Most Boston lunch tables were abuzz with sorting news in Fall 1948, the year The Publicity Club of Boston was born. Ted Williams had cakewalked to the American League batting championship, while on the other side of town, Bill Southworth’s Boston Braves had captured the National League pennant.
Not everyone shared the city’s enthusiasm to the same degree, however. For John J. Molloy and Daisy Weichel, publicity directors for the Chamber of Commerce and the old Hotel Touraine respectively, things were less bright. They felt their profession was in the cellar of public acceptance.
It seemed to them that more and more people – calling themselves publicists, public relations counselors, or both, depending upon the situation – were scurrying from city room to city room touting what, to them, were their organization’s merits.
To John and Daisy, with more and more “public relations” jobs being created, the need for a unifying, professional organization – one that at once would offer camaraderie, opportunities for professional exchange and education, and, importantly, help bring credibility to their profession – was clear.
The Molloy-Weichel idea took further hold later in 1948 when they and four others tossed around the pros and cons of forming such an organization.
The four were the late Eleanor Collier, who distinguished herself as the grand lady of Boston University’s School of Public Communication, founded that very year; the late Floyd Bell; Marie Houlahan, who went on to become the club’s first woman president; and the late Bill Cavanaugh of United Air Lines.
Eleanor, Floyd and Marie joined in to write the constitution and bylaws. And, even today, the club remembers Bill Cavanaugh’s contribution to those early days with an annual scholarship award bearing his name.
The club’s formal organization took place on February 1, 1949.
On March 15, 1949, 29 persons met in the Adams Room of the Hotel Touraine for The Publicity Club of Boston’s first meeting. John Molloy was elected its first president. The Collier-Bell-Houlahan bylaws were adopted.
At first, meetings were held weekly; then, every two weeks. Now they are held monthly, featuring recognized experts in communications or notable public figures as guest speakers.
In 1989, the club officially changed its name to The Publicity Club of New England, to more accurately reflect the organization’s expanding membership.
In 2018, in recognition of the expanded scope of public relations beyond merely publicity, the organization changed its name to the PR Club.
For all its growth, however, the tenets contained in Article II of the club’s original constitution still remain:
- To promote and encourage the profession of public relations and publicity;
- To create in New England a lasting organization of persons engaged in the profession of public relations and publicity; and to provide them with a forum for the discussion of professional problems;
- To promulgate a code of ethics, standards and fair practice under which its members operate.
Professional Education
Since 1961, The PR Club has annually sponsored an education program open to members and nonmembers, public relations veterans and novices alike. Programs offer up-to-date perspectives in public relations theory and practice, with the goal of making each participant a more polished practitioner.
Also in the educational realm, PR Club members are frequently asked to volunteer their talents at many area colleges and universities. Members have judged writing competitions, lectured in their specific areas of expertise, and counseled would-be practitioners studying in academic communication or public relations programs.
Scholarship Program
Each year, deserving students from area colleges and universities compete for The PR Club’s William M. Cavanaugh Memorial Scholarship. Applicants must have specific career goals in public relations, publicity or related field, and have a demonstrated record of scholastic achievement. Financial need is also considered in making a scholarship award. All scholarship candidates are screened by the club’s Scholarship Committee, with the scholarship award presented at the annual Bell Ringers Awards in June.
75th Anniversary
In 2024, The PR Club time capsule, which now resides safely with the current board, was unsealed at the 56th Annual Bell Ringer Awards. Assembled in 1984 as part of the club’s 35th anniversary celebration, the time capsule contains artifacts from various communications activities and media memorabilia collected during the course of the year. Details of the capsule’s contents are on file at Boston University’s College of Communications library at 640 Commonwealth Avenue, and with the Vice President, standards and practices. The capsule was last visited in May, 2018 to check on its condition.
Bell Ringer Awards Program
In 1969, on The PR Club’s 20th anniversary, the Bell Ringer Awards program was instituted to recognize public relations work which demonstrates excellence in creative planning and professional education and exhibits a high degree of success in reaching predetermined objectives. Gerry Powers, professor of public relations at Boston University, was the first Bell Ringer chair.
Open to all New England practitioners, the program symbolizes one of the greatest tributes in any field of endeavor – the recognition of superior performance by one’s peers.
Experts from a variety of communications pursuits judge the competition and award Bell Ringers to the best total communications campaigns and single elements.
