Brian Laesch .com

Hard to believe the 4th of July is almost here.  Where did June go?  Maybe I spent too much time blogging… Nah! (I just high-fived my laptop. Too much time at the computer?)

Here are the latest links related to advertising, marketing, entertainment, the internet and anything creativity-related.  Enjoy!  (But not too much.)

• Rest in Peace, Billy Mays.  It’s still very hard to believe that he died at 50, three days or so after appearing on Conan, and after the summer of celebrity deaths we have already had.  AdAge wonders what will happen to his ads.
• Remember those weird Bill Gates/Jerry Seinfeld Microsoft ads? The weirdness continues with Dean Cain.
• Rest in Peace, 80s Michael Jackson. Director Bob Giraldi remembers working with “the gloved one” on the famous Pepsi campaign.
• Yes, We Cannes = A bunch of creative types try hard to pump themselves up in France, Obama-style.
• Wear your favorite New York Subway line on a t-shirt! (I have a feeling these shirts are a lot cooler if you wear them outside the city.)
• Are public bathrooms the new hotspot for advertising? Well, maybe it’s not a “new” concept…but the methods seem to be getting more creative.
• Pringles switches from “once you pop, you can’t stop” to “once you click, you can’t stop” with this banner ad.
• Remember “pokes” on Facebook? They’ve made the jump to Twitter. (I know. I’m not excited about it either.)

Brian Laesch wrote this blog for Eleventh Hour.

In a move that surprised nobody, the Los Angeles Clippers selected Blake Griffin with the #1 overall pick in last night’s NBA Draft.

I would just like to say, “Congratulations and Welcome to LA,” to RoboClip (nickname I just made up).

I think it’s a great move (and a great nickname). Blake Griffin showed last season with the Sooners, and in his offseason workouts, that he is ready and willing to work hard and play hard in the NBA. Here is GM/Head Coach Mike Dunleavy’s take on his pick:

The Clippers may now have, by committee, the most talented frontcourt in the league. But it’s also really crowded. You would assume they will try to trade somebody. It’s tough to imagine a rotation of Chris Kaman, Marcus Camby, Zach Randolph and Blake Griffin working. But if I was Mike Dunleavy, I would love to have the option. Combine that with a healthy (hopefully) Baron Davis, Eric Gordon and Al Thornton? Wow.

As you may know, I’m a Chicago Bulls fan. I grew up in Illinois. I’ve never claimed to be an LA fan. Although, for a brief time, I did try to be a Clippers fan since I couldn’t bring myself to root for the Lakers. Ultimately, I had to give up on that effort, but I wouldn’t mind seeing them finally succeed. I think Blake Griffin will help with the turnaround. But if not…I think they should move back to San Diego, move to Anaheim, or become the first NBA team to play their home games outdoors at the LA Coliseum. Think about it… I’d go to those games.

Anyway, congratulations to Blake Griffin. Here’s to RoboClip turning around the franchise, and to “RoboClip” becoming his real nickname.

Brian Laesch will only charge the Clippers $60,000 for the use of “RoboClip.” It’s a steal!

With an amazing U.S. Open finally concluding, I now bring you this week’s list of news, opinion and/or video from around the “creative world.”

• NBC & CBS don’t agree on the future of broadcasting.  I told them they should resolve it by simultaneiously airing a new show, “I’m a Network Exec, Get Me Out of Here!,” on both networks.  No response.
• Twitter co-founder, Biz Stone, shared some secrets of success at Cannes.
• Beatles, RockBand.  RockBand, Beatles. You guys should get along just fine.
• The Facebook community named Corona the top beer.  I wonder if time of year has anything to do with the results.
• Perez Hilton assaulted by Will.i.am? Not newsworthy at all, but here you go.
• “The Story of Twitter in Picture Form” via TechCrunch
• Did you rush out and wait in line to get the new iPhone? If not, here’s a review. (Assuming, that if you already have one, you drank the kool-aid a long time ago and a review wouldn’t sway you anyway.)
• “The Proposal,” starring Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock, won the Box Office this weekend.  “The Hangover” is still lingering, and “Up” is still in the air. (Clever descriptions of their place on the B.O. list.  I know, I’m good.)
• New Balance Shoes remind you that America still exists.

