So all you advertising-savvy readers. We’re now taking bets. How long do you think J.C. Penney — oh excuse us, JCP — will stick with this absurdity that is th...
We said we’d keep you updated on the ratings story for the heavily-hyped NBC prime time series “Smash.” And we are. “Smash” is the show — executive produc...
Upshot/Chicago has joined the ranks of agencies making television commercials to sell cereal. In late 2011, Post Cereals brought on board Upshot as agency of record for two...
Tris3ct/Chicago is moving to establish a strong focus on the Hispanic market, even as it strengthens its creative bench. The shop has begun to do that with the hiring of Javier ...
Is “Smash” a smash hit? We know you’ve been wondering about that in the wake of the show’s debut and all the attendant hype. Executive produced by movie legend Ste...
Downtown Partners/Chicago is out. Sources report the powers-that-be at Downtown Partners/Chicago have changed course and decided not to participate in the agency review d...
“Show Boat” has docked at Lyric Opera of Chicago. This vintage piece of American musical theater now upon the vast and wickedly demanding stage at Lyric Opera rep...
Let’s talk tourism. Specifically the marketing of Chicago to tourists. We’ve actually been talking about the topic for years. And we’ve often been disappointed ...
Step right up ladies and gents and get your front row seats! You too can see what promises to be one of the greatest and saddest spectacles in recent television history.&n...
Whoever said we humans are creatures of habit was right. For years, however, that truism has been a source of more than a little frustration to more than a few general managers ...
What does one do for a second act in advertising? It’s always a tough question. Made even more so when one’s first act produced what may be the single best TV co...
Let’s just say it flat out. “Smash” is a train wreck of a show like few others we’ve ever endured on TV. And get ready. It’s headed right at us in Chicago ...
In the eyes of a lot of local ad executives, the Chicago Cubs have just struck out. Big time. The team lost a big chunk of potential fans from Chicago’s advertising indu...
In a stunner that is sure to have major ramifications for Downtown Partners/Chicago, sources say Walgreens is launching an ad agency review. That could mean big problems f...
And then there was one — the winner. As first predicted days ago, Downtown Partners/Chicago, in conjunction with digital partner Critical Mass/Chicago, has prevaile...
With just days to go before the Illinois Lottery and its private manager Northstar Lottery Group are expected to name a new ad agency of record for the Lottery, a startling...
What is it about CBS and round tables? When it comes to conceptualizing talk shows, somebody there must be hooked big time on seating people in a circle. On Wednesda...
And then there were two. Late Friday afternoon — very late — Illinois Lottery private manager Northstar Lottery Group posted the two finalists still in the running for...
We fear it is going to be a very long election year indeed for TV viewers who opt to turn to CNN to follow the many presidential primaries and other events as they unfold. For a...
To say 2011 whizzed by is an understatement. The year about to end was — everything considered — a pretty good year for the Chicago advertising industry. At leas...