MUSEUM OF TELEVISION & RADIO SEMINAR SERIES, THE: THE WAY IT WAS: THE HISTORY OF COMMERCIAL PRODUCTION IN NEW YORK {LONG VERSION}
Summary
One in a series of seminars conducted by The Museum of Television & Radio. In this seminar, cosponsored by the Association of Independent Commercial Producers East, a panel of five industry veterans discusses the evolution of the advertising business in New York over the last forty years from the standpoint of commercial production. Museum curator David Bushman serves as moderator and introduces the panelists. Joseph DiBuono, currently vice president of Unitel Video, is a veteran videotape editor who produced live commercials aired on "Today" and "The Tonight Show" for such clients as DuPont and U.S. Steel, pioneered in the use of videotape as a medium, and co-founded The Monitor Awards along with Morty Dubin. Morty Dubin, president of Iris Films, has been a television commercial producer for many years and currently serves as vice president of AICP, East. Eli Feldman, vice president and executive producer at EUE/Screen Gems Ltd. and The Director's Chair, began his career as head of commercial production at the Dancer Fitzgerald Sample ad agency. A winner of twenty-seven Clio awards, Feldman was previously vice president and producer at U.P.A. Pictures and Focus Presentations. Barney Melsky, president of 93rd Street Productions and a founder and ex-president of AICP, produced many memorable commercials for such agencies as Doyle Dane Bernbach and Wells Rich Greene. Sol Negrin has been a director of photography since 1960, having served as an assistant cameraman for the previous twelve years. He worked on several television shows, including "Naked City," "The Defenders," and "Car 54, Where Are You?," in addition to hundreds of commercials over the course of his career. Negrin has also been active in the labor union movement and currently serves as president of the International Photographers Local 644 of IATSE.
A reel of clips is shown featuring eleven commercials for the following advertisers: National Urban Coalition (a late 1960s spot featuring the song "Let the Sunshine In"), Revlon (a 1960 "live on tape" commercial), Timex (a 1961 spot filmed on location in Acapulco, Mexico), Coca-Cola (a 1994 commercial representing state-of-the-art editing techniques), Cracker Jack (a Doyle Dane Bernbach classic), Alka Seltzer (three spots respectively directed by Howard Zieff, George Gomes, and Bob Gage), Benson & Hedges (the Wells Rich Greene classic, "Disadvantages"), American Motors ("Driving School") and Volkswagen ("Funeral").
Morty Dubin outlines the history of commercial production in New York over the past forty years. He discusses the following topics: the transition from "industrials" in the 1940s to "live commercials" in the 1950s; the enormous industry expansion in the fifties; the full-service production company of the fifties, typified by a company such as MPO (Madison Pollack O'Hare); the transition from black-and-white to color film; the advent of videotape as a medium; "the golden years" of the 1960s through the mid-seventies; "crossover" directors; the move into commercial production by agency art directors and producers, such as Bob Giraldi and Neil Tardio; the industry's move west to Hollywood and the subsequent emergence of commercial production centers throughout the country; changes that swept the industry in the seventies and eighties, particularly in the relationships between agencies, clients, and production companies; the recent influence of MTV; and the current state of commercial production in New York. Joseph DiBuono discusses the evolution of editing techniques over the last forty years, in addition to the following topics: the invention of the videotape recorder; "live" commercials; "live on tape" commercials; and recent advances, such as computerized editing. Barney Melsky emphasizes the importance of content and humor in the creation of memorable advertising. Eli Feldman outlines the history of EUE/Screen Gems, which is one of the only pioneer production companies that remains in business in 1994. He also discusses the following topics: the "first" TV commercial, filmed in 1946 for Bristol-Myers and broadcast on DuMont; the early years of EUE (Elliot, Unger & Elliot); EUE's merger with Columbia; EUE's concept of satellite companies, such as The Director's Chair; EUE's survival to the present day through the difficult years of the eighties. Feldman also lists directors who worked for EUE over the years, including Howard Zieff, Stu Hageman, Peter Israelson, George Gage, Jeff Metzger, Catherine Lefebvre, David Ashwell, and others. Sol Negron outlines the history of labor unions in the film industry, from infancy in the 1920s through the years of expansion and reorganization in the fifties. He notes that the business climate in New York for commercial production, as well as for film and television, is healthier now than it has been for several decades. A brief question-and-answer session concludes this seminar.
Details
- NETWORK: N/A
- DATE: October 19, 1994 Wednesday 6:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:40:00
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:34653
- GENRE: Seminars
- SUBJECT HEADING: N/A
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Joseph DiBuono … Panalist
- Morty Dubin … Panalist
- Eli Feldman … Panalist
- Barney Melsky … Panalist
- Sol Negrin … Panalist