Johnny Roventini
Encyclopedia
Johnny Roventini (August 15, 1910–November 30, 1998) was an American dwarf
actor of Italian-American heritage.
Less than four feet tall as a fully developed adult, Roventini was working as a bellboy at the New Yorker Hotel
in 1933 when he was discovered by an advertising mogul, who had him perform a page, issuing a "Call for Philip Morris". He reportedly could always vocalize a perfect B-flat tone as he repeated those words, literally over a million times during his career, according to his own estimate.
He soon became famous as a product spokesman for Philip Morris
brand cigarettes in radio, television and print advertising media. He was described by Philip Morris personnel as a "living trademark", and represented the company for over 40 years. He also played roles in the growth of broadcast media, most notably helping Lucille Ball
and Desi Arnaz
with the initial success of their innovative I Love Lucy
comedy series beginning in 1951.
. As an adult, he was only 47 inches tall and weighed 59 pounds. Employed as a bellman (or "bellboy") in the New Yorker Hotel
in New York City
, he was promoted by the hotel as the "smallest bellboy in the world".
. A drawing of a bellboy carrying a tray with a box of cigarettes on it was the original mascot. The campaign had been successful and was used for 15 years with artistic variations as the only significant changes.
In 1933, advertising executive Milton H. Biow, the principal of the Biow Agency in New York City
, was managing the advertising account of Philip Morris cigarettes. Biow had an idea to bring new life (literally) to the mature "bellboy with tray of cigarettes" campaign. He had heard of the distinctive voice and appearance of Roventini. Biow and Philip Morris executive Alfred E. Lyons went to the hotel where Johnny worked. They sat in the lobby and observed him, noting both his diminutive size and distinctive voice.
In those days, hotel lobbies were typically elaborately furnished and used as meeting places, so situations with persons seeking each other were not uncommon. Biow and Lyons had apparently been unnoticed by the 22-year-old bellboy, when, according to the legend, Biow approached him and paid Johnny a dollar to page a "Mr. Philip Morris" throughout the lobby. The small bellboy repeatedly cried out "Call for Philip Morris" in his distinctive high pitched voice, several times, not knowing that there was no such person. He did not realize that he had been essentially performing an audition. "I went around the lobby yelling my head off," Johnny recalled later, "but Philip Morris didn't answer my call." Roventini initially thought that his call had been both legitimate and unsuccessful. He was soon to learn that he had been wrong on both counts. He was later quoted in Variety: "I had no idea that Philip Morris was a cigarette."
The page had in fact been a huge success, one that was to lead the young bellboy to a 40-year career. Biow and Lyons both visualized the performance of the small bellboy as ideal to bring life to their fictitious character. In April 1933, Roventini was hired to make a "Call for Phil-ip Mor-rees" on the different radio programs sponsored by the tobacco company. Roventini had been earning $15 a week at the hotel and received $100 for his very first radio commercial. He later recounted that he only accepted the new job after checking with his mother, with whom he lived much of his life. He was soon earning $50,000 annually, a substantial wage for such work in those years, according to his biography.
's lap during a publicity shot. During World War II
, he patriotically tried joining the Coast Guard Auxiliary, and probably to no one's surprise, was rejected for being too short. He shared a dinner table with General and Mrs. Dwight D. Eisenhower
, clowned around with Red Skelton
, sat ringside with fighter Jack Dempsey
and participated in numerous parades and other public events. There were at least ten other Johnnys, known as Johnny Jr.s, including Albert Alteiri. This made it possible for Johnny to appear simultaneously in various sections of the country.
Roventini was heard on popular live radio programs and appeared in his short-jacketed bellboy outfit on some of the most-watched television shows of the 1950s and 1960s, including I Love Lucy
, Candid Camera
, the Red Skelton Show and the Jackie Gleason Show.
character played by Desi Arnaz
. Advertisers were fearful of unknown public acceptance of the show featuring a marriage of mixed ethnicity in that era. After failing to win financial backing from CBS
executives, Arnaz traveled to New York to hawk the show, and struck a deal with advertising mogul Milton Biow who bought the show for his client, Philip Morris cigarettes. The tobacco company sponsored I Love Lucy exclusively from its premiere on October 15, 1951, through Christmas of 1954 (it then shifted to an "alternate sponsorship" with Procter & Gamble
until June 1955). Although Philip Morris had a rich return for its investment and risk-taking in backing I Love Lucy, Arnaz also had the wisdom to retain ownership of the I Love Lucy shows, effectively inventing both the "rerun
" and syndication procedures for the fledgling television industry.
