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Susanna Hutcheson

The man few people could say no to . . .

Reviewed in the United States on October 27, 2010

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This is a vivid, colorful history of a man of great importance to the advertising industry. But it's also the story of a man who was important in business in general and his legacy lives on. This is a well written book. There are some typos but in the publishing business today, that's common and sad.

This is mostly a flattering biography but the authors can be excused for that in that one of them has a personal interest in the agency of which Lasker was the head.

As a member of the advertising industry, a professional copywriter, I enjoyed the before untold stories of numerous important characters in our industry. For example, Claude Hopkins was a genius copywriter on whose shoulders I stand. He worked with and for Lasker for awhile. His writing style is still a great learning tool and one few copywriters use. But the story I remember in the book about Hopkins is that he wrote his most famous ads in minutes or days. Lasker felt the client would feel the agency didn't work hard enough on the ads so he would set on them for a few weeks. It reminds me of my late, great associate, Bill Steinhardt. He would say the same thing about my own writing. "Set on it a couple weeks. Let the client think you worked on it long, hard hours, weeks and even months," he would say. But, alas, Picasso painted some of his greatest work in minutes.

Lasker had style. He had an abundance of energy --- all his life into old age. He was indeed a great salesman. He knew how to put a deal together. And in the book, you'll learn some of his methods. He also knew his own weaknesses. So he would hire the best people and pay them good money to do a great job.

His career in advertising started before copywriting had any value. Only after he was in it awhile did he discover the monetary value of great copywriting. When he discovered it, his agency grew fast and he became a millionaire many times over. Before that time, an ad agency basically just placed ads.

I enjoyed this book very much. It's a classic in my opinion. The basic element of any business is selling. Until a sale happens, you have no business. Mastering salesmanship is so critical to a businessperson. Lasker was a master seller. As one of his great copywriters, John E. Kennedy told Lasker, "Copywriting is salesmanship in print." Lasker was not a copywriter. But he was a great salesman and his life is well worth reading about.

Highly recommended.

-- Susanna K. Hutcheson

Amazon Customer

Worth Your Time and Money

Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2015

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An engaging read. It covers many aspects of Lasker's life (as a book that strives to be a comprehensive biography should) from his time in advertising, involvement with politics and social causes, to his philanthropic and personal life. I initially started reading it only to learn about his work in the advertising industry and found myself reading the whole book within a couple of days.

I strongly disagree with those who found the work boring. It was very well written, interesting, and based on deep research into the source material.

Beyond answering questions that I had about the subject (which the authors did exceptionally well) I also judge a book on whether it was worth the time and money I spent on it. In this case the answer is a resounding yes. If you have any interest in the history of advertising, politics, and social causes in the pre-WWII and immediate postwar years, pick it up.

Sasha Cave

Fascinating look at advertising titan

Reviewed in the United States on March 3, 2011

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A fascinating look at a multi-dimensional man. Albert Lasker, on the business side, and Claude Hopkins, the fantastically productive workaholic on the creative/copywriting side, practically invented modern advertising (along with John E. Kennedy) and had an immense influence on American society. The well organized book is also thoroughly researched and documented. Lasker's amazing career deserves ten volumes, but this is the best one volume book I've seen.

I hope that in future editions there are far more reprints of Hopkins/Lasker's groundbreaking ads, but then I'm an advertising copywriter and advertising buff...

There's a lot of interesting personal information here. Mr. Lasker's accomplishments are even more amazing when one considers that he suffered from a manic-depressive disorder, drinking, may have been dyslectic, and was burdened with a wife who was rendered an invalid by typhoid fever only weeks after their honeymoon. Another obstacle for him was anti-Semitism, although this is glossed over in the book, with only passing references.

The father of modern advertising

Reviewed in the United States on January 21, 2011

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Albert Lasker is frequently called the father of modern advertising. Heading up the advertising agency of Lord and Thomas, Lasker relied on the power of ideas. He defined advertising as "salesmanship in print."

He was at his peak from 1908 to the 1930s. Some of his achievements included sparking a thirtyfold increase in the sales of Puffed Wheat and Puffed Rice, inventing the "Sunkist" and "Sun Maid" brands while dramatically increasing the consumption of oranges and raisins, quadrupling the sales of Goodyear tires in four years, increasing the sales of Lucky Strike cigarettes from 25 million a day to a 150 million a day in less than three years and marketing the first sanitary napkin (Kotex) and the first disposable handkerchief (Kleenex).

Lasker pioneered the use of research to test and validate advertising approaches. He was one of the first men to analyze and plan advertising campaigns for clients. He helped define advertising so that it became a force of social good to introduce people to new and better ways of life.

Lasker, who likely was manic depressive, was not a particularly effective manager. He experienced mood swings, battling ups and downs. Although he attracted talented individuals, he deliberately fostered insecurities and anxieties among his top lieutenants. Lord and Taylor dissolved in December 1942.

While Lasker's advertising success is interesting, it unfortunately is only half of the book. The other half of the book was extremely boring to me. From pages 125 through 237, the authors cover Lasker's involvement in the Leo Frank murder case, his stint as part owner of the Chicago Cubs, his involvement in political campaigns, including the presidential campaign of Warren G. Harding and his position as chairman of the United States Shipping Board. I found very little of it interesting. I think most readers also will be challenged by the authors' rather dry and textbookish writing style.