REVIEW: A bare-bones look at the industry to tickle your funny bone

<p>BBDO Guerrero Ortega </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Manila </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>E: by Matt Beaumont. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Publisher: Harper Collins. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Time was when every advertising copywriter kept a dog-eared manuscript </p><p>in the bottom drawer - writing ads being but a mere detour on the path </p><p>to literary greatness. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>But for every Salman Rushdie (who toiled at London's Charles Barker </p><p>Agency) or Fay Weldon (who paid the rent with lines like </p><p>"naughty ... but nice"), there were of course hundreds of miserable </p><p>hacks who failed. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Then again, there's Alan Parker and Ridley Scott - who both got their </p><p>start at CDP. BBDO London seems to have also been particularly good at </p><p>getting people to seek alternative careers, with CDs Peter Mayle running </p><p>off to Provence and Andrew Niccol winning an Oscar for the screenplay of </p><p>a little film called The Truman Show. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The question is, can we now add the name Matt Beaumont to this </p><p>glittering cast? A few may remember him as the joint CD of Saatchis Hong </p><p>Kong in the early '90s, although his monicker at that time was, I think, </p><p>Matthew Theokritoff. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>I think the annoying answer - at least to any of his contemporaries who </p><p>may have harboured similar ambitions - is yes. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>'e.' is a novel about life in an ad agency, told with an insider's eye </p><p>for detail. Written entirely as a set of emails, it makes it relevant </p><p>for the office-going masses. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>He sticks in fair old dollops of advertising lore to bring the audience </p><p>along with him. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>From the well-worn: "Q: How many account directors does it take to </p><p>change a lightbulb? A: How many does the client want it to take?", to </p><p>the description of head of client services as a title that "impresses at </p><p>cocktail parties where there are no advertising people present". </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The plot revolves around a pitch for Coca-Cola by the UK office of an </p><p>imaginary but highly believable agency called Miller Shanks. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Naturally, there are interwoven plots of creative teams shooting </p><p>commercials in Mauritius with a cast of page three girls; an Asian </p><p>transvestite caught in a compromising position in the ECD's office and </p><p>an email system that unpredictably CCs the entire global network on </p><p>sensitive internal memos. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>This inspires just about everyone in the network to live up to the motto </p><p>of their last network meeting in Waikiki: "10,000 Bodies, One Mind." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>As each gets copied on the latest on the Coke pitch, they can't resist </p><p>putting in their own vital contributions. Consider this little gem from </p><p>the Helsinki MD, Pertti Vanhelden. "I am having last-minute brainstorms </p><p>with my teams and we have some crazy-mad ideas that maybe we can </p><p>incorporate: (like) Coke baseball caps and bombing jackets to give a </p><p>youthful, 'rock band' look ..." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Hong Kong makes an appearance, when the CEO of that office writes: "I've </p><p>been working the Asia-Pacific circuit for 13 years now and feel I have </p><p>achieved all I can. It is time for a switch back to Europe and I hear on </p><p>the grapevine there is a search for a new CEO in Bucharest ... Did I </p><p>mention my wife is one-eighth Hungarian?'" </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Both emails are, of course, exactly the sort of stuff that flies round </p><p>any multinational network. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>And the format is perfect for showing people saying completely opposite </p><p>things in the space of a couple of minutes; and backstabbing each other </p><p>with bcc's and forwards. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>It's all so uncomfortably real. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>There's even a very funny website for this fictitious shop (www. </p><p>Millershanks.com) where you can download the sequel (yes, there's one </p><p>already). </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Perfect for reading on your next trip to that global conference. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>