The show was enormously popular with the viewing public, and with Lucy and Desi, and sidekicks William Frawley
and Vivian Vance
(as neighbors Fred and Ethyl Mertz), Johnny and Philip Morris gained into unprecedented national television prominence. Johnny's voice and face was often the first thing one heard and saw respectively on Monday evenings on the CBS television network as the I Love Lucy opened. Johnny also did a number of commercial spots with stars of the hit show, Lucille Ball
and Arnaz, who were expected to promote products sponsoring their shows in that era, when embedding ads straight into programs and in having the stars of shows do ads for the sponsors was common practice. In a particularly memorable episode, "Lucy Does a TV Commercial", the actress dresses up in the "Johnny the Bellhop" costume. Industry watchers reported that Lucy, Desi and Johnny had soon become fast friends while working together.
. The politics of communism
and the possibilities that subversive pro-communism activities were active within the United States became known as a Red Scare
, the second such period in the 20th century.
In September 1953, allegations surfaced from columnist Walter Winchell
and other news stories that Lucille Ball was being investigated by the House Committee on Un-American Activities
in the U.S. Congress
for alleged communist ties.
The Los Angeles-Herald Express ran a headline in three-inch red letters: "LUCILLE BALL NAMED RED". The comedienne was reportedly both distraught and devastated over the charges. Her acting career and possibly even her personal freedom were at risk.
Johnny traveled from his home in New York to be with her at Desilu studios in Los Angeles
, a gesture of support from both Roventini and her show's sponsor, Philip Morris, which she never forgot. Although with much difficulty Lucy was able to disprove the charge, many others who were blacklist
ed as a result of such allegations had their lives and careers ruined.
Radio aired a special half-hour program to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his career, describing him (with an apparent double entendre
) as "an advertising giant".
In April 1970, Congress passed the Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act
banning the advertising of cigarettes on television
and radio
starting on January 2, 1971. In the years after tobacco advertising was prohibited in broadcast communications regulated by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission
(FCC), Roventini made personal appearances for Philip Morris until he retired in 1974.
In retirement, he enjoyed sailing. He never married, and died in White Plains, New York
, in 1998 at the age of 88. The cause of death was listed as "natural causes".
"Johnny's fame as an advertising legend was enhanced by an ever-present smile and outstretched hand that won him friends wherever he went," Philip Morris eulogized.
, which was located in Portland, Oregon
before closing in 2004.
Dwarfism
Dwarfism is short stature resulting from a medical condition. It is sometimes defined as an adult height of less than 4 feet 10 inches , although this definition is problematic because short stature in itself is not a disorder....
actor of Italian-American heritage.
Less than four feet tall as a fully developed adult, Roventini was working as a bellboy at the New Yorker Hotel
New Yorker Hotel
The New Yorker Hotel, is a hotel located 481 Eighth Avenue in New York City. The 43-story Art Deco hotel opened in 1930.-General:The New Yorker Hotel is a 900 room, mid-priced hotel. It is located in Manhattan's Garment Center, central to Pennsylvania Station, Madison Square Garden, Times Square...
in 1933 when he was discovered by an advertising mogul, who had him perform a page, issuing a "Call for Philip Morris". He reportedly could always vocalize a perfect B-flat tone as he repeated those words, literally over a million times during his career, according to his own estimate.
