Jacques Dauphin (July 4, 1923 – April 1, 1994) was a French advertising pioneer[1] founder and CEO of Dauphin OTA. He is best known as the father of modern billboard advertising.[2][3][4]
Jacques Dauphin | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 4 July 1923 Paris, France |
| Died | 1 April 1994 (aged 70) Paris, France |
| Education | Lycée Condorcet |
| Alma mater | HEC Paris |
| Children | 1 |
| Relatives | Charlotte Dauphin (granddaughter) |
| Website | dauphin-ota |
Early life and education
editAfter graduating with a law degree from Faculte de droit de Paris and from HEC Paris, Jacques Dauphin re-opened the Parisian-based office created by his father Eugene Dauphin[5] in 1921 who closed it during WWII to prevent any collaboration with the Nazis. He then developed the company to a broader scale after the French Liberation expanding its activities (mainly billboard advertising and radio) worldwide, including the UK, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Canada, and the Caribbean.[5] Jacques Dauphin has notably created and developed the 4x3 format that remains today the international standard format used in billboard advertising worldwide.
Career
editHis professional achievements have been honoured in several occasions and he has successively occupied the following positions: president (1958 - 1966) of the national outdoor advertising federations of France, Germany, Belgium, Finland, Italy and the Netherlands best known as FEPE that he created[1] and the International Advertising Association. He was then vice-president (1969), president (1972 - 1974), and honorary president of the French Chambers of advertising. He presided the 3rd World Congress of Outdoor Advertising in London in 1972. He was a member of the International Commission « Publicité distribution » of the International Chamber of Commerce, and co-president of Grand prix international de l´affichage. He has been made Knight of the Legion of Honour and Knight of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French authorities.[6]
Dauphin broadens his interests in other media, particularly in radio, television and film. in 1978, Jacques Dauphin takes over Radio Caraïbes International with his friend the American journalist and politician Pierre Salinger.[7]
Personal Interests
edit
Through Dauphin OTA Jacques Dauphin was also particularly active in the promotion of the arts and image.
He notably promoted the Cannes Film Festival. Dauphin was one of the historical official partner of the film festival. The company provided an extra support to the winner of the Caméra d'Or by offering a national billboard advertising campaign in support of the winning first feature film. Dauphin also notably supported the French International Contemporary Art Fair best known as FIAC.
Through Dauphin, Jacques Dauphin has commissioned and inspired various artists, such as Daniel Buren or François Morellet among others.
He is a founding member of L’Académie nationale des arts de la rue (ANAR) created in 1975 with Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet, Maurice Cazeneuve, Paul Delouvrier, Georges Elgozy, Roger Excoffon, Abraham Moles, and André Parinaud.[8]
Jacques Dauphin has turned billboard advertising into a popular art form, a witness of the contemporary society, and one of the leading media of the 20th century in Europe.
Other facts
editAfter the tragic death of his only son Laurent in 1988, and due to the young age of his only granddaughter Charlotte, Jacques Dauphin had no heir to take up the business.
After Jacques Dauphin died in 1994, it has been decided that Dauphin billboard advertising would subsequently be sold. The American conglomerate Clear Channel acquired Dauphin OTA in 1999. The company became an emblematic part of its outdoor communication division.[9][10]
His only heiress is his only granddaughter Charlotte Dauphin who has married Comte Charles-Henri de La Rochefoucauld in 2012 in Saint-Louis des Invalides cathedral in Paris, France.[citation needed]
Jacques Dauphin's life and career, his personality, leadership, and his passion for sailing have inspired French film director Claude Lelouch for his film Itinerary of a Spoiled Child and its lead character Sam Lion.[citation needed]
References
edit- ^ a b "The History of FEPE". FEPE official website.
- ^ Durand, Dominique (1985). Le Livre du Mur Peint (Painted Walls) - Preface by Jacques Dauphin as the inventor of painted walls as advertising mediums. Paris: Editions Alternatives. p. 166.
- ^ "Innovation and OOH are synonymous: John Ellery". Jacques Dauphin is cited as "legendary".
- ^ "Notre histoire".
- ^ a b Barrett, Lucy. "Media Briefs". Marketing.[dead link]
- ^ "Dauphin Coat of Arms and Name History". House of Names.
- ^ [1] Archived 2021-04-23 at the Wayback Machine RCI.
- ^ [2] L'Ilec.
- ^ "Company History". Clear Channel official website. Archived from the original on 2013-01-01. Retrieved 2013-01-10.
- ^ "Clear Channel Buys Stake In French Outdoor Ad Company". San Diego Daily Transcript.
Interviews
edit- Jacques Dauphin CEO of advertising company La France défigurée - 19/07/1971
Further reading
edit- Clear Channel Regains Global Leadership, Marketing Week (01419285);06/17/99, Vol. 22 Issue 20, p13.
- Neil Bennett, Neon coup for Clear Channel, The Telegraph; 01 Oct 2000.
- Clear Channel Acquires French Railway Advertising Archived 2016-03-05 at the Wayback Machine, PRNewswire; 18 May 2000.
- "The smartest bus shelters ever", The Economist, May 11, 2000 | from the print edition