The first TV commercial in the United States was broadcast on 1st July, 1941, and aired just before a baseball game. It cost the company just ten dollars to run. Before the advent of the videotape, most television commercials were broadcasted live. However, with advancing technology, commercials would be produced either on film or on tape. The programming was intended to capture the attention of the audience, keeping viewers glued to the television set After World War II, the pace of life quickened and this was reflected in the TV commercials. Back in the 1950s and 1960s, the average length of a television commercial was one minute. As the years passed, they became 30 seconds long, and today a majority of commercials run in 15-second increments (often known as "hooks").

Most of these clips have been produced by The Jam Handy Company. The brilliant black & white industrial films for America's giant corporations, such as General Motors, preserve the finest classic image of America available anywhere. The Handy Collection is a testament to the industries & dreams that made America great and the image of the American dream, as interpreted by the Handy films, are truly the dream of products that everyone in America could own, or want to own, at that time.

Even in the 1930s the TV commercial had become the most effective mass-market advertising format as advertisers realised that a single television commercial could be broadcast repeatedly. Television commercial production studios began spending enormous sums of money in the production of one single advertisement television spot and this resulted in a number of high-quality commercials, ones which boast of the best production values. This can easily be gauged from this DVD which brings you some of the earliest ads on TV. These commercials are near perfect ad campaings with a direct sales pitch, product demos - as in the case of the dishwasher and the Chevy - as well as concept selling as in the case of Prudential Insurance or targeting the beer drinker right on the barstool. The American tavern, after all, was the first home of television.


Some of the clips you will see in this set of DVDs are:

The Old Family Album Goes Modern
This early promotional film was made as a part of the promotional campaign for "Marquee Motion Pictures". It centers on the unique promotional offer made by the company. They offered to visit homes and film a child growing up for as low as 85 cents a minute. They also promised to archive these films for a century or more, thereby preserving a record of the child’s early years.

Sponsor: N/A
Producer: Marquee Motion Pictures
Year: 1930
Length: 00:08:26
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White

Help Yourself
This fascinating commercial produced by Pabst beer must have been a big hit at the turn of the 20th century. It features some amazing animation trickery which makes the advertising fly by, which is quite impressive, considering this is a Castle film. The images of the millions of Pabst boxes shown here make a great impression on the viewer and clearly convey the company’s leadership status in terms of sales.

Sponsor: Pabst Brewing Company
Producer: Castle Films
Year: 1939
Length: 00:17:29
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White

This Nations Power
This clip describes how power is generated in the United States and highlights the Nation’s dependence on power.

Sponsor: N/A
Producer: Jam Handy Organization
Year: 1940
Length: 00:08:27
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White

Another Cup Of Coffee
This film was produced by the Prudential Insurance Company of America for its salesmen to drive home the importance of prospecting. It features a confident salesman who enters a café for a cup of refreshing coffee and quite humorously sees his own image in the coffee educating him about the merits of prospecting.

Sponsor: The Prudential Insurance Company of America
Producer: Jam Handy Organization
Year: 1948
Length: 00:13:26
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White

The Way You Want It
Produced by the Jam Handy Organization, this promotional film is aimed at car customers. The film focuses on the toughness of Chevrolet cars and the pleasantness and excellent quality of the repair staff at your local dealership.

Sponsor: N/A
Producer: Jam Handy Organization
Year: 1950
Length: 00:08:24
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White

The Last Word In Automatic Dishwashing
This is a promotional film that captures the beginnings of what evolved into an everyday appliance - the Mullins Jet-Tower Dishwasher. This was a significant event as it opened the floodgates to other modern kitchen appliances in a big way.

Sponsor: The Mullins Manufacturing Corporation
Producer: Jam Handy Organization
Year: 1950
Length: 00:21:24
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White

Kit Carson Coca-Cola Spots
Kit Carson program was a serial TV show produced by the Walt Disney Company and sponsored by the Coca Cola Company. It was clearly produced to attract audiences through the popular show. Coca Cola was thus assured of a large captive audience for its own commercials.

