143. Call for Philip Morris! SEASON'S GREETINGS! 1965-1970

HAPPY HOLIDAYS, from Philip Morris' Johnny Bellhop, ca.1965

The products of PHILIP MORRIS International Inc. became known to the Philippines only in 1955, when a licensing agreement was reached with La Suerte Cigar and Cigarette Factory to manufacture and sell PHILIP MORRIS branded-cigarettes in the country. It was PHILIP MORRIS’ first exclusive agreement outside of the U.S.

 

SEASON'S GREETINGS from Philip Morris, 1966

La Suerte Cigar & Cigarette Factory (La Suerte),44 Fortune Tobacco Corporation (Fortune),45 and Sterling Tobacco Corporation (Sterling)46 are domestic corporations engaged in the production and manufacture of cigars and cigarettes. These companies import leaf tobacco from foreign sources and purchase locally produced leaf tobacco to be used in the manufacture of cigars and cigarettes

 

MALIGAYANG PASKO, Call for Philip Morris, 1970

For over 40 years, La Suerte produced and sold PHILIP MORRIS, until Fortune Tobacco Corp. was established in 1965, which then took over the manufacturing and marketing of the brand, including another American favorite, Marlboro.

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JOHNNY ROVENTINI
soource; wikipedia

PHILIP MORRIS advertising featured the iconic bellhop trade character which was conceived back in the Word War I years.  Hotel lobbies then were used as meeting places to meet people, talk business—and smoke. Initially, an illustration of a bellhop was used in early ads, and part of his duties was to page people, hence the slogan “Call for Philip Morris”.

Milton Biow, head of New York Biow Agency that handled the account, had the idea of‘humanizing’  the illustrated bellhop on PHILIP MORRIS ads. He found him in the person of a 23 year-old, a shade under 4 feet, 59-pounder Johnny Roventini (b. Aug. 15, 1910/d. Nov. 30, 1998) who was a real-life bellboy working at the New Yorker Hotel. He was asked to holler “Call for PHILIP MORRIS!”, which he did so in his high-pitched voice, not knowing that he was paging a product, not a person.

Johnny Bellhop was finally found and became the most successful spokesperson for PHILIP MORRIS. He appeared on TV and in print ads, lent his distinctive voice to a PHILIP MORRIS radio show, and is credited with spurring the growth of broadcast media.

LISTEN TO JOHNNY BELLHOP 's

"CALLFOR PHILIP MORRIS" HERE:

Source: The Mouldy Spud , Uploaded July 27, 2010

Johnny prefaced the highly-popular “I Love Lucy” program of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz with his signature call--"Call for Phil-ip Mor-rees"”—in perfect b-flat, and helped keep the ratings soaring.

The iconic bellhop cigarette character was not unknown to Filipinos, thanks to the popularity of the early PHILIP MORRIS ads that featured him. In fact, the bellboy  was ‘copied’ by La Insular Cigarettes, for its local print ads in 1929. 

It was only in 1965 that the bellhop was used for PHILIP MORRIS magazine ads in the Philippines. The Christmas ads shown here feature a faithful illustrated likeness of Johnny Roventini, whose call for PHILIP MORRIS made him one of the most recognizable faces on media.

At the prime of his career, Johnny was earning a hefty $50,000 annual salary, thanks to his personal appearances that made him one of the most recognizable faces on media. Considered a “living trademark”, Johnny’s fame and success was enhanced by his ready smile and welcoming hands that won the admiration of people who came to see him.

  MALIGAYANG PASKO SA INYONG LAHAT!

from Isa Munang Patalastas