BERNSTEIN & BERNSTEIN (NOT SAM) ALUMNI MEETING

A couple of weeks ago (mid-April 2023), a small group of the Bernstein & Bernstein Alumni Association met for lunch at Mr. Joe's in Southfield.  This was the first time many of us had seen each other since the March 2020 COVID shutdown.  

I worked for B&B for quite a while and early on I learned that the "not Sam" had to be included when I introduced myself, especially to juries.  There is a family relationship between B&B and Sam's office.  Newton Bernstein, the last of the Bernsteins at B&B and Sam Bernstein were cousins.  There were originally 4 Bernstein brothers, all attorneys when B&B was started in 1923, and I never understood why the firm was called merely Bernstein & Bernstein.

Most of our small group of alums still work on the plaintiff side of PI law.  I was the only one who crossed over to the defense.

In the late 1990s B&B had 10 attorneys.  Now there are 3.  

As previously stated, B&B was formed in 1923, making this the centennial year of its existence.  A friend still at the firm states that there are no plans to mark the event.  

As my humble tribute to the occasion, I have located a few pictures I doctored up and included in a blog I had back in my plaintiff days at B&B.  It was a play on attorney advertising.  I indicated that I had discovered the photos evidencing B&Bs pioneering efforts in advertising, circa 1935.

The first, which is at the top of the post, is an actual photo, showing a blimp crossing Washington Blvd, in Detroit, between the Book Cadillac Hotel and the Book Tower.  Both those buildings have been renovated after decades of neglect.  The slogan "Blimp Hit U", was a reference to a Detroit area PI who used a similar slogan in his advertising.  Subsequent events, for him, have not been so great.

The next photo was based on a past fad of including lawyer ads prominently on the back, sides, front and top of public buses, and the use of firm owners' pictures in ads.  Here is what such ads looked like in the early days of B&B.

We are now familiar with celebrity spokespeople for various local firms.  For those not familiar with popular culture of the 1930s, movie serials were very popular, and new installments were used by film studios to get people to come to the theaters every week.  One of the most popular serials was Flash Gordon, as played by Buster Crabbe, former Olympic swim champ.  The villain of the series was Emperor Ming (the Merciless) of the planet Mongo.  The slogans "Ta-Ming Insurance Companies" and "Service in a 'Flash'", were naturals.

This reminds me.  I had a professor in law school we referred to as "Ming the Merciless".  If the prof had removed his toupee, the physical resemblance would have been uncanny.  He also used a textbook that was 40 years old-a real throwback.

 

So, Happy Centennial to Bernstein and Bernstein.  I look forward to the next meeting.