During the late 1960s, film-marketing operations were based at studio offices in New York, with trailers distributed to theaters by the National Screen Service.
Independent marketing agencies soon began to emerge to service the studios, eventually making their way to Los Angeles, where an industry of dozens of companies became established.
[5] In May 1972, in announcing the new awards, Wilkerson Miles outlined the awards' mission statement: "The Hollywood Reporter proposes to honor an unsung group of artists, the talented men and women responsible for the conception and creation of the two-dimensional graphics which sell motion pictures and television programs."
[4][5] In its first year, the awards program honored only North American film posters, slowly adding print categories for subsequent editions—hence the title "key art".
Four posters by Bill Gold were among the six finalists: "A Clockwork Orange", "Dorian Gray", "The Night Visitor", and "There Was a Crooked Man".
In 1990, the program's 19th edition, the ceremony was moved to the headquarters of the Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles, where it would remain for 9 years.
In 2008, the event was held at the Century Plaza, and an award was introduced for "best campaign," given to the studio or distributor that implements the most successful marketing strategy.
Designer Saul Bass was another notable jury member, having served from 1986 to 1989, and became the first Key Art lifetime achievement honoree in 1991.