Smart Guys Being Stupid

I read two really dumb things last week by two really smart guys.

First was Seth Godin. He wrote a blog about Danny DeVito. Claimed that Danny DeVito had a better chance of becoming a star than George Clooney. Why?

The math...tells us...

...everyone in Hollywood is trying to be George, there are a lot more opportunities for the few Dannys willing to show up.

Invest in Danny. The edges usually pay off.

Oh, yeah. There are way more fat, bald 5-foot tall shrimp movie stars than Clooneys. Hollywood just can't get enough of 'em.

"The few Danny's willing to show up"? Seth, you ever been to a casting session? In Southern California, every Tom, Dick and Harry is a Danny. You really need to get out from behind that computer.

Next was a quote from Mark Kvamme, founder of now defunct CKS and super-rich venture capital guy.

His advice to attendees gathered at today's American Association of Advertising Agencies' Digital Conference: creativity alone won't cut it in the future. As advertising moves from messages to engagement, technology is a critical component for success. "You have to have world-class creative, but you have to have world-class tech folks who can translate that into conversations..."

Right, there aren't enough tech geeks floating around, now we need them in ad agencies. Maybe we can get rid of all the creatives and just have agencies filled with account planners, online strategists and data analysts. That'll make these overfed global deal-makers happy.

And if I hear one more moronic pronouncement about "conversations" someone's gonna die.

Afterthought:
An ad agency doing tech work is like a plumber doing surgery.

And one more thing:
How did CKS, the leading web agency in the universe, go bust just when the web was exploding? My theory: "We didn't bring any creative work to show you, but here's Dylan, our data analyst."