He soon became famous as a product spokesman for Philip Morris
Philip Morris USA
Philip Morris USA is the United States tobacco division of Altria Group, Inc. Philip Morris USA brands include Marlboro, Virginia Slims, Benson and Hedges, Merit, Parliament, Alpine, Basic, Cambridge, Bucks, Dave's, Chesterfield, Collector's Choice, Commander, English Ovals, Lark, L&M, Players and...
brand cigarettes in radio, television and print advertising media. He was described by Philip Morris personnel as a "living trademark", and represented the company for over 40 years. He also played roles in the growth of broadcast media, most notably helping Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
and Desi Arnaz
Desi Arnaz
Desi Arnaz was a Cuban-born American musician, actor and television producer. While he gained international renown for leading a Latin music band, the Desi Arnaz Orchestra, he is probably best known for his role as Ricky Ricardo on the American TV series I Love Lucy, starring with Lucille Ball, to...
with the initial success of their innovative I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy is an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, on the Columbia Broadcasting System...
comedy series beginning in 1951.
Youth, hotel career
The child of Italian immigrants, he was born in Brooklyn, New York. Physically, Johnny Roventini was a dwarfDwarfism
Dwarfism is short stature resulting from a medical condition. It is sometimes defined as an adult height of less than 4 feet 10 inches , although this definition is problematic because short stature in itself is not a disorder....
. As an adult, he was only 47 inches tall and weighed 59 pounds. Employed as a bellman (or "bellboy") in the New Yorker Hotel
New Yorker Hotel
The New Yorker Hotel, is a hotel located 481 Eighth Avenue in New York City. The 43-story Art Deco hotel opened in 1930.-General:The New Yorker Hotel is a 900 room, mid-priced hotel. It is located in Manhattan's Garment Center, central to Pennsylvania Station, Madison Square Garden, Times Square...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, he was promoted by the hotel as the "smallest bellboy in the world".
Discovered by ad mogul Milton Biow
The famous "Call for Philip Morris" advertising campaign predates Johnny Roventini's role and began during World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. A drawing of a bellboy carrying a tray with a box of cigarettes on it was the original mascot. The campaign had been successful and was used for 15 years with artistic variations as the only significant changes.
In 1933, advertising executive Milton H. Biow, the principal of the Biow Agency in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, was managing the advertising account of Philip Morris cigarettes. Biow had an idea to bring new life (literally) to the mature "bellboy with tray of cigarettes" campaign. He had heard of the distinctive voice and appearance of Roventini. Biow and Philip Morris executive Alfred E. Lyons went to the hotel where Johnny worked. They sat in the lobby and observed him, noting both his diminutive size and distinctive voice.
In those days, hotel lobbies were typically elaborately furnished and used as meeting places, so situations with persons seeking each other were not uncommon. Biow and Lyons had apparently been unnoticed by the 22-year-old bellboy, when, according to the legend, Biow approached him and paid Johnny a dollar to page a "Mr. Philip Morris" throughout the lobby. The small bellboy repeatedly cried out "Call for Philip Morris" in his distinctive high pitched voice, several times, not knowing that there was no such person. He did not realize that he had been essentially performing an audition. "I went around the lobby yelling my head off," Johnny recalled later, "but Philip Morris didn't answer my call." Roventini initially thought that his call had been both legitimate and unsuccessful. He was soon to learn that he had been wrong on both counts. He was later quoted in Variety: "I had no idea that Philip Morris was a cigarette."
The page had in fact been a huge success, one that was to lead the young bellboy to a 40-year career. Biow and Lyons both visualized the performance of the small bellboy as ideal to bring life to their fictitious character. In April 1933, Roventini was hired to make a "Call for Phil-ip Mor-rees" on the different radio programs sponsored by the tobacco company. Roventini had been earning $15 a week at the hotel and received $100 for his very first radio commercial. He later recounted that he only accepted the new job after checking with his mother, with whom he lived much of his life. He was soon earning $50,000 annually, a substantial wage for such work in those years, according to his biography.
A fun career
It was obvious to his fans that Roventini enjoyed playing the smallness of his character, which Biow and others helped him capitalize upon. Philip Morris Tobacco Company provided a small chauffeur-driven American Austin convertible automobile to get Johnny to the live radio broadcasts on time. He became a friend to movie stars, sitting in popular actress Marlene DietrichMarlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich was a German-American actress and singer.Dietrich remained popular throughout her long career by continually re-inventing herself, professionally and characteristically. In the Berlin of the 1920s, she acted on the stage and in silent films...
