REMEMBER PEARL HARBOR - WALTER LAMPL
By December1941, although America had so far resisted engaging militarily, world-wide warfare was already affecting Walter Lampl’s wholesale jewelry business and his personal life.
The intricately carved semiprecious gemstones and cinnabar that he had been importing from China for more than a decade were no longer available. Japan’s war on China closed off those markets after1937. The entire American costume jewelry industry was suffering from shortages of rhinestones. Germany’s invasion of its neighboring countries disrupted the supply chain for glass stones normally sourced from Czechoslovakia and Austria. Britain and France had been at war with Germany for more than 2 years, with devastating impacts on the international fashion industry and transatlantic trade.
Although Walter Lampl and his wife, Sylvia, had both been born in the United States, they were well aware of the dire situation for European Jews. Their parents had immigrated to America in search of a better life for themselves and their children - Walter’s parents from pogrom-plagued Hungary and Sylvia’s from Germany. Sylvia still had many relatives in Germany and throughout the late 1930s, as conditions became increasingly dangerous for them, Walter helped many escape to the United States, providing money and sponsorship.
And then, on December 7, 1941, the shocking attack by Japan upon the American naval fleet docked in Honolulu, Hawaii at Pearl Harbor changed everything for Walter Lampl, his family, his country, and his business. America entered the war.
Just 22 days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Walter Lampl filed for a U.S. patent on a new design he and his team had worked up to commemorate that terrible day and raise money to help the people of Honolulu. By January 1st, just 3-1/2 weeks after the attack, the new design, known as the Patriot Pin, was for sale across the nation. It was offered in two sizes, both costing $1.00. By agreement with the Honolulu Community Chest, 10% of the retail sale price for these pins was to be contributed to their fund.
As usual, Lampl’s marketing campaign was comprehensive and highly effective. Two surviving ads from February 1942 speak to the scope of this campaign. A smiling woman proudly wearing a Patriot Pin was featured as a news story in 500 newspapers. The pin was featured editorially in numerous magazines, including Vogue, Glamour, Esquire, Bride’s, Mademoiselle, and Bazaar. Messaging about the pin was broadcast by 65 radio stations across the nation. Advertising in the jewelry trade magazine, Jewelers’ Circular-Keystone, encouraged jewelry and department stores throughout the country to be the first in their towns to feature the Patriot Pin by Lampl.
The Patriot Pin featured a visually arresting and inspiring design. Enameled in red, white and blue, the three ribbons streaming out behind a blue globe read REMEMBER PEARL HARBOR. A tiny golden airplane, sitting above the earth and the ribbons, was shown zooming towards a pearl in the center of the Pacific, rushing to the rescue. The back, in raised lettering, declared Lampl’s intent to donate a share of the price of each pin for Hawaiian relief. The boldly-sized larger pin measured 3 inches in length. The small version was only 1 inch in length and came with either a pin back or a push button, suitable for a jacket lapel and more likely to be worn by men than women.
And on February 10, 1942, Lampl signed a check to be paid to the order of the Honolulu Community Chest for $1,630.80, with the note “10% of the Retail Price of the “Remember Pearl Harbor” pins shipped in the month of January 1942.” That means he shipped out 16,308 of these pins in the very first month of sales. Unfortunately, we have no record of how many pins were sold in subsequent months or how much money was ultimately given for Hawaiian relief efforts. We do know, however, that $1,630.80 in 1942 dollars would be worth about $31,685 today. We also know from another vintage advertisement that 10 months later, in December 1942, the Patriot Pin was still being sold on the Street Floor of Saks Fifth Avenue department store in New York City’s Rockefeller Center.
This extraordinary act of generosity was coupled with the remarkable agility of Lampl’s design team, manufacturing partnerships, and marketing network, as well as his unerring eye for business opportunity.
Walter Lampl went to war from his office and showroom at 608 Fifth Avenue in New York City. His oldest son, Walter Lampl, Jr., soon enlisted in the infantry and went to war as a second lieutenant in Europe. The full-page Jewelers’ Circular-Keystone ad from November 1943 is a love letter from the Walter Lampl employees to “our boys in service,” sending personal messages to 9 family members serving overseas. And that ad mentions Walter Lampl’s gift of an ambulance through the Third War-Bond Drive. Patriotic and military-themed jewelry became important products for Lampl throughout the Second World War. We will further address that jewelry in a future blog post!
