After Earl MacNeill retired from Irving Trust and joined Merrill Anderson, he continued to write a trust periodical for Irving. In print advertising, however, the bank concentrated on commercial services. In 1969, seeking to become a player in mergers and acquisitions, Irving published the amazing ad above.
At the time the artist, Jacqui Morgan, was known for her Electric Circus poster. Commissioning her to do an illustration for a staid old Wall Street bank was a deliberate shocker – as if the Saturday Evening Post decided to buy cover art from Peter Max instead of Norman Rockwell.
Unfortunately, Irving never gained the critical mass to compete with the megabanks. In 1988, after a bitter battle, it was taken over by Bank of New York.
To glimpse the stature Irving enjoyed in earlier times, see the art deco skyscraper at 1 Wall Street that served as its headquarters.
More of Jacqui Morgan's early work can be seen here.
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3 comments:
Loved this post! Well, I love all of them, but this one moved me to comment.
Thanks!
So great to see this piece again.
I recall that J Walter Thompson had to prove that 2 out of3 marriages end on the rocks before running this ad again.
I loved doing this campaign!
Thanks for your bravery!
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