A special award, the Super Bell, was inaugurated in 1972 to recognize the highest degree of excellence in the planning, execution and success of public relations programs. This recognition has since been amended to include single elements as well. Like the Bell Ringers Awards, the Super Bell is awarded at the annual Bell Ringer Awards recognition event, which has become one of the highlights of the public relations year in Boston and New England. It remains the only regional public relations award program in New England. The John J. Molloy Crystal Bell lifetime achievement award was added in 1990, with the late Norman Bryden and Edward Bernays receiving the first awards. The Striker and Ringer awards (added in the early 2000s) recognize newcomers and mid-level practitioners in the industry.
Presidential Roster
The President of the PR Club oversees all board positions to protect the integrity of the Club, further its mission to promote and encourage the profession of public relations, and help foster in New England a PR community to provide a forum to explore the challenges and opportunities they face.
1950s
- 1949 – 1950 John J. Molloy*
- 1950 – 1951 William M. Cavanaugh*
- 1951 – 1952 Floyd L. Bell*
- 1952 – 1953 Ralph L. Rogers*
- 1953 – 1954 John L. Lynne*
- 1954 – 1955 Morgan H. Plummer, Jr.
- 1955 – 1956 Alfred P. Williams
- 1956 – 1957 Floyd L. Bell
- 1957 – 1958 Marie H. Houlahan
- 1958 – 1959 Warren H. Davidson
1960s
- 1959 – 1960 Paul A. Newsome
- 1960 – 1961 Robert H. Hall*
- 1961 – 1962 S. Kennedy Tully*
- 1962 – 1963 Leo F. Maher
- 1963 – 1964 Vincent J. Tuscher
- 1964 – 1965 Siebert F. Cunningham*
- 1965 – 1966 Frank Doherty*
- 1966 – 1967 John J. D’Addieco*
- 1967 – 1968 Frank O. Allison*
- 1968 – 1969 Wilfred G. Solimene*
1970s
- 1969 – 1970 Ann E. Herzog
- 1970 – 1971 Judith K. Nelligan*
- 1971 – 1972 Arnold T. Koch
- 1972 – 1973 Gerald Powers
- 1973 – 1974 Nancy J. Caruso
- 1974 – 1975 Richard O. Berube*
- 1975 – 1976 Cynthia L. Rawson
- 1976 – 1977 Michael O. Ciccarelli*
- 1977 – 1978 Claire M. Deveney
- 1978 – 1979 Joseph C. Nahil
1980s
- 1979 – 1980 Francis Gregory II*
- 1980 – 1981 Harriet L. Stanley
- 1981 – 1982 Rolf A. Fuessler
- 1982 – 1983 Douglass E. Kenney*
- 1983 – 1984 Richard I. Young
- 1984 – 1985 Diane L. McKedy
- 1985 – 1986 Linda Sanders
- 1986 – 1987 Norine P. Bacigalupo
- 1987 – 1988 Burton Peretsky
- 1988 – 1989 Katherine H. Blake
1990s
- 1989 – 1990 Hallie Baron
- 1990 – 1991 Gwynne Jamieson
- 1991 – 1992 Claire M. Deveney
- 1992 – 1993 Elenore Parker
- 1993 – 1994 Laura O. Palmer
- 1994 – 1995 David N. Stern
- 1995 – 1996 Andrew L. Schupack
- 1996 – 1997 Helene Solomon
- 1997 – 1998 Richard I. Young
- 1998 – 1999 Helene Solomon
2000s
- 1999 – 2000 Julie Dennehy
- 2000 – 2001 Ashley McCown
- 2001 – 2002 Kelly Mello Woodsum
- 2002 – 2003 Stephanie (Torpy) Tan
- 2003 – 2004 Amy Shanler
- 2004 – 2005 William Fleishman
- 2005 – 2006 Karen Cummings
- 2006 – 2007 Michael Dowding
- 2007 – 2008 Beth Bailey
- 2008 – 2009 Risa Burgess
2010s
- 2009 – 2010 Karen Reynolds
- 2010 – 2011 Lauren Howe
- 2011 – 2012 Ani Jigarjian
- 2012 – 2013 Toni Iafrate
- 2013 – 2014 Maryanne Keeney
- 2014 – 2015 Kristin Allaben
- 2015 – 2016 Karyn Martin
- 2016 – 2018 Cheryl Gale
- 2018 – 2020 Todd Graff
2020s
- 2020 – 2022 Amanda Fountain
- 2022 – 2024 Sofia Giovannello
- 2024 – Present Kaitlynn Cooney
* Deceased