Thompson, J(ames) Walter (1847–1928)

US advertising executive. He virtually created modern advertising, transforming it into a primary sales tool by persuading magazines and major clients (Eastman Kodak, Prudential Insurance) of its respectability; his success in placing advertising in magazines made national product campaigns possible.

Thompson was born in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. He served in the Union navy in the Civil War. In 1867 he joined a New York advertising firm and turned it into a highly successful agency. In 1916, believing that advertising had peaked, he sold his agency and devoted himself to such interests as yachting.