You’ve probably seen the recent Dos Equis ads and commercials featuring “The Most Interesting Man in the World.”  It’s worth a fresh look at the original campaign upon which these are based – David Olgivy’s “The Man in the Hathaway Shirt,” that began in 1951 and lasted for decades.

The Hathaway campaign also has a great story behind it.  Ellerton Jette, president of the relatively unknown Maine-based C.F. Hathaway Shirt Company, wanted to make his company a household name and gambled with a long-shot appeal to advertising giant David Ogilvy.  Since he had a small budget to work with, he got through to Ogilvy with a promise to never fire him or change a word of his copy – no matter how large the account became.  This clever ploy offered Ogilvy complete control, and even security – a rarity in the business – and this liberation yielded a brilliant and successful campaign.  Hathaway Shirts became an overnight sensation and all stores were sold out of Hathaway shirts by the end of the week after the campaign’s launch.

Ogilvy was inspired by The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and a photo of Ambassador Lewis Douglas, who was wearing an eye patch due to an injury he received on a fishing expedition.  During the photo shoot, Ogilvy had his Faulkneresque model try on an eye patch for a few pictures. The instant he saw the first print, he knew this was the twist he was looking for – a very memorable and great way to add a sense of mystery and adventure to his character and the brand.

The campaign’s full formula included this eye-patched gentleman in a variety of settings to create a narrative of a rugged and sophisticated man ready for anything – especially romance – in his Hathaway shirt.  Background sets included the big game hunting, fencing, upscale parties, the theatre and so on.

Euro RSCG’s work for Dos Equis builds upon Ogilvy’s template, using Jonathan Goldsmith – occasionally in an eye patch – touches of humor and the strong narration of Frontline’s Will Lyman to paint a vivid picture of “The Most Interesting Man in the World.” Note his ambivalent endorsement in these commercials, “I don’t always drink beer, but when I do, I prefer Dos Equis.”  The king of cool. A nice homage to Ogilvy’s groundbreaking campaign.