Posts filed under 'Monkey Town'
Believe it or not, both Adverb and I live.
The last few weeks have been filled with fourteen-hour days working on a new business pitch (we didn’t get it), pre-production for a massive Gatorade shoot I’ll be leaving for in early January, an add-on print shoot that de-evolved into a stop-drop-and-roll process, a full-on agency presentation, an agency holiday party (which I passed on), a fussy baby at home and about a million other things, the algebra of which left X minus infinity for blogging time.
Even today, when the agency closed at 2:00 PM, I’m waiting around for client feedback on a pressing job. There’s never a dull moment in the ad jungle.
Things are looking up, though.
In January, look for me to start posting a blow-by-blow of what it’s like to sweat through a two million dollar film production outside the country.
I promise not to gloat (too much).
In the meantime, I hope you all have a happy, safe and prosperous Holiday and New Year and I hope to catch you all visiting my little corner of the ad jungle after Dick Clark goes to bed.
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Friday, December 22nd, 2006 at 03:32pm
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Ad Monkeys, Ad Jungle, No Really, A Life, Ad Nauseam, Monkey Town, Monkey Travel | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Advertising
Following in Russ Davies’ footsteps, a few of us gathered last week for a Coffee morning, lunch with barely any coffee™ (now trademarked by Paul McEnany– your royalty payment is on its way).
Paul did a terrific job talking about what we did (talk) and with whom (ad, marketing and PR bloggers) and whatnot, so just go visit Hee-Haw Marketing, already, and read all about it.
A good time was had by all. Let’s do it again soon.
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Wednesday, November 15th, 2006 at 06:45pm
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, Marketing, PR, Coffee Morning, Ad Bloggers
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
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
The lovely creature to the left is a Madagascar hissing cockroach. The image you see is at 2/3rds scale; the damn things are actually 3-inches in length, can run at speeds of up to three miles per hour and, true to their name, will drown out your screams with a hissing noise while chasing you around your house (and, being faster than you are, they will catch you).
They are also to be, according to a Fort Worth Star-Telegram article, the featured snack at an upcoming Six Flags promotion. And, yes, I said snack.
It seems the Dallas-area park is buying out the supply of grotesquely large, mutant cockroaches from regional pet stores and will offer up their nature’s bounty to the public during the first weekend of its annual Halloween festival.
Those who successfully down a live cockroach will be given a “Flash Pass,” allowing the holder to skip to the front of any line at the park’s various rides. Additionally, they may wish to consider allowing the pass holders to skip to the head of the line at bathrooms as well.
The cockroaches, which taste “just like chicken,” albeit creepy-crawly, hissing chicken, “were chosen because they are considered a delicacy in many Asian and African cultures.” Huzzah. Education and culture sharing has reached a new high-water mark in Dallas. Next up, receive a free enema at all public libraries when signing up for a library card.
Overheard at the promotion: “Dude. That is so not what I thought when I read they were passing out free roaches.”
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Sunday, September 17th, 2006 at 04:41pm
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Ad Jungle, Ad Nauseam, Monkey Town | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Advertising, Promotions, Six Flags, Cockroach
We’re moving. We’ve got people officing on top of other people, so we have to go. We’ve simply outgrown our space, and we need newer, fancier, larger, more on-top-of-the-world digs.
And, with the move scheduled for the end of October (yeah, right), it dawned on me I should take some shots of our old/current space before we left it in the hands of a hair salon, or a girls’ school, or whatever it is to become. Because, as great as I’m sure it will be, the new space will take some adjustments from everyone involved and some are sure to miss the old Dieste Harmel home.
For example, while we might be moving into a larger space, I can’t imagine our receptionist will have the room needed to sit far away from our reception flowers should she ever find them, well, frightening. On the other hand, I’m sure Tony and Warren will be happy to escape their concrete-walled cells for the daylight of a 27th-floor view (though some people have made their cells a home).
The new office, being fancy, and downtown, and ruled by such superfluous things as “zoning and safety codes” won’t have the high ceilings many of us love, so no uselessly arty overhangs on the account service floor. I’m sure that won’t stop us from cramming all of our awards into the space, though. There hasn’t been a Fire Marshal born that can prevent an agency from doing that. (Please note we even relish our basketball tournament trophies (bottom left, third shot). And please also note we have even more than what I’ve photographed (god, there are always more). I think we even have a few tucked behind the toilets.)
But space for awards is an essential thing, perhaps even more important than conference rooms or creative pits. After all, creatives can work just about anywhere– even inside garages or behind messy desks. I’m sure our President will have all of that sorted by the time we move, especially the important things like “where will the printers go” and “where will the water cooler be located.”
Some things will simply be impossible to bring with us, though, like our wonderful courtyard with its perpetually stopped-up water features. The rest, like random, staff-created artwork will surely be reborn anew.
We’ve seen some drawings but we’re still not absolutely certain what the new space will look like. I’m sure it will have walls and ceilings and windows and such, at least on the creative floor. The account service floor will probably be in another building altogether. (Kidding, kidding.)
One thing I do know: Matilda won’t fit; she’s too monstrous for the new parking garage.
Oh well. I guess I’ll have some adjustments to make, too.
(I apologize to everyone whose picture I took but who didn’t make it into the post; I was rushed for time and most of what I shot turned out craptastically.)
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Wednesday, September 13th, 2006 at 09:07pm
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Ad Monkeys, Ad Jungle, Monkey Town | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Advertising, Dieste Harmel, Moving
Two ad guys, whom I’ve never met but I’m fairly certain I like (James and Jason), have managed to land in the pages of our esteemed, local daily rag. The Dallas Morning News story profiles their agency, Firehouse. Or, more precisely, Firehouse’s interior design.
Turns out the design is so Gen Y, which must make the two of them feel all toned, perky and doe-eyed inside.
Seriously, though, it’s a nice article– go read it. I like to see good publicity fall on good people.
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Wednesday, September 6th, 2006 at 09:05pm
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Ad Monkeys, Ad Jungle, Monkey Town, Blogroll | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Advertising, Firehouse, Dallas Morning News
This colorful little slice of Dallas life originally appeared on Adverb v1.0 and was recently retrieved from Internet archives. Click on the image for a larger view.
How to become a living institution in Dallas’ West End in four easy steps:
Step one: glance down at your Bible and memorize the first three (and only three) words you see.
Step two: make one quarter of a turn so that you’re now facing (North, South, East, West).
Step three: tilt your head back and scream the Three Biblical Words you just memorized (”…FLESH OF ASSES!!…”) at the top of your lungs.
Step four: wash, rinse, repeat (for years and years).
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Sunday, August 27th, 2006 at 08:55am
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Monkey Town | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Dallas, West End
Find out now, in up-to-the-minute reporting, near the bottom of the right sidebar where you’ll see the latest temperatures in our Summer of Suffering.
Now, would someone kindly cover me in icecubes?
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Monday, August 14th, 2006 at 07:02pm
Mack Simpson
Entry Filed under: Site News, Monkey Town | add this post to del.icio.us