Brian Laesch is a professional link compiler who once lived in Spain for five weeks.

—Written for Eleventh Hour—

Is it just me, or are marketers of Taco Bell, Taco John’s, Del Taco, Chipotle, Qdoba, Poquito Mas, Jack in the Box, and anyone else who serves tacos, missing out on a great opportunity?

With the popularity of Twitter, the use of hash tags like #musicmonday and #followfriday, and the popularity and imitation of Subway’s $5 footlong promotion, why has nobody thought to do a huge, Taco Tuesday event on Twitter?

To me, it’ a no-brainer. Ever since I was a Coed at Arizona State University, living in the greatest fraternity house on campus, literally having a Taco Tuesday every Tuesday, I’ve loved the term.  And I’m sure today’s youths (did I just say that?) feel the same way.

Here’s my formula for success:

(tacos are good) + (“Taco Tuesday” is fun to say) + (tacos are cheap) + (young people like to eat)/(young people like Twitter) + (the current state of the economy) = Awesome Success

People are already using the term on Twitter.  Why not tap into that, make it a “Trending Topic,” and sell a ish-load of tacos?

I guarantee someone sees this blog, decides to do the promotion and gives me no credit.

Brian Laesch now owns taco marketers.  In their faces.

According to an article on Advertising Age, which refers to a Chicago radio station interview with Jay-Z, Wendy’s new ad that parodies a boy band using the popular Auto-Tune pitch-correcting technology, recently used in a ton of songs, was the final straw for Jay-Z, and the reason he called for the death of the “gimmick” that has become a “trend.”

In Jay-Z’s words (via Advertising Age):

“I just think in hip-hop, when a trend becomes a gimmick, it’s time to move on,” Jay said in an interview with Chicago radio station WGCI on Tuesday. “I saw a Wendy’s commercial and they’re using Auto-Tune. They’re joking on it. It’s like, OK, enough of that. … It was a trend. It was cool in the beginning. Some people made great music with it. Now it’s time to move on.”

Talk about great free publicity. Personally, I thought the spot was hilarious, but I didn’t expect it to cause one of the bigs of hip-hop to lose it. I just figured Auto-Tune, in the way it’s been used, would die out soon enough. I do think it’s ridiculous how much it’s been used lately…but it’s kind of fun. Even if it masks the true talent level of the artist (sorry, T-Pain).

Not that I’m an expert, but I am a listener.

And now, apparently, the most influential Wendy’s Frosty advertisement ever:

And, a bonus, “Frosty Posse Behind The Scenes”:

Brian Laesch…or should I say…Briaaannhhnnn Laaeesrcchhh (with Auto-Tune) wrote this blog.

—Written for Eleventh Hour—

Welcome back to  Around the Creative World.  I thought about naming this edition “Around the Creative World (Post-Hangover),” but decided against it, in case people didn’t know I was referring to the opening weekend of the film, The Hangover.  I still haven’t seen it, so I can’t conclude this intro with a clever reference.  Sorry.  I promise to see it this week.

• Speaking of The Hangover, it had a “stronger than expected Sunday” and beat Up this weekend at the Box Office.
• Speaking of “beat up,” Powerade and Gatorade throw down.
• Speaking of “throw down,” this opera staged in an Ikea store in London has nothing to do with it.
• Speaking of “staged,” there is a new reality show that, in hindsight, seemed inevitable: ‘NYC Prep.’
• Speaking of “NYC Prep,” Heineken is still limiting it’s ad agency search to the Manhattan area.
• Speaking of “still limting,” the actors in this Barry Switzer Dunkin’ Donuts/SpikeTV’s Pros vs. Joes cross-promo ad may be typecast in the future.  You know…as the unfunny awkward guys.
• Speaking of “may be typecast,” Entertainment Weekly’s Chris Nashawaty asks, “Is America Over Will Ferrell?”
• Speaking of “Is America Over Will Ferrell?,” despite Land of the Lost, I would say no, but they might soon be more enamored with Leroy.

