The Federal Express Advertising History Collection
name: label: Interviewer
content: Ellsworth, Scott, Dr.
label: Creator
content: Smithsonian Institution
label: Names
content: Ally & Gargano, Inc.
label: Collector
content: Archives Center, National Museum of American History
label: Creator
content: Fallon McElligott Advertising Agency
label: Creator
content: Federal Express Corporation
label: Interviewee
content: Ally, Carl
label: Interviewee
content: Altenburg, Nancy
label: Interviewee
content: Burnham, Patrick
label: Interviewee
content: Frazier, Sharon
label: Interviewee
content: Gargano, Amil
label: Interviewee
content: Kelly, Patrick
label: Interviewee
content: Miller, William B.
label: Interviewee
content: Moschitta, John (actor)
label: Interviewee
content: Oliver, Tom
label: Interviewee
content: Presley, Carol
label: Interviewee
content: Sedelmaier, Joe (filmmaker)
label: Interviewee
content: Smith, Fred
label: Interviewee
content: Tesch, Mike
label: Interviewee
content: Williams, Carl
place: label: Place
content: Memphis (Tenn.)
label: Place
content: Minneapolis (Minn.)
label: Place
content: Chicago (Ill.)
label: Place
content: Hollywood (Los Angeles, Calif.)
topic: label: Topic
content: Television advertising
label: Topic
content: Advertising campaigns
label: Topic
content: advertising -- History
label: Topic
content: Broadcast advertising
label: Topic
content: Service industries
label: Topic
content: Overnight delivery service
label: Topic
content: Aeronautics, Commercial -- Freight
label: Topic
content: Business -- History
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Made by the Smithsonian Institution and donated by the Federal Express Corporation, 1988.
creator: label: Interviewer
content: Ellsworth, Scott, Dr.
label: Creator
content: Smithsonian Institution
setName: label: See more items in
content: The Federal Express Advertising History Collection
abstract: label: Summary
content: Created in 1971, the Federal Express Corporation, an overnight air freight delivery system was an innovative company known for its memorable advertising campaigns. The core of the Federal Express Advertising History Collection is a series of interviews conducted in 1988 by Dr. Scott Ellsworth. Twenty-five individuals associated with Federal Express advertising were interviewed about the company and its award-winning advertising.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: In 1971, Fred Smith of Memphis, Tennessee created the Federal Express Corporation, an overnight air freight delivery system. He based his idea for a new approach to the air freight delivery service on the "hub and spoke system." According to Smith's innovative model, a fleet of airplanes would fly packages from cities across the nation each evening to a central "hub" in Memphis, where the parcels would be unloaded, sorted, and re-loaded onto other planes for travel to their final destinations. Smith's objective was two-fold: to expedite delivery of the parcels and to ensure their security in the process.

In 1977, Congress passed the Air Cargo Deregulation Act. This enabled Federal Express to fly much larger planes and to expand its business without substantial capital investment. During its first decade of existence, the corporation achieved remarkable success, enjoying its first billion-dollar revenue in 1981.

Federal Express originally employed two advertising agencies: Ally & Gargano, Inc. of New York City (1974-1987) and Fallon McElligott of Minneapolis (1987 - 1994). In its early years, Federal Express was attracted to Ally & Gargano due to the agency's small size and its entrepreneurial spirit. Fred Smith believed these traits would foster the creativity necessary for original and effective advertising to introduce Federal Express. It was the responsibility of the agency to convince customers not only to abandon such incumbants in the industry as Emery, United Parcel Service and the U.S. Postal Service, but also to trust Federal Express, a newcomer.

Ally & Gargano targeted the professional community and the general public through print advertisements and television commercials. Especially in the latter medium, the agency used humor as its primary marketing technique, emphasizing competitors' "slowness" and "unreliability." In 1981, the agency launched a series of widely acclaimed ads with John Moschitta as the "Fast Talking Man." The slogan "When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight" seen at the close of most commercials served as a practical reminder of Federal Express' function.

Federal Express moved its account from Ally & Gargano to Fallon McElligott in 1987. Fallon McElligott's first television campaign used the phrase "It's more than just a package -- it's your business" and depicted scenes of different work environments. The campaign stressed the seriousness with which Federal Express handled its customers' parcels. In 1988, Federal Express was a sponsor of the Winter Olympics.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 6.6 Cubic feet (20 boxes)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1972-1989
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives Center, National Museum of American History
identifier: label: Identifier
content: NMAH.AC.0306
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Interviews
label: Type
content: Oral history
label: Type
content: Commercials
label: Type
content: Videotapes
label: Type
content: Clippings
label: Type
content: Storyboards
label: Type
content: Posters
label: Type
content: Audiocassettes
label: Type
content: Abstracts
label: Type
content: Advertisements
label: Type
content: Audiotapes
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is arranged into eight series.

Series 1, Research Files, 1972-1988 

Subseries 1.1, Federal Express Clippings Files

Subseries 1.2, Federal Express Research Reports

Subseries 1.3, Research Files

Series 2, Interviewee Files, 1988

Series 3, Oral History Interviews, 1988

Subseries 3.1, Original Interviews

Subseries 3.2, Researcher Copies

Subseries 3.3, Masters

Series 4, Television Advertising, 1973-1989

Subseries 4.1, Television Commercials

Subseries 4.2, Storyboards

Subseries 4.3, Slides and Photographs

Series 5, Print Advertising, 1972-1988

Subseries 5.1, Federal Express Print Advertising

Subseries 5.2, Federal Express Mechanicals

Subseries 5.3, Slides of Mechanicals and International Marketing

Subseries 5.4, Federal Express Posters

Subseries 5.5, Print Reference Materials

Series 6, Public Relations Materials, 1973-1988

Series 7, Company Publications, 1973-1988

Series 8, Miscellaneous, Undated
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: Processed by Stacy Flaherty and Allison Lee, 1989.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Interviews -- 1970-1990
label: Genre/Form
content: Oral history
label: Genre/Form
content: Commercials
label: Genre/Form
content: Videotapes
label: Genre/Form
content: Clippings
label: Genre/Form
content: Storyboards
label: Genre/Form
content: Posters
label: Genre/Form
content: Audiocassettes
label: Genre/Form
content: Abstracts
label: Genre/Form
content: Advertisements
label: Genre/Form
content: Audiotapes
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The Federal Express Advertising Collection documents the development of the overnight air freight delivery company with particular emphasis on the innovative advertising campaigns used to introduce and promote the company's services. The oral histories with individuals associated with both Federal Express Corporation and the advertising agencies form the core of the collection. Abstracts that provide biographical information and summaries of the interviews supplement the oral histories. Research files and company publications provide background information. Television commercials and print advertising contain examples, particularly illustrating the campaigns discussed in the interviews.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Materials
content: Materials in the Archives Center

Ally and Gargano, Inc. Print Advertisements (AC0938)