 Jake Jonnes, circa 1977  Parker Jonnes, circa 2012 |
In the summer of 1977, Polywater founder Nelson Jonnes tapped an unusual source of talent for his upcoming advertising campaign: his first-born grandson, Jake Jonnes. The photo ran numerous times as a trade show banner and in old trade magazines such as Telephony and TE&M with the caption: "You'll be happy too ... when you pull your cable with Polywater Lubricants. Polywater Lubricants are clean. Because they're water-based, they eventually evaporate, leaving practically nothing to pollute your manholes. Polywater Lubricants are experienced. These products have been tested and approved for underground construction use by more than half the major U.S. telephone companies going on four years now (Approval list available by phone.) Polywater Lubricants are slippery and they carry well into the conduit. Polywater Lubricants are easy to use." In the summer of 2012, Jake Jonnes, now a bit older, rejoined American Polywater as Central U.S. Regional Sales Manager. He decided the time was right to duplicate the iconic image with his appropriately aged and attired son, Parker Jonnes--Nelson Jonnes' first-born great-grandson. We don't expect this new image will sell much Polywater--particularly since we're not using it in an advertisement (we no longer promote the older single-polymer Polywater A and G lubricant versions depicted). But the likeness is uncanny ... and too cute not to share. We're pretty sure that Nelson, who unfortunately passed away in 2011, would have been very gratified to see yet another generation promoting the good works he founded. |
