WHY IT RATES: Many people
in the travel and tourism industry have been impacted by Morris Silver’s
expertise.—Donald Wood, Breaking News Senior Writer.
A pioneer in public relations for the travel and tourism
industry, Morris Silver was professionally regarded as a trusted advisor to
C-Suite executives and heads of state as the hospitality industry took off in
the 1970s. He is also credited as a mentor to an impressive number of people
starting their careers in public relations as they learned his belief system of
hard work, persistence and commitment to meaningful return on client
investment. Throughout his career, Morris was a popular member of client
executive committees as a quick-thinking strategist with straight forward
solutions.
Following a journalism stint at the Newark News, Silver
opened Morris Silver Public Relations in Manhattan representing entrepreneurs
and consumer product manufacturers. On a trip to The Bahamas, he was struck by
the investment being made in the island nation to attract an increasing
American travel market. Realizing the global implications of tourism, he soon
refocused his general interest firm to a travel specialist agency, M. Silver
Associates. His wife Virginia Sheridan, a marketing communications consultant,
joined Morris to co-build a powerhouse agency for four decades leading up to its
acquisition in 2013 as the now global marketing and communications agency FINN
Partners’ first acquisition. Morris and Virginia became Managing Partners at
FINN up to his retirement in 2019 with Virginia continuing at the agency.
The agency quickly grew, mostly by referrals, to represent
leading brands in hotel and resort development, domestic and global aviation, a
then fledging cruise industry and, an agency client hallmark, domestic and
international destinations. All were convinced by Morris that PR was the equal
of advertising in brand building and business success.
Notable agency campaigns included restoring Panama’s tourism
image following the ouster of dictator Manual Noriega, beginning the creation
of Costa Rica’s eco reputation through a “Trees for Tourism” campaign,
launching the mega-resort Atlantis that was credited with the revitalization of
Nassau Paradise Island in The Bahamas and the debut of the Queen Mary 2 (QM2),
the first-ocean liner built at that time in 45 years that media quickly clamed
as stimulating the rebirth of the cruise industry. Emirates Airlines hired the
agency to support its entry into the United States following 9/11, leading to
the opening of gateways across the country and the introduction of the
carrier’s famed Airbus A380 that firmly established the airline as a luxury
leader in aviation.
Morris Silver and his wife, Virginia M. Sheridan. (Photo Credit: Virginia M. Sheridan)
In what is inarguably the first major cause-related
mega-campaign in the travel industry, M. Silver launched Charge for Hunger by
American Express in partnership with SOS to create awareness of hunger in
America. Other work for the financial giant included the promotion of the “For
Members Only” Platinum Card program, American Express Travel Services and
American Express Merchant Services, creating a series of Index Reports that
became economic retail impact indicators valued and anticipated by the media
and businesses served by American Express.
Morris is survived by his wife of 48 years, Virginia M.
Sheridan, daughter Cindy Goldsmith (Glen Goldsmith), father of Cindy Goldsmith
(Glen Goldsmith) and Jeffrey Silver (Rose McGiveron), grandfather of Kelsy
Goldsmith, Haley Goldsmith (Benjamin Budenstein) and Jaclyn Silver.
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