Frances Gerety, the copywriter who coined 'A diamond is forever' in 1947, wrote the line judged the greatest slogan of the 20th century - yet she herself never married
Frances Gerety, a copywriter for N.W. Ayer & Son, created the iconic 'A diamond is forever' slogan for De Beers in 1947. Despite her massive influence on global engagement traditions, Gerety herself never married.
Why it matters
The article highlights the irony behind one of the most influential marketing slogans in history and the woman who authored it.
Frances Gerety was a copywriter at the Philadelphia agency N.W. Ayer & Son when she sat down late one night in 1947, exhausted, and scrawled four words on a notepad before going to bed: A diamond is forever.
This is a historical and biographical feature piece with no political or social agenda.
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