Every day I get great old print ads popping up in my feed. I’m reminded of Volkswagen’s self-deprecation, Nike’s humanity and BMW’s intelligence. It’s easy to forget that each owes its existence to a magazine. Whose huge readership is responsible for the quality of the ad. Putting your product in front of so many people justified billing so many creative hours. And signing off such an expensive photographer, illustrator, celebrity, location, set build, etc. It’s also why the converse isRead more
Posts filed in: Interview
PODCAST: LAURENCE GREEN (Pt. 2)
Faxes. Magic Markers. Hard copies of Campaign. Offices. Grant projectors. PMTs. U-matics. Scalpels. Memos. Information Departments. Flash. Spray mount. Chinagraphs. Secretaries. Pinboards. Foamboard. Lightboxes. CS10. Lighter fuel. Paintbox. Dupes. 10x8s”. Contact sheets. Proofs. All gone. Replaced by something that did the job better. But what about all those great creative agencies, why did they vanish? Like Collett Dickenson Pearce, Gold Greenlees Trott, Howell Henry Caldecott Lury, Simons Palmer Denton Clemmow & Johnson. And Fallon. From ’98 to ’08 they seemedRead more
PODCAST: Martin Boase
I never knew Martin at BMP. He kept a desk there. So I’d occasionally spot his green Bentley in Bishopsbridge Road. There’d be the odd a sighting in the building, a bit like Bigfoot or the Yeti, a glimpse of a blurry Martin moving through corridors, but way in the distance. Perhaps because of this, it didn’t occur to me to pick up the phone and ask him to do a podcast about his amazing career. But Charlie Crompton pushedRead more
PODCAST: Derek Day Pt. 2.
To hear Derek tell it, his career was totally unplanned. One impetuous decision after the next. Leading to endless mistakes. Exhibit A: Quitting the best agency in the country to go on holiday with his girlfriend. (CDP) To me, it looks as meticulously pre-planned as any of the plots in the ‘Ocean’s’ films. STEP 1: Work for the best agencies in town: (CDP, BMP and DDB). STEP 2: A reconnaissance trip to the States (Smith/Greenland). STEP 3: Create financial securityRead more
PODCAST: Derek Day Pt. 1.
Being one, I’m very aware of my fellow double d’s out there in advertising. Dave Droga – met once, gave him a lift after judging D&AD together. Donny Deutsch – never met, seen him on Morning Joe though. David Denton – did a few ads with him at BMP, did Cointreau ‘Ice melts’, amongst many others. Don Draper – never met, seems cool. And Derek Day – less known than the first three, but well worth checking out. I’d hearRead more
CONVERSATIONS WITH JIM RISWOLD
Feb 13, 2024, 12:39 PM (Twitter) Hi Dave, I’m a huge fan of your podcast and your work before that. I was wondering if you’d be interested in interviewing Jim Riswold? – Kash Sree Feb 13, 2024, 12:52PM. 100%-definitely, absolutely-yes-please Kash. Dx Feb 13, 2024, 12:59 PM (Twitter) I know you have a lot of the greats on your podcast and I honestly believe that Jim is one of them, though not as well-known as he deserves to be. InRead more
PODCAST: NICK COHEN
“A lot of people on your podcast became creatives by accident.” Someone messaged me this last week (after listening to four of them back-to-back). I got me thinking; why do creatives become creatives? I’d divide them into two groups. The Lifestyle Brigade™ – attracted by the trappings. (Nothing wrong with that – it’s why most people go to work.) And the Expressionists™ – attracted by putting a bit of themselves out into the world. A point of view, an observation,Read more