Fame The Advertising Hall of Fame, operated by the American Advertising Federation (AAF), began in 1948 as a result of a proposal by the New York Ad Club and its president, Andrew Haire, to the Advertising Federation of America, the predecessor organiza ...
. He and other notable advertising alumni of his era are the subject of the movie ''
Art & Copy
''Art & Copy'' is a 2009 documentary film, directed by Doug Pray, about the advertising industry in the U.S. The film follows the careers of advertisers, including Hal Riney, George Lois, Mary Wells Lawrence, Dan Wieden, and Lee Clow. The documen ...
''.
In 2008, The
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues.
It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...
exhibited 32 of Lois's ''Esquire'' covers.
Controversy
Lois was accused multiple times of taking credit for others' ideas and for exaggerating his participation.
On May 18, 2008, the ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' published a correction of an April 27, 2008 review of a Lois art exhibition. In the correction, the ''Times'' stated that the "
Think Small
Think Small was one of the most famous ads in the advertising campaign for the Volkswagen Beetle, art-directed by Helmut Krone. The copy for Think Small was written by Julian Koenig at the Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB) agency in 1959. Doyle Dane Be ...
" Volkswagen ad campaign and the "I Want My
Maypo
Maypo is an American brand of hot cereals. The original product was maple flavored oatmeal but there are now a variety of flavors sold under the Maypo brand name. It was originally manufactured by Maltex Co. and is now owned by Homestat Farm,
L ...
" campaign were not created by George Lois. The correction identified
Julian Koenig
Julian Norman Koenig (; April 22, 1921 – June 12, 2014) was an American copywriter. He was inducted into The One Club Creative Hall of Fame in 1966.
Early life and education
Koenig was born to a Jewish family[Helmut Krone Helmut Krone (July 16, 1925 – April 12, 1996) was an art director and is considered to be a pioneer of modern advertising. Krone spent over 30 years at the advertising agency Doyle Dane Bernbach. He was the art director for the popular 1960s campa ...]
as the creators of the Volkswagen ad campaign, and
John
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Secon ...
and
Faith Hubley
Faith Hubley (née Chestman; September 16, 1924 – December 7, 2001) was an American animator, known for her experimental work both in collaboration with her husband John Hubley, and on her own following her husband's death.
Biography
Bor ...
as the creators of the Maypo campaign, contradicting Lois's published claims of credit for these ad campaigns.
The June 19, 2009 episode of ''
This American Life
''This American Life'' (''TAL'') is an American monthly hour-long radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. It is broadcast on numerous public radio stations in the United States and internation ...
'' featured a segment in which several of Lois's former associates claimed he took credit for ad campaigns, ad copy, and ''Esquire'' covers that were partially or wholly the work of others. The program contained interviews with Carl Fischer (the photographer who shot most of the ''Esquire'' covers, including some falsely claimed by Lois, such as the one of
St. Patrick's Cathedral) and two of Lois's former partners,
Julian Koenig
Julian Norman Koenig (; April 22, 1921 – June 12, 2014) was an American copywriter. He was inducted into The One Club Creative Hall of Fame in 1966.
Early life and education
Koenig was born to a Jewish family[Sarah Koenig
Sarah Koenig (; born July 9, 1969 in New York City) is an American journalist, public radio personality, former producer of the television and radio program ''This American Life'', and the host and executive producer of the podcast '' Serial''.
...]
, daughter of Julian Koenig, who interviewed her father, who in turn said...
In my instance, the greatest predator of my work was my one-time partner George Lois, who is a most heralded and talented art director/designer, and his talent is only exceeded by his omnivorous ego. So where it once would've been accepted that the word would be 'we' did it, regardless of who originated the work, the word 'we' evaporated from George's vocabulary and it became 'my.'
Lois' website also carries his claim that he designed the
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
orange logo in use from 1984 until 2010. The originators of the logo,
Alan Goodman
Alan Goodman runs branding and communications for, and is a founder of, TESTD Inc., a company that builds health and wellness data management products for providers, individuals, enterprises, and municipalities. He is a former American media e ...
and
Fred Seibert
Frederick (Fred) Seibert (born September 15, 1951) is an American television producer, co-founder of MTV and the CEO of FredFilms, an animation production company based in Burbank, California. His official biography states he has led five (working ...
, dispute that assertion, citing the actual designers Tom Corey and Scott Nash of
Corey McPherson Nash in Boston.
Lois often asserted that he named and designed ''
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
'' magazine. In his 1991 book ''What's the Big Idea?'' he exclaimed... "Let me say right now, with my hand on the Bible, I, George Lois, created ''New York'' magazine." Sheldon Zalaznick, the first editor of New York, has written that the new magazine "involved the following people: Jim Bellows, Dick Wald, Buddy Weiss,
Clay Felker
Clay Schuette Felker (October 2, 1925 – July 1, 2008) was an American magazine editor and journalist who co-founded ''New York'' magazine in 1968. He was known for bringing numerous journalists into the profession. ''The New York Times'' wrote ...
, Peter Palazzo and me. At no time did any of them ever refer to you, by name or inference, in my presence. It is possible that you are the victim of a massive conspiracy of silence, but I do not think it likely ... The magazine was named by me and Peter Palazzo."
[Carl Fischer, ''Afterthoughts'', p. 111]
Personal life and death
Lois died on November 18, 2022, at the age of 91.
His wife Rosemary had died two months prior.
Awards
* Art Directors Hall of Fame: 1978
*
Advertising Hall of Fame The Advertising Hall of Fame, operated by the American Advertising Federation (AAF), began in 1948 as a result of a proposal by the New York Ad Club and its president, Andrew Haire, to the Advertising Federation of America, the predecessor organiza ...
*
Advertising Age
''Ad Age'' (known as ''Advertising Age'' until 2017) is a global media brand that publishes news, analysis, and data on marketing and media. Its namesake magazine was started as a broadsheet newspaper in Chicago in 1930. ''Ad Age'' appears in mul ...
magazine "100 Most Influential Advertising Practitioners of the Twentieth Century".
* Copywriters Hall of Fame
* AIGA (
American Institute of Graphic Arts
The American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA) is a professional organization for design. Its members practice all forms of communication design, including graphic design, typography, interaction design, user experience, branding and identity. T ...
) Gold Medal: 1996
* Society of Publication Designers Herb Lubalin Award Winner: 2004
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
References
Specific references:
General references:
Art Directors Hall of Famefrom adcglobal.org
from ciadvertising.org
Gold Medalist Biographyfrom American Institute of Graphic Arts
from CNN
Interview, March 2003from New York Magazine
from the New York Times
External links
*
*
*
George Lois talks about ”Covers for Esquire”, 1970?from tena.ne.jp
George Lois: A Punch in the Mouth an interview from NotesOnDesign.ne
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lois, George
1931 births
2022 deaths
AIGA medalists
American artists
Advertising directors
American people of Greek descent
People from the Bronx
Pratt Institute alumni
Syracuse University alumni
The High School of Music & Art alumni
United States Army personnel of the Korean War