On Dec. 29, advertising legend Phil Dusenberry, former BBDO North America chairman, passed away at the age of 71 after battling advanced lung cancer (SHOOT, Jan. 2). I have several remembrances of him over the years but perhaps the most telling doesn’t require me to go all that far back. I connected with Dusenberry for the last time in October 2007 shortly after he had been inducted into The One Club’s Creative Hall of Fame.
He offered some valuable lessons for creatives today who are trying to navigate an evolving world with a mix of commercialmaking and new forms of media content.
“No matter what the channel of communication is, creative has got to be based on a good, sound strategic underpinning–and that applies to the Internet, outdoor, print or TV, you name it,” he affirmed. “Otherwise you end up with creative that isn’t relevant, that doesn’t do the job for your client.
“You can’t take your eye off that ball, of having a strong strategic foundation. That has to be your way of going forward and generating great concepts and creative.”
Dusenberry added that while new media prospects are exciting, there’s the temptation to get too engrossed in new outlets and forms in and of themselves. “Work is proliferating across a great many avenues of communication. It’s great to be able to reach consumers across different platforms, across all levels but you can’t get too obsessed with the platforms and lose sight of what’s important. You can’t take your eye off the ball in terms of image building and brand building–and making sure to give consumers something of value such as real entertainment.”
Indeed entertainment was a hallmark of Dusenberry’s work, a prime example being his Super Bowl endeavors over the years.
“First and foremost we were fortunate that we had clients at BBDO who wanted to be in the Super Bowl. There was one game where we literally had about 30 percent of the spots that aired during the game. I think we pioneered the way in terms of creating Super Bowl commercials that were entertaining and that people were looking forward to watching.”
While there are too many to mention, Dusenberry said he was particularly fond of his agency’s Pepsi work that aired on the Big Game. He cited as an example the classic “Archaeology” spot directed by Joe Pytka. The commercial takes us to the distant future where a learned archaeologist identifies assorted objects unearthed in an archaeological dig–that is, until he is finally stumped when presented with a dusty old bottle of Coca-Cola.
Dusenberry noted that he and his colleagues had fun in the business–something he’s not so sure his creative counterparts today can say. Noting that there are more restrictions on creatives now than during his tenure, Dusenberry related, “The unfortunate circumstance is that it’s not as much fun today as it was back in my day. I keep hearing that from my contemporaries and my friends in the industry. It’s just become a more dollars-and-cents, bottom-line business.”
“Mufasa: The Lion King” and “Sonic 3” Rule Box Office For 1st Weekend Of 2025
The Walt Disney Co.'s "Mufasa: The Lion King" claimed the No. 1 spot on the North American box office charts over the first weekend of 2025.
The photorealistic "Lion King" prequel earned $23.8 million in its third weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. Paramount's "Sonic the Hedgehog 3," which has dominated the past two weekends, wasn't far behind.
"Sonic 3" stayed close with a 3-day estimate of $21.2 million, bringing its total domestic earnings to $187.5 million and helping the overall franchise cross $1 billion worldwide. "Mufasa's" running total is slightly less, with $169.2 million.
In third place, Focus Features' "Nosferatu" remake defied the fate of so many of its genre predecessors and fell only 39% in its second weekend. Horror films typically fall sharply after the first weekend and anything less than a 50% decline is notable. "Nosferatu," which added 140 screens, claimed $13.2 million in ticket sales, bringing its running total to $69.4 million since its Christmas debut. The film, directed by Robert Eggers, already surpassed its reported production budget of $50 million, though that figure does not account for marketing and promotion expenses).
No new wide releases opened this weekend, leaving the box office top 10 once again to holdovers from previous weeks. Several have been in theaters since Thanksgiving. One of those, "Moana 2," claimed the No. 4 spot for Disney in its sixth weekend in theaters. The animated sequel earned another $12.4 million, bumping its global total to $960.5 million.
The Bob Dylan biopic "A Complete Unknown," dipped only slightly in its second weekend, bringing in $8.1 million. With $41.7 million total, it's Searchlight's highest grossing film since Disney acquired the company in... Read More