Douglas Leigh
Encyclopedia
Douglas Leigh was an American advertising executive and lighting designer, and a pioneer in signage and outdoor advertising. He is famous for making New York City's Times Square
the site of some of the world's most famous electric billboards
. Leigh also designed the colored lighting scheme for the Empire State Building
.
by buying the exclusive right to sell advertising for the yearbook, Leigh became a top salesman for a sign company in Birmingham
. In 1929, he moved to New York and got a job at the General Outdoor Advertising Company, but quit in 1933 to strike out on his own.
Leigh then designed a sign for the St. Moritz Hotel in exchange for the right to live there and to use the hotel's address at 50 Central Park South
for his business. From there, Leigh proceeded to transform the signs at Times Square. His first eye-catching creation was a billboard for A&P, advertising the store's Eight O'Clock Coffee
with clouds of steam emanating from a large cup of coffee. A Camel
billboard blew smoke ring
s from a steam generator, while one for Kool cigarettes
featured a blinking penguin. One for Ballantine Beer had clowns tossing quoit
s on a peg. The Coca-Cola
sign at Bryant Park
gave an ever-changing weather forecast (featuring a house and pictures of sun, rain, snow, etc.) along with the slogan "Thirst knows no season" (Leigh paid a tenant's weekly laundry bills to stop her from hanging her laundry on her clothesline in front of the sign). Leigh's design creation of a large illuminated snowflake is hung at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 57th Street every holiday season. With the exception of the Empire State Building, Leigh's creations have been replaced with newer signs, for which Leigh set the bar.
He was the step-grandfather of Prince Lorenzo Borghese.
Times Square
Times Square is a major commercial intersection in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue and stretching from West 42nd to West 47th Streets...
the site of some of the world's most famous electric billboards
Billboard (advertising)
A billboard is a large outdoor advertising structure , typically found in high traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertisements to passing pedestrians and drivers...
. Leigh also designed the colored lighting scheme for the Empire State Building
Empire State Building
The Empire State Building is a 102-story landmark skyscraper and American cultural icon in New York City at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. It has a roof height of 1,250 feet , and with its antenna spire included, it stands a total of 1,454 ft high. Its name is derived...
.
Biography
After financing his education at the University of FloridaUniversity of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
by buying the exclusive right to sell advertising for the yearbook, Leigh became a top salesman for a sign company in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
. In 1929, he moved to New York and got a job at the General Outdoor Advertising Company, but quit in 1933 to strike out on his own.
Leigh then designed a sign for the St. Moritz Hotel in exchange for the right to live there and to use the hotel's address at 50 Central Park South
Central Park South
Central Park South is the portion of 59th Street that forms the southern border of Central Park in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It runs from Columbus Circle at Eighth Avenue on the west to Grand Army Plaza at Fifth Avenue on the east...
for his business. From there, Leigh proceeded to transform the signs at Times Square. His first eye-catching creation was a billboard for A&P, advertising the store's Eight O'Clock Coffee
Eight O'Clock Coffee
Eight O'Clock Coffee is the brand name of the light roast of coffee introduced by the American supermarket chain A&P in 1859. In 1919, the roast was renamed and given its current trademark. According to legend, the company came up with the name by conducting a survey asking people what time of day...
with clouds of steam emanating from a large cup of coffee. A Camel
Camel (cigarette)
Camel is a brand of cigarettes that was introduced by American company R.J. Reynolds Tobacco in the summer of 1913. Most current Camel cigarettes contain a blend of Turkish tobacco and Virginia tobacco. Early in 2008 the blend was changed as was the package design.-History:In 1913, R.J...
billboard blew smoke ring
Smoke ring
A smoke ring is a visible vortex ring formed by sudden release of smoke. It can be created by blowing smoke from the mouth, quickly lighting a cigarette lighter and putting it out or holding a burning incense stick or a cigarette vertically, pushing it with the burning side up and suddenly pulling...
s from a steam generator, while one for Kool cigarettes
KOOL (cigarette)
KOOL is a brand of menthol cigarette currently produced by the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, introduced in 1933, that has marketed itself towards the "sophisticated man". Originally introduced as an unfiltered "regular" size cigarette, filtered 85 mm king-size versions were later added to...
featured a blinking penguin. One for Ballantine Beer had clowns tossing quoit
Quoit
Quoit may refer to:* Quoit, a single-chambered megalithic tomb, also called a Dolmen* Quoit , a pre-medieval type of brooch* A ring used in the game of Quoits* Chakram, a weapon resembling a gaming quoit* Quoit, Cornwall, a location in England...
s on a peg. The Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
sign at Bryant Park
Bryant Park
Bryant Park is a 9.603 acre privately managed public park located in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is located between Fifth and Sixth Avenues and between 40th and 42nd Streets in Midtown Manhattan...
gave an ever-changing weather forecast (featuring a house and pictures of sun, rain, snow, etc.) along with the slogan "Thirst knows no season" (Leigh paid a tenant's weekly laundry bills to stop her from hanging her laundry on her clothesline in front of the sign). Leigh's design creation of a large illuminated snowflake is hung at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 57th Street every holiday season. With the exception of the Empire State Building, Leigh's creations have been replaced with newer signs, for which Leigh set the bar.
He was the step-grandfather of Prince Lorenzo Borghese.
External links
- Current Biography 1940, pp 489–91.
- Douglas Leigh archives at the Smithsonian InstitutionSmithsonian InstitutionThe Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
- Bio at Smithsonian website
- Dannatt, Adrian, "Obituary: Douglas Leigh", The IndependentThe IndependentThe Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, March 1, 2000.