A question occasionally comes up about Roma Wines and what happened to it. It all starts with family winery Cella Brothers that starts the Roma branding of their wines. Since wineries were family businesses it was common for them to be sold when it came time for founders or first generation owners to retire... or they might just accept an offer that is too good to be refused.
Schenley purchased their business, and like all acquisitions, the buyer believes that they can increase sales or efficiencies, or both, to make the acquisition worthwhile. Any time a wine comes from a business with "industries" in its name, rather than a name that sounds like it is family owned and nurtured, you can suspect there will be changes in management and strategy.
In their quest to expand their business nationally, Schenley starts sponsoring radio programs. Eventually, they decide that Suspense can be a headline program that will help them meet their financial goals.
To make their investment get the returns they wanted, they knew that high-visibility advertising would have to be part of the plan to get sales at the levels they wanted. Wartime scarcity was a special challenge. They focused on enhancing the enjoyment meals that did not have portions of meat or sides by using wine to bring some comfort to drab wartime dinners. They also emphasized the lower-than-expected cost of wines.
In retrospect, Suspense was a probably not a good advertising choice for them, but it may have been the only good choice out of a range of average or bad ones. In the end, the big-spending ways of high-profile network radio were too much for Schenley, even if the Suspense audience was among radio's biggest.
In wartime, their economy-priced selections did well. Post-WW2, when service personnel came home and there was greater mobility financially and geographically, spending patterns shifted. Wine sales decreased as scarcity of other food items ended. Making those drab wartime meals a little special was no longer necessary. Plates were full with the meats and side dishes that were not available during the war.
Roma tried to pull out of the Suspense sponsorship before the Peabody Awards were announced in April 1947. Two 13-week renewals later, it was realized there was no "Peabody bump" in sales, and the Roma era ended.
- Roma Wines (Cella Brothers) 1933
sold to
Schenley Industries (1942) - Schenley Industries
sold to
Guild Wineries (1972 -- Roma Wines brand last used in 1971 as best as can be estimated) - Guild Wineries
sold to
Canandaigua (1991), which also owned Taylor and Paul Masson - Canandaigua
changed its corporate name to
Constellation Brands in early 2000s and sold its Manischewitz and Taylor brands, among others, to Gallo.
Why is the Roma period so happily familiar to classic radio fans? That time from December 1943 to November 1947 was a Hollywood heyday. The show had the biggest guest stars and some marvelous scripts. There was a newness and excitement to it. The Auto-Lite period does not have the same sentimental appeal or excitement that the Roma years had, even though it was a high quality offering.
Don't forget Truman Bradley's presentation of the Roma ads in making this period more memorable. There were other ad readers: Frank Martin and Ken Niles. Both delivered the Roma pitch with style and professionalism. But Bradley's voice and unique emphasis and careful pronunciation was especially distinctive. He certainly adds to the enjoyment of the Roma broadcasts.
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The other big wine sponsor on radio, Petri Wines, can be traced back from today's Charles Shaw wine label sold by Trader Joe's stores. Yes, "two buck Chuck" (now "four buck Chuck") goes back to the sponsor of Sherlock Holmes and other radio series.
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Prior to Roma signing on to sponsor Suspense, the trade publications had insider news that Colgate was going to sponsor the series. Then Roma stepped up and signed its deal.
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