Tom Burrell

Thomas J. "Tom" Burrell[1] (born March 18, 1939)[2] founder and chairman emeritus of Burrell Communications, became one of the first African Americans in the field of advertising.[3]

Early years

Burrell was born in Chicago, where his father owned a tavern and his mother worked for a beauty parlor. He switched high schools to avoid being near "the wrong crowd" and it was in the second one that a teacher encouraged him to look into the field of advertising.[2][4] He then went to Roosevelt University, majoring in English and with a minor in advertising.

Career

Burrell was "the first black person to work in a Chicago advertising agency."[5] After ten years of advancing, he and Emmett McBain opened their own agency, Burrell McBain Advertising.[6] Part of Burrell's pitch was that "black people are not dark-skinned white people," referring to differences in music preferences and other cultural differences. Burrell bought out his partner in 1974 and renamed the agency Burrell Communications Group.[2] McDonald's and Coca-Cola were early clients.[5]

In 1999 he sold 49% of his firm to fund expansion,[7] and subsequently stepped aside, becoming chairman emeritus of the agency; Burrell was later inducted into the American Advertising Federation Hall of Fame.[8] He also authored two books, Brainwashed: Challenging the Myth of Black Inferiority[9] and Brainwashed: Erasing the Myth of Black Inferiority.[10][3]

One post-retirement recognition of his professional accomplishments came in 2017 from The One Club.[11]

Personal

He and his wife Madeleine Moore Burrell live in Miami. Burrell has donated to and benefitted from Chicago Lighthouse for the Blind since being diagnosed with macular degeneration.[2]

External links

• Video, oral history, Thomas J. Burrell