Introducing HGL. Direct Response Copywriter Email Archive July 2019 2.
/Copywriters You Should Know. Part 5. Herschell Gordon Lewis.
When I really started getting into direct response copywriting I was a voracious reader of copywriting and marketing books. I still am, in many ways. I hope you are.
Herschell Gordon Lewis is not the most famous copywriter of all time but he was quietly one of the most effective and productive. He was also a curious character ... as you’ll discover in a minute. Extremely controversial but not for his copy.
He was often known simply as HGL. Look him up on Amazon and you’ll see a number of his books. I’ve read a lot of them. You can see them here.
I saw somewhere that he wrote 20 books.
And I’m not getting any affiliate action here, just in case you’re wondering.
If you click the link, you’ll notice something interesting.
As is the case with so many copywriters, copywriting was not HGL’s only gig. He was a movie producer/director and, in fact, known as The Godfather of Gore. Yes … he produced horror movies and movies of that ilk. I’ve never seen any of these and I’m certain I don’t want to.
HGL called these “splatter movies.” How do I know? Because just before he died, I had lunch with him at the AWAI bootcamp in Delray Beach. I think it was five years ago. It was a fascinating lunch as I’m sure you can imagine. HGL had given a speech to the attendees and blew them away. He was emotional at the end of lunch, breaking down into sobbing. Perhaps he knew he was dying. But he was a total gentleman. Perhaps odd because his movies were anything but gentlemanly.
What can you learn from HGL? A lot. I hope you start reading his books about copy.
Let me give you 3 takeaways.
First, HGL believed in crisp, clear copy. No wasted words. Just raw, pure clarity at all times. Clarity is vital in direct response copy yet way too many people totally ignore it.
Second, HGL helped his clients generate continuity income. For example, a company would run a collectible plate promotion. The first plate would come with a rack with room for 9 plates. This pretty much meant you were going to buy all the plates. Right? How could you put your rack in your kitchen with 3 plates missing?
Third, HGL is the only copywriter I know who really focuses seriously on the syntax of direct response copywriting. The careful selection of words and then the equally careful placement of the words.
Michael Senoff organized a rare interview with HGL and you can find it here.
The life of HGL provides a bit of a conundrum. I really admire his work as a copywriter yet I’m TOTALLY CERTAIN I don’t want to see any of his film work. The latter sounds extremely bizarre and way over the top. You've been warned.
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I’m excited that I may have found a publisher for my two new books about copy. Stay tuned.
My website needed an edit/review. As such, I finally added a new section including archives of these emails. It’s here.
I’ve only just started this archive so it will take a little while to finish. About four weeks, most likely. You'll find a lot of content on that page.
A professional editor is updating the database of 2,000 potential clients. This might be complete by the end of October.
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Scott Martin Direct Response Copywriter
P.S. Next up? Clayton Makepeace.
