Industry veteran Peter Mayer died peacefully while surrounded by loved ones at the age of 86 last week, Adweek reports. His funeral service was held today, and he is is survived by his second wife, Linda Bailey Mayer, three children and eight grandchildren.
Mayer founded the independent New Orleans agency that bears his name in 1967. His sons, Mark Mayer and Josh Mayer, currently serve as its president and CCO, respectively.
Mark, who has beenthe agency’s president for the past 30 years, shared this reminiscence about his father: “He looked forward to three things every day: where to have lunch, whom to have lunch with and what to order.”
Mayer’s family fled to New Orleans from Nazi Germany in 1935, when he was just six years old. He received a degree in journalism from the Missouri School of Journalism and served in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War.
After beginning a career as a reporter he transitioned to advertising with stints at Fitzgerald Advertising and Walker Saussy Advertising before launching Peter Mayer (the agency) with help from former Walker Saussy creative director Dorothea “Dot” Cahn. The agency went on to become the largest in the state and one of the largest in the region, with accounts including the New Orleans Saints, GE Capital, CenturyLink, the New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation and Zatarain’s.
In addition to his contributions to advertising, Mayer was known for being active in local organizations, such as The Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities and The Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans.