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# It initially serviced only Philip Morris, and then the Tobacco Institute. But later it was expanded as a general-service public relations firm (hiding its tobacco industry connections) and became '''[[APCO & Associates]].''' Later, as it established offices outside the USA, it changed the name to '''APCO Worldwide'''.
# In 1991 it was said to have been 'acquired' from Arnold & Porters by the umbrella media firm [[Grey Communications International]] (GCI), which made it a subsidiary of Grey Advertising, New York's largest advertising and public relations firm with about $7 billion in revenues. This later became Grey Global.
# In July 1994 APCO were still using Arnold & Porter's fax number See list head EuroTASSC Prospective participants list. [http://legacy.library.ucsf.edu/tid/ieg22d00/pdf] and EuroScience Project (Brussels) [http://legacy.library.ucsf.edu/tid/qqn47c00/pdf]# In September 2004 it APCO was supposedly absorbed by [[Martin Sorrell]] into his WPP Group (multi-media global giant) when they swallowed up the Grey Global empire. The WPP Group had [[Hamish Maxwell]] (retired Chairman of Philip Morris) as Non-executive Chairman from 1996 to 2001.
# September 2004 is also given as the date in the APCO Puff piece claims, when "''Margery Kraus led a management buy-out of her firm from Grey Global Group, making APCO one of the largest privately owned communications and public affairs firms in the world."''
: [Note If the above doesn't make sense to you, then you are not alone.]
== General ==
Arnold & Porter was one of Washington D.C.'s largest law firms, and it was also well known as the Philip Morris board-room law firm. During the period of initial control of APCO by Philip Morris and the lawyers, it extended its role to become a general [[tobacco industry]] PR firm. It developed links to both Lorillard and RJ Reynolds Tobacco. It also developed a mythical story legend about its origins, claiming that APCO was founded in 1984 by [[Margery Kraus]] who served as its first president and chief executive officer. [http://www.apcoworldwide.com/content/bios/Kraus.cfm]and that she built this global giant singlehandedly. On the strength of this myth she has regularly been awarded achievement-awards: from the 1997 "PR PRofessional of the year" award; the 1998 "Businesswoman of the Year" award, ... (virtually annually)... to the 2006 award of "Washington PR Woman of the Year." She also received the Matrix Award for Professional Achievement (D.C. Association for Women in Communications), in 2006.
