James J. Jordan Jr. (August 3, 1930 – February 4, 2004) was an American ad-man and

slogan A slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a clan or a political, commercial, religious, or other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose, with the goal of persuading members of the public or a more defined target group ...

eer. He is best known for his work at the

BBDO BBDO is a worldwide advertising agency network, with its headquarters in New York City. The agency originated in 1891 with the George Batten Company, and in 1928, through a merger with Barton, Durstine & Osborn (BDO), the agency became Batten, B ...

advertising agency An advertising agency, often referred to as a creative agency or an ad agency, is a business dedicated to creating, planning, and handling advertising and sometimes other forms of promotion and marketing for its clients. An ad agency is generall ...

, coining such slogans as "

Us Tareyton smokers would rather fight than switch! "Us Tareyton smokers would rather fight than switch!" is a slogan that appeared in magazine, newspaper, and television advertisements for Tareyton cigarettes from 1963 until 1981. It was the American Tobacco Company's most visible advertising ca ...

", "

Wisk Wisk was an American brand of laundry detergent manufactured in the United States by Unilever (1956 to 2008) and Sun Products (2008 to 2017). History Wisk was introduced as the first liquid laundry detergent in the United States by Lever Broth ...

beats ring around the collar", and "Shaefer is the one beer to have when you're having more than one." As Creative Director at BBDO, he oversaw major campaigns for Pepsi, Burger King ("Have it Your Way"), Pillsbury and Campbell Soup. In 1976, he left BBDO to start his own agency, James Jordan, Inc. He later merged his agency with Case & Krone to form Jordan, Case and McGrath, a full-service agency that grew during the 1980s to $500 million in billings. (JCM eventually became JMC&T--Jordan, McGrath, Case & Taylor.) Other slogans penned by Jordan include the following: "Delta is ready when you are." "You're not fully clean unless your Zest-fully clean!" "Soup so Chunky, you'll be tempted to use a fork. But use a spoon--you'll want to get every drop." "If they could just stay little 'til their Carter's wear out." "Quaker Oats. It's the right thing to do." Jordan was born in White Plains, New York. A graduate of

Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zepha ...

, he would later serve on its

board of trustees A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

. He died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

while

snorkeling Snorkeling (American and British English spelling differences#Doubled in British English, British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of human swimming, swimming face down on or through a body of water while breathing ...

in the

Virgin Islands The Virgin Islands () are an archipelago between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and northeastern Caribbean Sea, geographically forming part of the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean, Caribbean islands or West Indie ...

, aged 73. He was married to Mary Helen Cronin for 46 years, and had seven children. He is also survived by 15 grandchildren.

References

Amherst College alumni 1930 births 2004 deaths American public relations people People from White Plains, New York 20th-century American businesspeople {{US-business-bio-1930s-stub