Kathleen "Kay" Daly (8 January 1919 – 16 October 1975) was an Irish-born American

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a Product (business), product or Service (economics), service. Advertising aims to present a product or service in terms of utility, advantages, and qualities of int ...

executive and one of the four "celebrated Daly sisters". At Norman, Craig & Kümmel she was the creative force behind the famous

Maidenform Maidenform Brands is a manufacturer of women's bras, underwear, and shapewear founded in 1922. History The company was founded in Bayonne, New Jersey in 1922 and sought to appeal to the flapper subculture of the time. Maidenform converted ...

"''I Dreamed ...''" campaign and

Revlon Revlon, Inc. is an American multinational company dealing in cosmetics, skin care, perfume, and personal care. The headquarters of Revlon was established in New York City on March 1, 1932, where it remains. Revlon was founded by brothers Charle ...

's legendary 1952 Fire And Ice campaign, working with photographer

Richard Avedon Richard Avedon (May 15, 1923 – October 1, 2004) was an American fashion and portrait photographer. He worked for ''Harper's Bazaar'', '' Vogue'' and '' Elle'' specializing in capturing movement in still pictures of fashion, theater and ...

. She also was responsible for the line "''Every woman alive loves Chanel Number Five''". She went on to join Revlon in 1961 as vice president and creative director. Kathleen Daly was born in Castlecaufield,

County Tyrone County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. Its county town is Omagh. Adjoined to the south-west shore of Lough Neagh, the cou ...

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

, Ireland, in 1919. The family emigrated early in the 1920s. She grew up as one of four sisters, Maggie, Kay,

Maureen Maureen is a female name, the female form of the male name Maurice. In Gaelic, it is Máirín, a pet form of ''Máire'' (the Irish cognate of Mary), which is derived from the Hebrew Miriam. Some notable bearers of the name are: People * Mauree ...

, and American-born Sheila. They became known for their writing and work in journalism, fashion, and advertising, and were called "the celebrated Daly sisters" by ''Time'' magazine in 1966. ''Life'' magazine ran a feature story on them in 1949 and a follow-up in 1959. All four were at least once employed by the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

''. When she moved to San Francisco after World War II, Kay Daly famously rented space on a billboard to advertise for an apartment. It not only netted her an apartment, but netted her nationwide fame and countless marriage proposals. She had a brief marriage to

BMW Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, trading as BMW Group (commonly abbreviated to BMW (), sometimes anglicised as Bavarian Motor Works), is a German multinational manufacturer of vehicles and motorcycles headquartered in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Th ...

executive and film producer Richard Bradford (part of the famous

Bradford family Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

of Plymouth Colony), who fathered her sons John (Kelly), Richard, and Peter. She then was married to journalist and executive Warren Leslie, who adopted and raised her sons, until her death on 16 October 1975, of pancreatic cancer.Kay Daly, Revlon Ad Innovator, Dies at 55. 1975. ''Chicago Tribune'' (18 October), p. 18. She was survived by husband Warren, sons Kelly, Peter, and Richard Bradford, and stepsons Warren and Michael Leslie.

References

External links

Life Magazine Photos

at Andrew Tobias: Money and Other Subjects – from his book ''Fire And Ice: The Story of Charles Revson, the Man Who Built the Revlon Empire''

Time Magazine {{DEFAULTSORT:Daly, Kay 1919 births 1975 deaths American advertising executives Emigrants from Northern Ireland to the United States People from County Tyrone Deaths from pancreatic cancer 20th-century American businesspeople