Brian Laesch will see you Friday.

—Written for Eleventh Hour—

Did you know it’s National Donut Day today?  I just found out.  Not to mention, it’s an obvious Trending Topic on Twitter.  (Did I mention that I’m on Twitter?)

Obligatory Obama picture

What does this mean for you?  Free donuts at Krispy Kreme for doing nothing, and free donuts at Dunkin’ Donuts for buying any beverage.  That’s what I’m talking about.  I’m not going because I’m trying to get in shape, but in theory, awesome.

But what most people don’t know–-including me before I checked Wikipedia–-is the history of National Donut Day.  I figured that it’s some dumb, fake holiday, created by somebody in marketing, or even bloggers.  But in fact, while it still may have been created by a “marketer,” I guess, it actually has a very interesting history.

According to Wikipedia:

National Doughnut Day started in 1938 as a fund raiser for the Chicago Salvation Army. Their goal was to help the needy during the Great Depression, and to honor the Salvation Army “Lassies” of World War I, who served doughnuts to soldiers behind the front lines in France.

I stand corrected, and, kind of humbled…by something regarding donuts. Weird.

Brian Laesch is considering heading to Krispy Kreme to grab some donuts and awkwardly tell everybody in line about the history of the holiday.

—Written for Eleventh Hour—

After my Arne Duncan post, I never posted an update on my weekend at Hoop It Up Chicago…because it sucked, and took me this long to get over it.

Obama didn’t even show up and I didn’t get to use my “Ayers Jordan” joke, let alone see Reverend Wright coach.

But aside from stuff that would never happen anyway, we simply could not win.  We were probably the oldest team in our division and, man, indoor pickup basketball against older players did not prepare me for outdoor 3-on-3 against 22 year olds.  Especially, a team from Lord’s Gym who knocked us out of the playoff bracket on Sunday.  But I honestly don’t mind that they were the ones to knock us out.  They were talented, said a prayer before the game, and didn’t talk any “ish” during the game.  My nonexistant hat goes off to those guys.  I hope they won it all….but we didn’t stick around to find out.

Although, I have to rib them about one thing.  The night before we played them, they were shooting around on our court after our final game, and one of their players, looking Soulja Boy-ish, kept “rapping” something about “Soldiers on the court, Soldiers gonna score.”  I thought it was funny.  Not to mention, the start of a really, really good song…

But seriously, I think the most frustrating part, personally, was that I had my moments, but couldn’t maintain normal mental focus throughout the game.  And I realized, it’s not because I’m not mentally tough, or “don’t want it enough.”  It’s because, while basketball once seemed like it was everything to me, it’s now about #27 on the list of things I constantly think about throughout the day.  And all of those other issues–being underemployed, figuring out which MBA program to attend, wondering which path I should choose–kept creeping into my head.  It’s the same problem I had playing in the Westwood Rec Center league in Los Angeles.  I would play well for a while, and then a voice would creep into my head, basically saying, “Why are you playing basketball right now?”

Anyway, I just felt the need to make excuses on my blog as to why we didn’t play well.  I’m definitely not “out of my prime” as far as skill is concerned, but I think it’s time to prepare for my future inevitable decline in athleticism.  In fact, it’s probably already started…but that’s life.

Besides losing to Soulja Boy, there’s really only one other moment to mention.  I did see Arne Duncan and his team play a few times.  They played on a court caddy corner to us, but in the top division.  And, I was also responsible for kicking Arne Duncan and his team off another court they were warming up on so that I could compete in a free throw shooting contest.  I’ve never felt so powerful.  Just kidding.

Brian Laesch.  Will he come back, wearin’ the 4-5?  It ain’t to play games with ya.

Wow.  I couldn’t disagree more with Tom Shales’ assessment of the first Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien on the Washington Post today.  He basically complains about Conan O’Brien’s personal style, but then doesn’t really offer any negatives, besides “It’s All About the Conan.”

Good.  I’m glad it’s all about the Conan.  That’s what people want to see.

