…True Confessions of an Ad Man
- 1. This blog tells stories of one of the most brilliant, creative, versatile, controversial, successful and unsuccessful men in the history of advertising and marketing.
- 2. He has founded or helped found six agencies, twelve companies, three divisions, and a retailing concept that has swept the world.
- 3. He helped make many billions of dollars for AT&T, helped save the cotton industry from collapse, created a company concept that sold for $36 million three years after its inception, was a six-figure consultant to the world’s largest advertising agency, reorganized the sales operations of one of the world’s largest chemical companies, was the dominant figure in the development of the world’s largest menswear store, and, with his black wife helped two white South Africans turn $2 million into $20 million in two years. Then, he played the game of life and death marketing for 8 years in the Former Soviet Union.
- 4. Yet, he has experienced two corporate and one personal bankruptcy.
- 5. “He’s a genius, but you can’t control him.” President of world’s largest men’s clothing store. “Never in history of retailing have so many come to an opening!” President of Gimbels, Philadelphia at the Market East Opening (see banner above) engineered by this man.
- 6. “First, we had Bill Bernbach, then David Ogilvy, naturally, we invited Jack to open our next Australian National Advertising Association Conference”. Head of largest Australian Advertising Agency.
- 7. “He is the only man I have ever met who, as long as he keeps talking, I would keep listening.” President of a leading optical laboratory.
- 8. “Trouble is when he handles my advertising, I feel I’ve given up running my company.” President of largest men’s clothing store in New England.
- 9. “We told him that he taught us everything we know and that we did not need him anymore. Then, he fought against us and showed us he had not taught us everything HE knew.” Russian optical industry oligarch.
- This blog is the beginning of Jack Byrne’s autobiography, “True Confessions of an Ad Man”.
- This is not your usual “solicitation-in-disguise” type of ad-man’s biography.
- This blog will probably destroy all opportunity for Jack Byrne to serve the advertising industry again.
- This blog is for dreamers who would like to see some rude awakenings.
- This blog is for realists who would like to learn how it really is.
- This blog is for creative people of spirit and honor who might like to know what life on the inside is really like.
This is a very funny blog.
This is a very sad blog.
This is the story of shattered ideals.
This is the story of a writer playing roles.
This story is by a Charlatan.
This story is by a Christian.
This story is by a Samaritan.
This story is by Robin Hood.
This story is by a Flim Flam man.
This story is by a Lion in the Streets.
This story is by a lamb in wolf’s clothing.
This story is by a wolf in lamb’s clothing.
This story is by “the greatest salesman I have ever known” said by a man who guaranteed over a million-dollar business loan on Jack Byrne’s word alone…
… and lost it all.
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