The Waterbury Democrat., 1940-08-09
Spontaneous Demand
For WiIlkie Said To
Cost Plenty Of Jack
Democratic National Committee Sources Claim Cream
Of the COuntry's Top Notch Publicity and National
Advertising Men Figured in Putting Him Across

Willkie is that nobody wanted him
to be the Republican candidate ex-
cept the plain people. The machine
politicians, when they came to
Philadelphia, were all set to choose 9
machine politician likc themselves
but the spontaneous and unrehearsec
enthusiasm of the grass roots forced
them into panic-stricken retreat
That is the theory, but we doubt
whether 1t will continue to hold
water much longer. People are be-
ginning to realize that the Willkie
campaign was one. Of the most skill
full professional publicity jobs the
country has ever seen.
"The current issue of Tide lists
some of the experts who have worked
and are working with Mr.. Willkie
There Is Russell Davenport, recently
managing editor of Fortune, an able
journalist. There is Robert L. john
son, publisher of Promenade, foun-
der of Time, and another expert In
promotional activities. There is Fred
Smith of Sewage and Smith, the
publicity man who did the extreme
ly clever job Of putting Bruce Bar
ton into Congress. There Is Harry M
Shackleford, advertising manager Of
the Johns Manville Corporation
There is Steve flanagan, another
crack publicity man. There are
Ned Stevenson and associates, coun-
cillors on radio relations, who looked
after the radio end. There is Stanley
Resor, president Of the big advertis-
ing agency, the ]. Walter Thomp-
son Company, now treasurer OF the
United Republican Finance Com
mittee of New York. There are 9
group of advertising agency men or
the Pacific Coast, in the ]. Walter
Thompson branch office and others
Tide might also have mentioned
Bruce Barton, who Is not only 9
successful politician in his own
right but leading member Of the
big advertising firm of Batten, Bar
ton, Durstine and Osborn, Inc.
1.-THE joint job done by all these
skilled experts was something won
derful to behold. They suppressed
the picture of Willkie, the New
Yorker, the public-utility president
the big man in Wall Street, anc
built up in its stead the portrait of 9
tousle-headed, badly dressed, easy
going small-town boy from Indiana
They did their best to keep Willkie'.
millionaire friends out of sight, anc
were greatly embarrassed when Ton
Lamont of j. P. Morgan and Com.
pany turned up in Philadelphia
They put classified advertisement!
in the personal columns Of news.
papers all over the country calling
on volunteers to work for Willkie
and thus organized about TOO Will
kie clubs. Tide says that the New
York experts did their best to di
courage the avalanche Of telegram
addressed to the delegates at Phila
delphia, remembering previous scan
dals about kilograms on behalf o
the public utilities, many Of whicl
turned out to be fakes. If this
true, some of the local clubs wer
both persistent and Skillful; no
only were many thousands Of tele
grams received, but large number
OF them went to the individual dele
gate with his hotel and room mum
Der correctly given. The New Yorl
experts also prevented the use OF. BIZ
newspaper advertising space OF
WILKES behalf, on the ground tina
| it would smell of too much money.
"All this IS not to say that Their
was no genuine demand for Willki'
throughout the country. He has al
attractive personality, his opponents
were pretty colorless, and Americana
love new faces. This spontaneous de-
mand, however, was built up care
fully by a group Of the smartes
publicity experts in the country, ant
we hate to see their beautiful pro.
fessional job go unrecognized."