You can’t advertise a product unless you can get attention.
You can’t get attention without standing out.
You can’t stand out without being different.
You can’t do different if you think the same.
If you think different, you’re are different.
But, being different is a problem in ad agencies.
A BBH Planner once complained ‘the problem with this place is they can’t accommodate black sheep’.
Equally, I doubt TBWA embrace disruptive people to create disruptive work.
Why hire people who challenge the rules, avoid the easy option and argue their case?
The work.
Horry is different.
E.g. 1: Smart
E.g. 2: Disruptive.
E.g. 3: Funny (and disruptive).
But because he thought different, his work stood out, so much so that I can remember seeing most of it as a kid.
Forty odd years ago.
Penelope Keith answering the question ‘How does one spell pence?’
A voiceover at the end of an ad saying ‘Made with prime porky worky’, can you be that irreverent?
I can remember the whole cinema laughing at the Silk Cut ad, ‘Garrison’, (be careful when you watch it, it was for a 1976 sensibility).
Then there’s the 2 minute Fiat Strada commercial, famous after one day.
I could go on, but the work’s below, just look at it.
We had a great chat*, hope you enjoy it.
DOYLE DANE BERNBACH.
Volkswagen.
UniRoyal.
COLLETT DICKENSON PEARCE.
Trebor Reminders/Revivals.
Hamlet.
Supersoft.
Heineken.
B&H.
Wall’s Sausages.
EMI.
Parker Pens.
Bird’s Eye.
Parker Pens.
Olympus.
CDP Move Office.
Daily Express.
Silk Cut.
Fiat.
(It was spoofed on the BBC shortly after it ran.)
Trophy Best Bitter.
LOWE HOWARD-SPINK.
Trophy Best Bitter.
BACK TO COLLETT DICKENSON PEARCE.
Gilbey’s Gin.
Clark’s Shoes.
Olympus.
Vymura.
P&O.
Hertz.
D&AD ANNUAL (1987).
Shredded Wheat.
Tartan Special.
WCRS Matthews Marcantonio.
Still Price LINTAS.
BRITISH TELEVISION AWARDS ASSOCIATION.
BRILLIANT PICTURES.
McCANN.
Panasonic.
DESIGN.
PHOTOS.
EPHEMERA.
‘Made with prime porky worky.’
We all recognise the director but great to see the legendary Arnie Schulkes in profile on the left of the second photograph. Arnie was Hugh Hudson’s regular first assistant on commercials which included the Turin shoot for “handmade by robots”. He blotted his copy book on a CDP shoot at the greyhound stadium in Chester. The army of extras started grumbling as the filming was going very slowly and so Hugh told Arnie to keep them amused. He did this by opening the bar and serving the drinks for free, with the inevitable consequences when the extras were finally needed.
Arnie was Dirk Bogarde’s body double and worked with him on 23 films.
He was also a prolific and uncredited actor in many British films in the 60s.
http://movie-dude.com/1Actors%20Pages/Arnold%20Schulkes.htm
And the last bit of movie trivia is that his name is on one of the sleeping capsules of the crew who are terminated by HAL in 2001
Horry’s son Toby here…
Sad to report that he passed away peacefully yesterday, 2nd February 2023. He lived in Shanghai and I was lucky to be able to travel out to see him last week and say some goodbyes.
The main thing I wanted to say was a huge thank you for pulling all this together Dave. He did leave an incredible legacy (or trail as John O’Driscoll puts it…) and it’s incredible to have so much of it pulled together in one place. And that’s aside from the effort and skill that must have been required to pull his ramblings into a coherent narrative! So thank you.
In his last days he received so many lovely, warm and funny messages from friends and colleagues across the years and I think he left knowing how much he was loved.
Ah Horry; truly the DH in ADHD.
Lovely and fascinating piece. Many thanks for sharing, Dave. I recall meeting Dave Horry along with my art directing partner back in the distant mists of time when we were both spotty Herberts straight out of art college. He was by far the most enthusiastic individual we had ever encountered, and became very animated over a campaign we had produced for Diocalm. I can’t remember if it was at CDP or Lowes.But it was his enthusiasm that spurred us on. I can’t help feeling that there’s a little bit of Mr Horry in Angus Lovejoy, the protagonist in my most recent novel A Brand to Die For LOL. May his memory be a blessing. http://booksbyalexpearl.weebly.com