Sponsor: N/A
Producer: N/A
Year: 1950
Length: 00:01:14
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & W hite

As We Like It
Sponsored by the United States Brewers Foundation Inc., this promotional film provides a very quick history of 'malt beverages' and goes on to furnish statistical data on the how consumption of beer helps the economy of the country. It also moots the idea that beer is one of the products that has made America great.

Sponsor: United States Brewers Foundation Inc.
Producer: Jam Handy Organization
Year: 1952
Length: 00:10:12
Audio: Mono
Color: COLOR

Yours Exclusively
This film was made specifically for the 1954 annual meeting of Texaco’s salesmen and highlights the benefits of a new additive Texaco came up with, called Petrox.

Sponsor: The texas Company
Producer: Audio Productions, Inc.
Year: 1954
Length: 00:15:00
Audio: Mono
Color: COLOR

Montclair Cigarettes Commercial
In order to overcome a nation-wide campaign to ban smoking in the 1960’s as it caused cancer, some tobacco companies started marketing low tar and nicotine but "high in flavor" smokes. Here we have a TV ad for Montclair, which for the first time introduced menthol flavored cigarettes.

Sponsor: N/A
Producer: N/A
Year: 1960
Length: 00:01:00
Audio: Mono
Color: Black & White

Running Time:
DVD One: 61 Minutes
DVD Two: 63 Minutes

EDITORIAL REVIEW:

This 2-DVD set is a tribute to the early advertisers who made their entry into TV commercials. It is also a boon to all those interested in advertising and marketing since the beginning of 20th century. Though a bit lengthy by present day standards, these advertising shorts are simple and direct. The message and the products are not lost in gimmicks, and direct hard sell and product demos are aimed at audience satisfaction. Be it selling the dishwasher by Mullins Manufacturing Company, or American Beer by Pabst Brewing Company, or Chevrolets by General Motors, or Cigarettes by Montclair Cigarettes or even Insurance by Prudential Insurance, each clip has been thoughtfully conceived and executed, which speaks volumes for the advertising prowess of the agencies from the 1930s to the 1960s.Some of the producers, who paved the way for modern day TV ads, featured on these DVDs are Marquee Motion Pictures, Castle Films and of course the Jam Handy Organization. Some of the very classy ads (producers are not known) like "Montclair Cigarettes,""Beechnut Baby Food," and "Folgers Coffee" are no different from the ads of today. Oh yes, TV Commercials were coming of age.

Many of the earliest television shows were sponsored by single companies, who inserted their names and products into the shows as much as possible as in the case with the Youngtown Kitchen Dishwasher, or Prudential Insurance Company. But, as we move on over a period of time we notice a change of content and pace of these TV commercials, which denote that time, and money constraints were beginning to affect the ads. The message became short and to the point with the visuals concentrating on the product. They had learnt to say it all within a minute and the modern TV commercial was born.

CUSTOMER'S REVIEWS:

"That was tremendous viewing. I write scripts for TV Commercials and the ads of the 1950s and 60s were brilliantly conceived and produced. I bow to these Ad Gurus who have left behind a legacy of work rich in thought and content, something that we built on and moved forward with all the technology at our disposal today. A2ZCDS, you are a real pal, thanks for bringing out these gems from the past."

Customer's Name: Russell Hanks (Ann Arbor, Michigan)

"I teach American history and sociology and this DVD set gave me an insight into the lives and times of the people from the 1940s and 50s. It was a simpler more direct world then and I loved the visuals accompanying the ads. Thanks A2ZCDS you have helped me identify with those times of the1930s and 50s."

Customer's Name: Tyron Moore (Cedar Hill, Texas)

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History of Advertising - Early TV Commercials Vol. I (2-DVD Set)

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General Packaging Description:
Our professionally-produced DVDs are shipped in retail Amaray style DVD cases just like you would find in a store. These beautifully packaged DVDs make great gifts and are themselves works of art. While we offer some of the best prices anywhere, we have never sacrificed quality for price.