DESIGNER UNKNOWN POLLUTION HURTS ALL OF US. 1971. 84x42 inches, 213 1/2x106 1/2 cm. Condition B+: sharp vertical and horizontal folds. Two Sheets. Paper. Keep America Beautiful (KAB), was founded in 1953. The organization's mission statement is "Engaging individuals to take greater responsibility for improving their community environments." Of their three areas of focus, litter prevention is their primary concentration. In 1961, KAB teamed up with the Ad Council to produce a series of PSAs (public service announcements). The most famous of these, and in fact, one that reverberated throughout American culture, was their 1971 commercial featuring the "Crying Indian." Its release coincided with the celebration of Earth Day, an event that was founded the year before. In this memorable ad, a Native American canoes down a polluted river, pulls his canoe up on a filthy beach and stands at the side of a littered highway watching cars speed by, only to have one rider throw a bag of garbage out of his car window, scattering at the Indian's feet. The Indian was Iron Eyes Cody, a Sicilian-born actor who had fully adopted a Native American persona which he used to help support the indigenous population. The powerful and moving commercial, ending with a single tear running down the Indian's cheek, won two CLIO awards and was named one of the top 100 advertising campaigns of the Twentieth Century by Ad Age Magazine. The commercial can still be viewed on the internet.
