Archive for October, 2006
The three of us are home and finally out from behind the hospital’s godforsaken firewall which means, of course, photos. So here they are:
The She Monkey went through labor like an old pro. Badda-boom, badda-bing, she’s having a baby. I, on the other hand, didn’t fare as well. In fact, this is the first view the Wee Monkey had of me. Still, no matter what kind of face I make, I can’t seem to scare the pretty off the Wee Monkey. Even when I play music and she decides to stick out her tongue and rock, she’s still pretty damned cute.
So, in a word, I’m screwed.
By the way, these photos can be found over in my Advantage photoblog, too.
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Monday, October 30th, 2006 at 03:01pm
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Ad Monkeys, No Really, A Life | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Ad Baby
6:45 A.M. : The Wee Monkey was due on the 28th and she’s doing her best to make sure the trains run on time. The She Monkey and I arrived at the hospital this morning at one o’clock with her contractions coming two minutes apart. It’s been a waiting game ever since, though, but progress is being made. I found the Wee Monkey’s horoscope for today:
Scorpio October 23 - November 21, Daily Overview for October 28, 2006: A longed-for achievement finally comes to fruition, much to your deep satisfaction. You’re quiet — if not to say mysterious — about the news. Share it with some loved ones; they’re just as happy for you.
Check back; The hospital has wireless access and I’ll update as I can.
8:45 A.M. : So… very… close. I think we’re on-tap for the “big push” in about a half an hour.
10:45 A.M. : The Wee Monkey arrived at 10:04 and weighed 6 pounds, 7 ounces. She’s already asked for the keys to the Bronco. The She Monkey is doing fine; she was a real pro. I’ll upload pics once I’m able to get out from behind the hospital’s firewall.
2:45 P.M. : We’re in our room; everyone’s fine. The Wee Monkey is already eating us out of house and home, and we haven’t even left the hospital. The She Monkey and I have been able to nap a little– it was a pretty long night and we’re both tired.
I think this will be the last update of the day as we both try to follow the Wee Monkey’s example: eat, sleep, eat, sleep.
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Saturday, October 28th, 2006 at 06:47am
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Ad Monkeys, No Really, A Life | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Making a Baby
Friday was a half-day for us (though we somehow managed to cram a full day’s efforts into it) because today is our last day in our old space. For the past couple of weeks, we’ve been packing things away into orange tubs that will be moved to our new offices over the weekend. The creative pit cubicles were broken down earlier in the week, leaving our floor looking like a bookmaking boiler room. Not everyone was happy with their temporary workspace, but we made due as best we could. Not even my office was spared. On Monday, we’ll reconvene at our new offices in a skyscraper situated in the middle of downtown and begin unpacking it all. Fun stuff.
Speaking of downtown, I said I don’t do shows… but I definitely do bars. Our friends over at Frames Per Second threw a happy hour for us on Thursday night at the Ghostbar atop the W Hotel near downtown. This is a bar that’s trying really, really hard (if you know what I mean), but I do have to admit the views were stunning. A good time was had by all and I’d like to thank the Frames Crew for thinking of us.
My two teams have several television productions in the pipeline at various stages of pre-production. We have new work going into test for 7-Eleven, client approval on two Gatorade concepts to be shot out of the country in December, internal approval on several Pizza Hut concepts to be shot that same month (and also out of the country), client script approval on three Interstate Batteries spots to be recorded in early November and we began directors’ calls today for a November Chiquita shoot (possibly out of the country). We also have a big package of spots to shoot for Sierra Mist but, because of the increasing weight of our workload, my team is transitioning off the account in favor of giving others a crack at it.
And there’s still no sighting of the Wee Monkey. The She Monkey’s due date is (gulp) tomorrow, so it should be literally any day now. With my schedule, I expect the Wee Monkey’s first words to be, “Where’s Daddy off to now?”
Today, the short-term answer is, “To the front porch for a nice, relaxing drink.” Have a good weekend, everyone.
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Friday, October 27th, 2006 at 02:57pm
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Ad Monkeys, Ad Jungle, No Really, A Life, Monkey Town | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Advertising, Dallas, Dieste Harmel, Gatorade, Chiquita, Pizza Hut, Interstate Batteries
AdAge is reporting that Wal-Mart has settled on the winner of their $580-million account. And the brass ring goes to: Draft FCB.
My dealings with FCB’s Chicago flagship office had me tasting arsenic and rat turds afterwards but I haven’t dealt with them in a long time– and certainly not since they became the direct mail center of the universe with the Draft merger. (So good luck, Wal-Mart; maybe they’ve gotten better.)
I feel bad for GSD&M. Losing an account of that size is going to put a crimp in the old Holiday Party plans but, at the same time, I can’t imagine working on the business was a thrill-a-minute ride.
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Thursday, October 26th, 2006 at 08:37am
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Ad Jungle | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Advertising, Wal-Mart, Draft FCB, GSD&M
The Dallas AICP show is tonight.
I don’t do shows. Ok. I rarely do shows. I like them, I just try not to do them.
