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| Christine O'Dwyer |
As we remember O’Dwyer Company founder Jack O’Dwyer on the second anniversary of his passing on December 19, 2018 at the age of 85, we also thank all of the people who have contributed so much to Jack and the O’Dwyer Co. since its founding in 1968 in New York City.
We miss Jack so much and while he led such a full life, we wish every day he was still here with us.
Jack was very dedicated to all the O’Dwyer Co. staff members and also to all his friends and business associates in the public relations and journalism fields. They were all just as much his family as our own family.
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On behalf of Jack, we thank all the current O’Dwyer staff members and columnists and so many others who contribute so much, past staffers and writers, all of the agency and corporate public relations professionals, all the PR firms and PR service firms, all of our advertisers, subscribers, all the professionals, lawyers and accountants and tech and printing companies and so many others who have contributed and continue to contribute so much to the company and to the field of public relations. Thank you so much, we are very appreciative.
Jack just loved news and the world of newspapers and the press. From the time he was a paperboy as a young child, his love of the news never wavered. He was also always a very hard worker, paying his way through college playing the piano in a band. He also served as a caddie, worked as a busboy at a resort and worked at a factory.
Writing was his passion. Writing stories was something he did every day, even when he was in grade school, high school and also while studying English Literature at the University of Connecticut. He worked for the Bridgeport Post (now the Connecticut Post) for many years before working as a daily advertising columnist for the New York Journal-American. He also worked for the Chicago Tribune as an advertising reporter at the time of creating Jack O’Dwyer’s Newsletter in 1968. We have saved a tremendous volume of all his columns and stories from these papers.
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| Jack at his desk at 271 Madison Ave. in NYC where O'Dwyer's is still headquartered. |
He loved to report on the PR field. He thought about his stories day and night and could find a story in almost anything.
Jack led a very disciplined home life, always writing and completing all his work at nights and all during the weekends in between his leisure activities and time spent with family and friends. Even when he finished his work and articles for the day, he was always thinking about his next story.
He believed in truth in public relations. He enjoyed getting together with his story subjects and also writing hard hitting financial stories about PR firms, associations and corporations. For those entering the field of public relations or journalism, his advice was to write every day and keep improving. He understood the importance of public relations firms and corporate communications professionals in helping companies to get their messages out honestly and with the goal of educating the public and also assisting reporters with their stories. He believed PR pros should always promptly return reporters’ calls, or today, e-mails.
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He would always say if someone wanted to start out in the PR business, they could go to a local restaurant or local business and offer to come up with some sort of a publicity idea that would help them get new business. That would then in return help the PR pro gain experience. This advice still holds true today in the world of Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and the explosion of social media.
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| Lucille & Jack at Lincoln Center |
As we are in the height of this worldwide pandemic, Jack would be sad to see the closed restaurants, Broadway shows, music venues, the ballet, symphony and more, and all those who are suffering and struggling to keep their jobs, homes and feed their families and most of all the terrible tragedy of all those who have lost their lives in the U.S. and throughout the world.
But he would embrace how hard people have worked to soldier on with Zoom calls and outdoor dining, distance learning and musicians still playing to audiences remotely and of course all the frontline workers and all those in the medical profession working so hard every day to save lives and keep people safe and well.
He would have hope, as he always did, that things will get better and he would remember those who have lost their lives and their loved ones.
He would continue hoping for the best for everyone, writing each day and keeping his positive spirit alive for all those around him.
A tribute to the life and work of Richard Levick, who died April 11 at the age of 65.
The news of Bruce Willis' frontotemporal dementia diagnosis hit me like a ton of bricks. My client Ginger Reeder, who was VP-corporate communications at Neiman Marcus, has the same dreaded disease.
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Dec. 22, 2020, by Dennis Spring
Whenever I was feeling bored & needed a boost I would call Jack & say "so when are you going to retire?"
Jack would then launch into his usual rage about retirement being nothing more than a huge scam perpetrated by the giant insurance companies to glorify retirement as a way to extract money from gullible seniors -- I miss those rants!