Monday, August 17, 2009

Jarvis was an advertising man for most of his life, and from the 1950s until he retired he always prized his Clebar stopwatch.

From what I could find on the internet, the watch was probably new in 1952, because other styles preceded it in earlier decades.

My father savored the precise use of words, and the legend "Received from JWT"--that is, J. Walter Thompson Company, where he did his most well-known work--suggests to me that it was not a gift he was given, but perhaps an appropriation he made.

The times on the card’s reverse refer to film frames which he had to consider when timing his advertising copy for radio and television commercials. As a boy, he'd sometimes allow me to watch in silence as he read his work. With his veteran radio voice, and well-hone writer's craft, it was serious business. I’m sure this was long before he worked at Advertising Division, and suspect he cribbed these notes about film frames and times from an earlier card which was probably over worn from use.


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