Smart humor isn’t likely to be in short supply at Euro RSCG/Chicago in the months to come. Why? Because the agency has just hired Tyler DeAngelo as an executive creative director. Most recently DeAngelo (whose wife is a Radio City Rockette, by the way) was integrated creative director at DeVito/Verdi in New York City.
His previous title is another way of saying DeAngelo is well-versed in all things related to the world of digital advertising. And as we all know, no agency can prosper in today’s marketplace if it does not offer current or potential clients a strong digital proposition.
That proposition is a large part of what Euro RSCG chief creative officer Jason Peterson was all about when he came to the shop. And now it appears he is doubling down on that strength with the addition of DeAngelo.
But if DeAngelo also reflects what we have always liked about DeVito/Verdi, he will bring to Euro RSCG a well-developed sense of humor. The agency has often exhibited a very New Yorky sense of humor in its work, but that only meant it was genuinely funny stuff. And just a little bit sarcastic.
DeAngelo’s personal website suggests that he certainly gets what this wacky business of advertising is about. Or at least should be about. His site greets visitors with a full screen visual of a smiling, blonde-haired young boy in the process of drinking a glass of milk. How wholesome.
One enters the site and is immediately confronted with the grown DeAngelo staring pensively into space and holding a smoking pipe just so. Now when was the last time one saw a robust, rather hiply-coiffed gentleman brandishing a pipe? Intriguing.
No shortage of ideas on DeAngelo’s site
What we liked even more about the site is how DeAngelo broke its contents into “ideas” and “more ideas.” Yes, the word “idea” has, for the most part, lost its punch in advertising, primarily because of a paucity of real fresh ideas in the business today. But DeAngelo seems to be both poking fun at that sad reality, while also suggesting he just might have some of the real thing to offer.
One of DeAngelo’s ideas included at the site is a promotion for the regional Meijer grocery store chain. It involved offering Chicago area residents a $1,000 reward for successfully “catching” a headless horseman that was magically projected onto the sides of buildings throughout the city.
Lest you think DeAngelo is only about advertising, we can tell you he is an author as well. He and a gentleman named Brad Emmett co-authored a book released last year with the catchy title “Learn Just Enough to Get Laid.”
Layman reviewers of the tome at Amazon.com have given it a four (out of five) star rating. Not bad at all. And in whatever spare time he has left, DeAngelo also is an ad instructor at the Miami Ad School’s New York outpost. That role may prove harder to maintain now that he has considerable responsibilities in Chicago.
DeAngelo’s arrival is good timing for the agency
In any event, DeAngelo is joining EuroRSCG at just the right time. Chief creative officer Peterson has found his footing, and the shop is turning out well-above-average work for a range of clients from Cracker Barrel to Reynolds wrap.
Peterson is obviously looking forward to DeAngelo’s contributions: “Tyler represents a rare find — a seasoned digital creative leader who understands the importance of the idea.”
Contact Lewis Lazare at LewisL3@aol.com
