Looking back on the 1964 Democratic National Convention in Atlantic City through the lens of their official program, we see another America, and another Democratic Party. The program, designed by the ad agency Doyle, Dane Bernbach Inc, was dedicated to the memory of John F. Kennedy, and had a pro-business, pro-defense and overall optimistic feel.
An interesting sidenote. Doyle Dane Bernbach was also responsible for LBJ’s famous “Daisy” commercial that sidelined Barry Goldwater.
Today’s sponsor list for the DNC sounds remarkably the same; indeed Union Pacific, Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Xerox, Lockheed Martin and Ford were sponsors in 1964, and are sponsors at the 2008 convention.
Below are 75 of the advertisers from 1964. It is an instructive list. Of course, there are many companies that are still around, including Xerox, Kodak, Continental Airlines and BorgWarner. But many have disappeared including Matson Lines, Pan Am, Bohn Aluminum and dozens of others. The list reeks of a disappeared America that actually made things.
Here are 75 of the sponsors:
- Ford Motor Company and its Ford Country Squire, with subsidiaries including Mustang, Falcon, Fairlane, Ford, Thunderbird, Mercury and Lincoln-Continental.
- Universal American Corporation, based at 200 Park Avenue, New York, parent of Paul Hardeman, Bohn Aluminum and Brass, Amron Corp, Bingham Stamping, American Pulley, Morse Twist Drill & Machine, Norma-Hoffman Bearings, Super Tool Company and Van Norman Machine Company
- Matson Lines, offering round trips on the SS Lurline to Hawaii.
- Champion Papers
- Pepsi-Cola
- Union Pacific Railroad
- Cenco X-Ray, distributor for Ferrania Radiographic Materials, a division of Cenco
- Xerox
- Canadian Club
- Douglas Airplanes
- Paul Hardeman Inc., parent company of Young Spring & Wire
- Southern Railway System
- ITT (providers of communications systems)
- Fishbach and Moore, electrical contractors
- The Milwaukee Road
- George Stevens‘ The Greatest Story Ever Told, by United Artists
- Lockheed Jetstar
- Anaconda Company (mining copper and aluminum)
- American Airlines
- Ralph M. Parsons Company
- Continental Airlines
- Endicott Johnson
- TRW, which then stood for Thompson Ramo Wooldridge Inc.
- Litton Industries Inc. of Beverly Hills
- General Cable Corp., parent of Chore Girl Pot Cleaner and The Golden Fleece Pot Cleaner and Scour Cloth. (The question is when did Chore Girl become Chore Boy?)
- Pan American World Airways. The tagline? “When all the votes are in, you’re a candidate for a well-deserved rest.”
- Pabst Blue Ribbon, Pabst Brewing Company, Milwaukee, Newark and Los Angeles
- Ling-Temco-Vought or LTV and their Altec Division in Anaheim and the University Division in Oklahoma City. LTV made high fidelity sound components and sound systems of all types, a world leader in sound and electro-acoustic research and development.
- FMC, with divisions American Viscose, Bolens, John Bean Inorganic Chemicals, Niagara Chemical, Petro-Tex Chemical Corp.
- Reynolds Aluminum
- U.S. Industries
- Atlantic Coast Line
- Kodak and their Verifax Cavalcade Copier and Kodak Readyprint Copier
- Avco
- Martin Marietta
- The Carlyle Hotel, New York
- MGM
- Universal Engineering, David Nassif , President
- Universal City Studios
- Johnson & Johnson
- Hughes Aircraft Company and divisions
- York/Borg-Warner air conditioning
- Embassy Pictures, Joseph E. Levine
- Ryan Aeronautical Company, San Diego
- New York Central, with its hotels including Barclay, Biltmore, Commodore, Park Lane, Roosevelt and Waldorf-Astoria.
- Continental Motors Corp.
- Brown & Pomerantz, Consulting Engineers
- United States Lines
- Lytton Financial Corporation, Bart Lytton, President and chariman of the Board, with division Lytton Savings and Loan. (Lytton looks a bit like Mr. Drysdale, eh?)
- ABC Television Network
- Routh Robbins Real Estate, Alexandria, Virginia
- Seven Arts film producers, Beverly Hills
- Schlitz Beer
- Sperry Rand Corporation
- E.W. Axe Co., Inc., Tarrytown, NY
- Del E. Webb Corporation. Now a part of Pulte, and a sister company to DiVosta. Still does retiree developments. Perhaps a more glamorous brand then than now, but it could be brought back.
- Screen Gems It is still going strong.
- California and Hawaiian Sugar Refining Corp., Ltd. Now a part of Alexander & Baldwin, we think.
- Flying Tiger Line Purchased by Federal Express
- General Precision
- Gilbert Systems Inc., with divisions Gilbert Carrier, New York Haulage, Nelson Trucking Serivce
- Loral Electronics including A&M Instrument, Alpha Wire, American Beryllium, American Metals & Ceramics, Arco Electronics, Lermer Packaging, Loral Electronic Systems
- Stanley Warner Corp., with divisions Playtex, Stanley Warner Theatres, Tylac, Southern Latex, Isodine, Sarong, WAST Television, Morning Star Paisley, Physicians Products
- Georgia-Pacific
- Eastern Air Lines
- Shell
- General Dynamics Corp.
- Aerojet-General Corporation, a subsidiary of General Tire and Rubber
- Spiegel Catalogs
- Republic Aviation Corp., of Farmingdale, Long Island
- Union Oil Company of California, manufacturers of Super-Royal Triton, the “Amazing Purple Motor Oil.”
- Federal Pacific Electric Company of Newark
- Struthers Wells Corp., producers of Thermo-Flood oil industry components, nuclear marine propulsion components, nuclear equipment, distillation euqipment, sea water conversion, crystallizers and evaporators
- Avco Corporation, and their Lycoming Division, makers of aircraft engines
- Coca-Cola
