Earnest Elmo Calkins

Earnest Elmo Calkins was a deaf American advertising executive who pioneered the use of art in advertising, of fictional characters, the soft sell, and the idea of consumer engineering. He cofounded the influential Calkins and Holden advertising agency. He has been called the Dean of Advertising Men. His work was recognized with many awards during his lifetime and was called the Dean of Advertising Men and arguably the single most important figure in early twentieth century graphic design.

Earnest Calkins was born to Mary Manville and William Clinton Calkins in Geneseo, Illinois. They moved soon after a few miles south to Galesburg, where his father became the city attorney for a short while. At age 6, a bout of measles left him almost completely deaf, although it was not recognized until he was 10. His teachers told him he could hear if he paid more attention. By agehe was fully deaf. His mother was a Baptist who forbade him to read fiction, even Arabian Nights and Jules Verne,308 but he read widely on a variety of subjects, devouring books with enthusiasm.16 He was exposed to printing at an early age, and was determined to become a printer himself.

Source: Wikipedia