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# Richmond Ad Legend Jess Duboy Dead at Age 79
- URL: https://capitolcommunicator.com/remembering-richmond-ad-legend-jess-duboy-79/
- Published: 2016-04-11T21:54:29.000Z
- Updated: 2022-03-15T15:46:41.000Z
- Author: Guest Columnist
- Tags: Advertising, Agency, Communications, Richmond News, #Import 2026-10-08 18:47

**Richmond advertising legend Jess Duboy died April 8 at age 79** after battling cancer since January 2015, according to the *Richmond Times-Dispatch*. He was a man of more than 20,000 commercials — a national record — and is credited with creating the concept of the “Sell-A-Thon” sales strategy among many other accomplishments in entertainment and advertising.

“Jess Duboy had one of the most recognizable faces, and voices, in Richmond,” according to [a tribute by WTVR](http://wtvr.com/2016/04/08/jess-duboy-obituary-funeral-details-richmond/?ref=capitolcommunicator.com). “Whether spinning records or selling sedans, Duboy was a master in the art of broadcasting.

“In a career that lasted for more than half a century, he worked tirelessly as a musician, a disc jockey, an author and an ad man.”

The [*Times-Dispatch* story](http://www.richmond.com/news/local/article%5F0d1c4f91-2935-555d-bd25-05d51a3a027a.html?ref=capitolcommunicator.com) noted that in addition to a career in radio, he opened his own ad agency around 1967 and developed the Richmond Chrysler Plymouth Sell-A-Thon, the first time it ever had been done. He soon was doing Sell-A-Thons for car dealerships around the country. At one point, he was the most recognized man in Minneapolis, according to his business website.

“Toyota saw how good it was,” daughter **Donna Spurrier**, founder and CEO of Richmond-based Spurrier Group, told the *Times-Dispatch*. She said he was hired to create “Toyotathons” for the Japanese brand near its Southeast port of entry in Florida and the National Television Bureau of Advertising claimed in mid-1976 that his Toyotathons were the most successful auto dealership promotions ever created.

While he was well-known and respected for his advertising acumen, Duboy also had a short career as a rock singer and sang some of his commercials, the *Times Dispatch* reported. In fact, his reputation for singing led to his adult radio career. He was the lead singer in a group called Jess Duboy and The Hitchhikers, whose most-known song, “Beautiful Love” was released in 1957 and became a regional No. 1 hit.

In addition to his daughter and his wife, **Betty**, survivors include another daughter, **Debra Bahen** of Midlothian; a son, **Douglas Duboy** of Manakin; a brother, **Raymond Dipboye** of Florida; and nine grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.