This thick, dynamic album of photographs, produced circa 1920, shows scores of eye-catching billboards and other outdoor displays produced by the United Advertising Corporation, which was run by prominent New...
This thick, dynamic album of photographs, produced circa 1920, shows scores of eye-catching billboards and other outdoor displays produced by the United Advertising Corporation, which was run by prominent New Jersey resident Leonard Dreyfuss, the owner / compiler of the album.
The album contains photographic reproductions of the work created by the United Advertising Corp. in the early years of the company. Many of the ads are for New Jersey-based businesses including Lippman and Lowy Insurance, Forbes Seed Co., Judge and Fox Clothing, J.J. Hockenjos Paints, all based out of Newark, the Orange Screen Company of Maplewood, and the Peter Breidt Company of Elizabeth, among others. There are a few travel ads including one for Midland Beach in Staten Island, numerous ads offering food and drink (Hoffman’s Fruity Ginger Ale, Meadow Peanut Butter, White’s Rose Bread, etc.), and ads for clothing, school supplies, banks, insurance companies, cigars, and other staples of American suburban life.
Also present are a number of automobile-related advertisements, which speak to the burgeoning American car culture of the time, and its relation to the rise of outdoor advertising. These include dynamic displays for automotive products and companies including Champion Shock Absorbers, Kelley Kord Tires, Stanwood Cord Tires, Garford Motor Trucks, a pair of ads for the Newark Automobile Show of 1920, and more.
While most of the companies represented in the album were located in the tri-state area, there are ads for national brands and a few in businesses in Dallas, Texas. All of the photographs are panoramic shots save for one, which shows a large billboard for a Red Cross Roll Call, shown in situ in front of the Newark City Courthouse. The last photograph in the album is a small portrait of Leonard Dreyfuss himself, whose name also appears on the album’s front cover, which implies the album was at one point owned by him or otherwise created to recognize his work personally.
Born in Brooklyn, NY, in 1886, Leonard Dreyfuss began his career in advertising in 1914 as a manager for the Newark Billposting Company. In 1917, he was instrumental in the merger with five other outdoor advertising firms to form United Advertising Corporation. From the merger to 1923, Dreyfuss was Vice-President of U.A.C. In 1923 he was elected President and Chairman of the Board, retaining the former until 1965 when he resigned. He remained Chairman until his death. Outside of his work, he was a dedicated civil servant and philanthropist, serving as Director of New Jersey Governor's Civil Defense Advisory Committee and as Chairman of the Newark chapter of American Red Cross. In 1942 Dreyfuss was named Newark's Outstanding Citizen of the Year.