But it seems that Mr. Shales believes, for some reason, that Conan was supposed to step in and do a Jay Leno impression.  Did Leno come in and do a Johnny Carson impression?  (I mean, maybe he tried…but did he?)  I understand what Mr. Shales is saying, but I don’t agree, and I hardly think that his critique can be taken seriously after one show.  Of course the first show was all about Conan.  Conan had to introduce himself to the people who never stayed up to watch Late Night.  Conan even said himself, to paraphrase, “this first show is going to be different than the rest.”

Anyway, here is the opening of Tom Shales’ article:

By now “The Tonight Show” is like the White House; it belongs not to its occupant of the moment but to the American people. So it was not encouraging last night to see Conan O’Brien devoting the entire first half of his first “Tonight Show” to himself.

O’Brien’s opening-night guest, Will Ferrell, didn’t walk out until nearly 10 minutes past midnight. Not good for a show that begins at 11:35 p.m.

In addition, though “The Tonight Show” has always been either live or live-on-tape, meaning recorded in one continuous stream a few hours earlier than its air time, O’Brien’s premiere was overloaded with pre-taped bits, so many that it lost some of the immediacy that is central to the show. It was too often a recording of a recording.

And here’s the comment I left:

brianlaesch wrote:

I couldn’t disagree more. It’s not the White House…it’s a TV Show. You have to do what’s entertaining, and what Conan did last night was at least 50% (or some other percentage that doesn’t matter, at all) funnier than anything I saw on Jay Leno. Conan IS the show. Who cares if it’s all about him? That’s what people want. And I’m willing to bet the ratings will reflect that. No disrespect to Jay Leno, but this show is a completely new animal, and that’s a good thing. Not to mention, you are basing your critique on the first show. They are still working out the kinks and getting into their rhythm. The show is going to be great.

Not that my comment is blogworthy—or that this blog is even blogworthy—but I like responding to journalists these days–especially when they seem way off.  (SEE: The Worst Reporter in the History of News: Susan Roesgen)

But don’t just take my word for it.  Thanks to something called…Hulew…or Hubalu…or Halu? (never heard of it), here is the cold open of the show:

The full episode is on it’s way. (But I want it now, Hulu.)

Brian Laesch is a biased, diehard Conan O’Brien fan.

Not really, but I am playing in the same Hoop It Up 3-on-3 basketball tournament this weekend in Chicago (Schaumburg) as the three time winner of the Hoop It Up World Championships and current Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, will be.

In 1994, I went to a Scottie Pippen charity basketball game (Scottie Pippen Ameritech All-Star Classic) at the old Chicago Stadium during Michael Jordan’s first retirement. When we bought tickets, my dad predicted that Michael would play. It happened. It was awesome. I was 14. It was the coolest birthday ever.

Well now, I’m hoping that Arne does the same thing and brings President Obama. I know it won’t happen, and they are probably in a different division, but that would be pretty cool. Especially since I’d have plenty of fodder for trash talk. I’d start off: “Barack, so if we were playing this game socialism-style, would that mean both teams would end up tied?”  Then, I’d ask him why his team name isn’t “Ayers Jordan,” and why Reverend Wright isn’t the team’s unnecessary, over-excited coach, wearing a towel over his shoulder, yelling a lot, and not saying a damn thing. (You know what I’m talking about.) Finally, I’d exclaim, “hey-oh!,” shoot and make a 2-pointer (from behind the arc), and win the game.

But since he won’t be there, I can’t do all of these things. Oh well. I hope he at least fixes our country this weekend instead.

My team, “The Breeash All-Stars” (don’t ask), will be competing in the Adult Competitive Division. I’ve been preparing all week….which is not enough. But, I’m hoping my steady conditioning over the past year (since I’m underemployed) will make up for any rust in my game.  And if not, I’ll enjoy a nice Saturday night in Chicago…but I’d rather have a lame Saturday night and be playing on Sunday.

Brian Laesch will redeem himself for the missed layups at the United Center.

Related: Education Secretary Returning Home to Chicago for Hoop It Up!