's lap during a publicity shot. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, he patriotically tried joining the Coast Guard Auxiliary, and probably to no one's surprise, was rejected for being too short. He shared a dinner table with General and Mrs. Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
, clowned around with Red Skelton
Red Skelton
Richard Bernard "Red" Skelton was an American comedian who is best known as a top radio and television star from 1937 to 1971. Skelton's show business career began in his teens as a circus clown and went on to vaudeville, Broadway, films, radio, TV, night clubs and casinos, all while pursuing...
, sat ringside with fighter Jack Dempsey
Jack Dempsey
William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey was an American boxer who held the world heavyweight title from 1919 to 1926. Dempsey's aggressive style and exceptional punching power made him one of the most popular boxers in history. Many of his fights set financial and attendance records, including the first...
and participated in numerous parades and other public events. There were at least ten other Johnnys, known as Johnny Jr.s, including Albert Alteiri. This made it possible for Johnny to appear simultaneously in various sections of the country.
Roventini was heard on popular live radio programs and appeared in his short-jacketed bellboy outfit on some of the most-watched television shows of the 1950s and 1960s, including I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy is an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, on the Columbia Broadcasting System...
, Candid Camera
Candid Camera
Candid Camera is a hidden camera/practical joke reality television series created and produced by Allen Funt, which initially began on radio as Candid Microphone June 28, 1947...
, the Red Skelton Show and the Jackie Gleason Show.
Johnny and I Love Lucy
He is possibly best remembered of all his Philip Morris related-work for the I Love Lucy show. In 1951, in the early days of commercial broadcast television in the United States, the new comedy show ran into difficulties when it first sought sponsorship. This was due to the CubanCubans
Cubans or Cuban people are the inhabitants or citizens of Cuba. Cuba is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds...
character played by Desi Arnaz
Desi Arnaz
Desi Arnaz was a Cuban-born American musician, actor and television producer. While he gained international renown for leading a Latin music band, the Desi Arnaz Orchestra, he is probably best known for his role as Ricky Ricardo on the American TV series I Love Lucy, starring with Lucille Ball, to...
. Advertisers were fearful of unknown public acceptance of the show featuring a marriage of mixed ethnicity in that era. After failing to win financial backing from CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
executives, Arnaz traveled to New York to hawk the show, and struck a deal with advertising mogul Milton Biow who bought the show for his client, Philip Morris cigarettes. The tobacco company sponsored I Love Lucy exclusively from its premiere on October 15, 1951, through Christmas of 1954 (it then shifted to an "alternate sponsorship" with Procter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble is a Fortune 500 American multinational corporation headquartered in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio and manufactures a wide range of consumer goods....
until June 1955). Although Philip Morris had a rich return for its investment and risk-taking in backing I Love Lucy, Arnaz also had the wisdom to retain ownership of the I Love Lucy shows, effectively inventing both the "rerun
Rerun
A rerun or repeat is a re-airing of an episode of a radio or television broadcast. The invention of the rerun is generally credited to Desi Arnaz. There are two types of reruns—those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a program is syndicated. Reruns can also be, as the...
" and syndication procedures for the fledgling television industry.
The show was enormously popular with the viewing public, and with Lucy and Desi, and sidekicks William Frawley
William Frawley
William Clement "Bill" Frawley was an American stage entertainer, screen and television actor. Although Frawley acted in over 100 films, he achieved his greatest fame playing landlord Fred Mertz for the situation comedy I Love Lucy.-Early life:William was born to Michael A. Frawley and Mary E....
and Vivian Vance
Vivian Vance
Vivian Roberta Jones was an American television and theater actress and singer. Often referred to as “TV’s most beloved second banana,” she is best known for her role as Ethel Mertz, sidekick to Lucille Ball on the American television sitcom I Love Lucy, and as Vivian Bagley on The Lucy...
