 |
|
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
| |
|
Bill Sprague
Year of induction: 2001
Bio:
Bill Sprague will probably tell you his entire career was spent in marketing and communications. Nah. Bill was one of the world's great orchestra leaders with a rare ability to make everyone he came in contact with perform better. Whether you were in account service, creative, public relations, media or the mailroom. Whether you were president of a prestigious company, brand manager, or receptionist, you got Bill's undivided attention, his worldly wisdom.
He knew everyone who worked with him not only by name, but also personally. His notes of advice and encouragement are legendary because they were, and still are, always humorous and fun while, many times, talking about tough subjects.
After spending three and a half years in the Army during World War II, Bill graduated in 1947 from Miami University (Oxford, Ohio) with a degree in chemistry. In 1947 he joined radio station WHK Cleveland as sales promotion manager. And in 1951 he launched a career in advertising at Gerst Sylvester & Walsh, in Cleveland, in account service. In 1957 he came to Ketchum MacLeod & Grove in Pittsburgh, where he spent over 20 years, rising from account supervisor to senior vice president as he led many people attending this award show tonight on many of the agency's most prestigious accounts: Tappan, Consolidated Gas System, Westinghouse Corporate, Small Appliances, Lamps, PPG Corporate, Pittsburgh Paints, Heinz, Iron City, Alcoa, Christian Children's Fund, Stouffer's, and Nestle Coffees and Ice Cream Products
Highlights of his early years included: a Tappan full-page advertisement in the first issue of Reader's Digest to accept ads.
The first ads (full page, four-color) directed to women in Time magazine despite the stern objections of Time executives. For always being a step ahead of his time, one year later Bill was honored by being "elected" to a permanent honorary position on Time's staff.
One KM&G new business presentation Bill will always remember was to the Stouffer Corporation. It was held at a memorable moment in Pittsburgh's sports history¾ during the seventh game of the 1960 World Series between Pittsburgh and the New York Yankees. He recalls he had four seats behind home plate that he had to give away. That was dedication. Two other Pittsburgh Ad Federation Hall of Famers - Bill Genge and Berniece Preisser - also presented. When he was tossing away presentation materials years later, he found a ragged pass-along note that said, "Mazeroski hit the home run" stuffed in the notes.
That same Stouffer account was worth $300,000 then and grew to $45 million 30 years later under Bill's watch.
In 1978 he moved to Creamer/FSR. The Stouffer account moved with him soon
after. He became chairman and CEO of Creamer and was the driving force through all of its names until he retired from the agency on July 4, 1990.
"In the course of my Pittsburgh employment," Bill says humbly, "I worked for, or with, six or seven of the previously elected Hall of Famers...so I had some fancy and qualified trainers."
Married 53 years, he and his wife Nancy have three married sons, Scott, Andrew and David, now living all over the country (Arizona, California and New Mexico). He has seven grandchildren and one great-grandson just three months old.
Asking Bill about his life wasn't easy. After begging for a brief glimpse into his background, he ended in true Sprague humor. "There are many other advertising, marketing and public relations things. But what I've told you is far more than one cares to know. I've saved boards, public service, clubs and those yawners for my obit."
Whoever said, " the art of being wise is knowing what to overlook" must have known Bill.
<- Back to Hall of Fame listing
|
|
|
