There are many of us in the advertising community, both on the production house and agency sides of the business, who are deeply saddened by the passing of Phil Peyton. I hope it’s all right that I speak for a lot of great and talented people who were taught and mentored by this man.
Phil was one of a kind. That old expression of throwing the mold away is so true in his case. I was fortunate enough to work for him for eight years. There is no amount of money that one could possibly pay for that education. And I am just one of so many that passed through his door at Horn/Griner, Griner/ Cuesta, Myers & Griner/Cuesta and Griner/Cuesta and Schrom. Names like Jon Kamen, Erwin Kramer, Maddi Carlton, Chris Meltesen, Carl Norr, Richard Henry, Victor Hammer, Perry Schaffer, Joe Sabatino, Bob Pollack, Carl Sturgess, Robert Fernandez, Jack Donnelly, Susan Bachelder, Carol Brackenridge and many, many more. Directors touched by Phil included Horn, Griner, Cuesta (Mike and Michael), Myers, Danza (John and John Jr.), Birbrower, O’Neil, Perretti and Schrom. (My apologies for leaving anyone out.) There was also the close relationship Phil shared with his partner for many years, Dick Hall.
I was privileged to sit in an office with Phil and Dick. There was nothing better than seeing Phil in action. He loved what he did. Agencies loved him. He was a mentor to agency producers like Nancy Axthelm, Carole Cohan, Amy Sheldon and Steve Banks (who is now on the production house side). He taught many of us the nuances of how to get the job, then how to produce a great spot, then how to edit that spot—and most of all, how to get the agency to come back again. He was a master at the little things and the big things; of how to get a director to shoot a job that he doesn’t want to do. Go try that someday.
Phil was also a jazz musician. He played the drums once a week at The Art Directors Club. Music was a great passion of his. I think his music background gave him a great sense of timing for film and editing. A friend told me that Phil was "the smartest person I ever worked for."
Phil was a brilliant executive producer and production company executive. He lived through the great era of advertising: the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s. He had so much to offer all of us. And believe me, he never held back. If you wanted to learn, it was there for the taking. The more you put in with Phil, the more you got out. I owe much of my career to Peyton and I will never forget him.
Our thoughts are with Liz, Matt and Ann.