(as neighbors Fred and Ethyl Mertz), Johnny and Philip Morris gained into unprecedented national television prominence. Johnny's voice and face was often the first thing one heard and saw respectively on Monday evenings on the CBS television network as the I Love Lucy opened. Johnny also did a number of commercial spots with stars of the hit show, Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
and Arnaz, who were expected to promote products sponsoring their shows in that era, when embedding ads straight into programs and in having the stars of shows do ads for the sponsors was common practice. In a particularly memorable episode, "Lucy Does a TV Commercial", the actress dresses up in the "Johnny the Bellhop" costume. Industry watchers reported that Lucy, Desi and Johnny had soon become fast friends while working together.
Lucy, Johnny and the Red Scare
As I Love Lucy was enjoying its enormous popularity, the U.S. was in an early period of the Cold WarCold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. The politics of communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
and the possibilities that subversive pro-communism activities were active within the United States became known as a Red Scare
Red Scare
Durrell Blackwell Durrell Blackwell The term Red Scare denotes two distinct periods of strong Anti-Communism in the United States: the First Red Scare, from 1919 to 1920, and the Second Red Scare, from 1947 to 1957. The First Red Scare was about worker revolution and...
, the second such period in the 20th century.
In September 1953, allegations surfaced from columnist Walter Winchell
Walter Winchell
Walter Winchell was an American newspaper and radio gossip commentator.-Professional career:Born Walter Weinschel in New York City, he left school in the sixth grade and started performing in a vaudeville troupe known as Gus Edwards' "Newsboys Sextet."His career in journalism was begun by posting...
and other news stories that Lucille Ball was being investigated by the House Committee on Un-American Activities
House Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities or House Un-American Activities Committee was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. In 1969, the House changed the committee's name to "House Committee on Internal Security"...
in the U.S. Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
for alleged communist ties.
The Los Angeles-Herald Express ran a headline in three-inch red letters: "LUCILLE BALL NAMED RED". The comedienne was reportedly both distraught and devastated over the charges. Her acting career and possibly even her personal freedom were at risk.
Johnny traveled from his home in New York to be with her at Desilu studios in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, a gesture of support from both Roventini and her show's sponsor, Philip Morris, which she never forgot. Although with much difficulty Lucy was able to disprove the charge, many others who were blacklist
Blacklist
A blacklist is a list or register of entities who, for one reason or another, are being denied a particular privilege, service, mobility, access or recognition. As a verb, to blacklist can mean to deny someone work in a particular field, or to ostracize a person from a certain social circle...
ed as a result of such allegations had their lives and careers ruined.
Later years
A Philip Morris representative once described Johnny Roventini as a "living trademark". In 1959, NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
Radio aired a special half-hour program to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his career, describing him (with an apparent double entendre
Double entendre
A double entendre or adianoeta is a figure of speech in which a spoken phrase is devised to be understood in either of two ways. Often the first meaning is straightforward, while the second meaning is less so: often risqué or ironic....
) as "an advertising giant".
In April 1970, Congress passed the Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act
Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act
The Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act is a United States federal law, passed in 1970, designed to limit the practice of smoking. It required a stronger health warning on cigarette packages, saying "Warning: The Surgeon General Has Determined that Cigarette Smoking Is Dangerous to Your Health"...
banning the advertising of cigarettes on television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
and radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
starting on January 2, 1971. In the years after tobacco advertising was prohibited in broadcast communications regulated by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
(FCC), Roventini made personal appearances for Philip Morris until he retired in 1974.
In retirement, he enjoyed sailing. He never married, and died in White Plains, New York
White Plains, New York
White Plains is a city and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located in south-central Westchester, about east of the Hudson River and northwest of Long Island Sound...
, in 1998 at the age of 88. The cause of death was listed as "natural causes".
"Johnny's fame as an advertising legend was enhanced by an ever-present smile and outstretched hand that won him friends wherever he went," Philip Morris eulogized.
Legacy
Johnny Roventini's original uniform (red usher's jacket, piped trousers, black pillbox hat and white gloves) was donated to the American Advertising MuseumAmerican Advertising Museum
The American Advertising Museum was a museum in downtown Portland, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1986, the museum displayed advertising from the 18th century to the present day. The museum featured both permanent and traveling exhibits on advertising campaigns, industry icons, and advertising...
, which was located in Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
before closing in 2004.
External links
- Bellhop.org a website dedicated to Johnny Roventini
- Lucille Ball and Johnny Roventini