Drinking? I can do that at a bar. Watch ads? I do that every day. Networking? I’ll take a pass.
I appreciate the invites– I really do– but I don’t do shows.
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Wednesday, October 25th, 2006 at 10:24pm
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Ad Jungle, Monkey Town | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Advertising, AICP, Dallas
I received word on Saturday that Dieste took four trophies at the International Eagle Awards show, Mexico’s version of the Clios. One of those is for our Gatorade “Skyscraper” spot.
“Pinky,” “Skyscraper” and “Reality” all took Silver while “Mini Mouth” took Gold. (Credits for each of the spots– as well as the spots themselves– can be found by following the links. For a PDF of the complete list of winners, click here.)
Because of “Skyscraper’s” starting airdate, the International Eagle Awards was the first competition it qualified for, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed for it to do well later.
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Monday, October 23rd, 2006 at 01:58pm
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Ad Monkeys, Ad Jungle, Video | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Advertising, International Eagle Awards, Gatorade, Budweiser, Dieste Harmel
This is Part One of a short series of posts I hope to make that will fill those of you who are interested (read: the flack at Omnicom who’s assigned to read my blog, making sure I don’t spill the beans on anything of any real import) in on what’s been happening in monkeyville for the last month. I’ll try to work through it all as sequentially as possible. I’ve fried a few brain cells in the last month; it might be difficult.
Production calendars are a staple of the ad jungle; they tell us what’s coming up, what’s going on and where we need to be– hopefully months in advance. And, as a Creative Director who’s been pigeonholed as a broadcast guy, production calendars are my friend as the process tends to be long, involved, time intensive and massively expensive. I want to know what needs to be done and by when, as I need to throw bodies into the breach as needed, making sure our agency-side magic is pulled off as seamlessly as possible. Any little hiccup in the process can create an avalanche of shit downstream.
So, when the Labor Day Holidays passed and one of the writers on one of my teams, Chava, failed to return from holiday without warning– and as my many production calendars began to coalesce into a giant blob of ink centering on the following few weeks– I was left scrambling to find a replacement.
So, welcome Juan Camilo Moore. I hired Juan Camilo (or J.C. to me– as opposed to J.D., a Writer/ACD on another of my teams) direct from University, grabbing him even before he’d completed his Senior year. I felt bad about keeping him from earning his degree for about fifteen seconds because, one second later, we formulated a plan whereby he’ll spend a few half-days doing coursework to finish out the semester and will transfer his credits to a Uni closer to the office thereafter. So congratulations S.M.U., you’ve just gained a future graduate who’s destined for great things.
J.C. comes to the team with tremendous potential, boundless energy and the benefit of having worked within my group for the past two summers as an intern.
The only downside is both of my groups are broadcast production heavy– and we’re in the middle of the heaviest part of our schedule– and, as a Junior, he’ll need to do some serious, sink or swim, on the job training.
Fortunately, he’s partnered with Jose (who’s recently celebrated a milestone birthday), in whom I place a tremendous amount of faith– not only in his innate ability as a creative but also in his expanding depths as a manager (and mentor)– having worked with him previously when we were assigned to the PepsiCo business.
So that’s the bedrock of the “Dark Days” story; everything else (over)flows from there. Stay tuned. Good times.
To lighten things up a bit, I’ve added a new track to “Music for Monkeys” (right sidebar) sitting at #58: Röyksopp’s “Remind Me.” The track is from 2001 but has gained recent acclaim as the backing track to a Geico “Caveman” spot here in the US. If you like it, say so– I’ve got several hours worth of their music in my iTunes and can add more.
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Saturday, October 21st, 2006 at 01:42pm
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Site News, Ad Monkeys, Ad Jungle, Ad Nauseam | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Advertising, Management
I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Four weeks of 5:00 A.M. alarm clocks and more than a few Midnight drives home are beginning to give way to a still-hectic-but-manageable schedule that should persist through, oh, February. Believe me, though, it’s an improvement.
Slowly, ever so slowly, I’ll try to tell as much of the story as I can but a lot of it will have to be left on the cutting room floor.
For now, let’s see if we can get the monkey ball rolling again.
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Friday, October 20th, 2006 at 07:08pm
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Site News, Ad Jungle, Ad Nauseam | add this post to del.icio.us
Sorry I’ve been a little out-of-pocket as of late.
If I told you how crazy-hectic things have been at work, you wouldn’t believe me or wouldn’t care, so I’ve just said nothing at all.
And did I mention “new baby time” is coming down to the wire?
Yeah, there’s been a lot of crap. In fact, there’s been so much of it I can declare that I’ve actually seen the crap squat and make more crap of its own.
But that’s the way it goes in the ad jungle. Keep checking back. I promise I’ll be able to devote more time to witty repartee and juicy ad jungle tidbits one of these days.
Like when I retire.
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Tuesday, October 3rd, 2006 at 08:47pm
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Ad Jungle, No Really, A Life, Ad Nauseam | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Advertising, Hectic
