the world beyond recruiting

California lawmakers are considering putting flashing ads on license plates, doctors are urging the Coliseum not to hold another rave, and the Los Angeles Dodgers of Los Angeles beat the San Francisco Giants last night.

That’s what’s going on around Los Angeles, home of recruiting/staffing agency Eleventh Hour. Here’s what’s going on around the “creative world”:

• Toy Story 3 won the weekend box office for the second consecutive weekend (by the way, THR dubs this second consecutive weekend a “sophomore session,” just in case you need an unnecessary way of saying it).
• The Hollywood Reporter: B.O. trading venture won’t launch despite OK
• You’ve probably heard that Steve Carell is leaving The Office. This completely sucks, but, he has not changed his mind.
• AdAge: Why TV Advertisers Are Spending More for Less This Season
• Branded entertainment is set to increase, according to ADWEEK. I guess it’s better than advertisements on license plates.
• FIFA actually feels bad about some of the horrible mistakes made by referees during the 2010 World Cup. They are going to consider using video technology. (Technology: 1 – Stubbornness: 0)
• Mashable: iMovie Hacked to Work on iPhone 3GS
• The Rundown (USA): iBad: Admit you’re wrong with iPology
• CrunchGear: Barnes & Noble financials: e-book store blowing up like what
• And, in closing, yes, it was a tough loss for the U.S. weekend. But, let’s, at least, remember the good times.

Brian Laesch is an independent blogger posting on behalf of Marina del Rey-based boutique recruiting/staffing agency Eleventh Hour.

If you are the entrepreneurial- or creative-type, you love Richard Branson. Heck, you probably love him regardless of who you are–especially if you’ve ever flown Virgin Air. But one thing is for sure: Richard Branson is never light on inspiration. It seems like everything he does is cool. Case in point? The new “flying submarine” named “Necker Nymph” he recently released (photo courtesy of CNN):

Awesome? I guess that’s up for debate, but I’d say so. Excessive? Absolutely. Branson? Vintage.

This is the kind of thing you expect Richard Branson to do, but who will be able to afford it? In this economy, not many:

For those wealthy enough to indulge, the experience aboard the submarine, which is nimble enough to perform “dolphin-like flips,” will be like “flying underwater,” said Branson’s Virgin Limited Edition division.

But even for those with deep enough pockets, it doesn’t come cheap: $25,000 for a week’s charter and another $88,000 for the sub’s superyacht launch vessel, “Necker Belle.”

The $631,000 flying sub, the first of its kind, uses fighter jet technology and was designed by Hawkes Ocean Technologies. It is transparent enough to allow divers a 360-degree view of marine life and Virgin is marketing it as a way to view dolphins and whales close up.

Still, even if you are struggling and looking for a job, this has to inspire you. And if not, buck up, kiddo, and look up Eleventh Hour (in the Los Angeles area). There will be brighter days. Branson has mild dyslexia and was a poor student. Sure, he came from a prominent British family. But it’s not where you start. It’s where you finish.

Brian Laesch is an independent blogger who has worked with Eleventh Hour and can more than vouch for their services and friendly staff.

Happy Post-Valentine’s Day, readers of this blog. Hope everyone out there had a great date night/singles’ night out on the town. I know I didn’t. (Hey-oh!)

Anyway, here are some great links from the worlds of entertainment, marketing, advertising, technology and more.

• Speaking of Valentine’s Day, Warner Bros.’ “Valentine’s Day” won this weekend’s box office title. Awww….. That’s so, so, so, so, sweet. Looks like Warner Bros. found a good way to fill in the gap usually left in the moviegoing experience during the month leading up to the Academy Awards. Look for “Valentine’s Day” sequels for the next twenty years.
• Which Winter Olympic athlete will become this year’s marketing icon? I have no idea, but Advertising Age offers up a few candidates.
• The new Lost opening title sequences were leaked. (Hint: This is not real. It’s The Hollywood Reporter being…funny…I guess?)
• AdAge: My Life as H.J. Heinz: Confessions of a Real-Life Twitter Squatter
• General Mills is releasing limited-edition vintage cereal boxes for five cereals, including Lucky Charms.
• Rapper Drake had somewhat of a mainstream coming out party this NBA All-Star weekend, including this Sprite commercial in which it was revealed that he is, in fact, a musical robot.
• Creativity-Online: Nike: Human Chain
• Adweek: Beefing Up Banner Ads
• The TED vs. Sarah Silverman feud, as described by TechCrunch. I’d say, “get your popcorn ready,” but it won’t keep you entertained long enough to need a snack.

Brian Laesch is an independent blogger who compiled these links for the boutique recruitment agency Eleventh Hour.

According to an article on AdvertisingAge today, Coca-Cola’s memorable sleepwalking spot that aired during Super Bowl XLIV may have been a complete rip-off of an Israeli dairy commercial from eight years ago. In fact, if you watch the video, it looks like they used the same script. It’s pretty unbelievable:

According to AdAge:

The ad in question, dubbed “Sleepwalker,” was one of two created by Coke’s longtime agency, Wieden & Kennedy, Portland, Ore., for the Super Bowl broadcast on CBS last weekend. In it, a young man sleepwalks for miles through the African savanna, narrowly missing deadly encounters with herds of elephants and hippos before finally quenching his subconscious thirst with a cold Coke he finds in a tribal village.

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Within 24 hours of the spot airing on the Super Bowl, the video below — a split-screen comparison of the Coke ad and a 2002 spot for Yotvata by Shalmor Avnon Amichay/Young & Rubicam, Tel Aviv, both with similar storylines and set to the music of Ravel’s “Bolero” — had been loaded onto YouTube. Subsequently the video was covered by news outlets in Israel and circulated on Twitter and e-mails among the international and U.S. creative community.

Yotvata Dairy, which markets milk, yogurts and flavored-milk drinks, doesn’t appear to have officially complained to anyone, though.

If this truly is a coincidence, as Coke claims, it’s by far the craziest coincidence I haver ever seen (in terms of intellectual property). It looks like someone found the script for the Yotvata Dairy ad online and made some minor tweaks. You know, like a college student, in a hurry, doing a project last minute, the night  before it’s due? Even the shots and music and acting are the same. Wow.

Or, maybe, the writer of this spot simply saw the ad 8 years ago, memorized it, and was sleepwalking when they were writing it. Yeah, that’s it. They had no idea…

Happy Super Bowl Week. Can’t wait for football to resume after a weekend off… What’s that? They played the Pro Bowl yesterday? Seriously? Oh…

Anyway, get your popcorn ready…and your burgers, hot dogs, beef brisket, Doritos, Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Beer, and anything else you consume on Super Bowl Sunday. The match-up between the Colts and Saints should be a good one.

Here are this week’s links:

• Here is Adweek’s official Super Bowl ad coverage.
• Ever wonder how the “Punch Bug” or “Slug Bug” game started? Volkswagen answers.
• A really bad Charles Barkley Taco Bell campaign launched…
• Here is Ad Age’s Super Bowl coverage.
• BrandFreak: Naming experts split on whether ‘iPad’ is a terrible name or not
• Beyonce took home a record-breaking six Grammy’s last night. (Or so I’m told.)
• By the way, Avatar won the box office, again, for a seventh-consecutive session. No big deal.
• NBC has renewed “Parks and Recreation” for a third season. I, for one, am glad. This show is extremely underrated and has only improved since it’s first season.
• Netflix has added about 300 indie films for on-demand streaming.
• And, in case you haven’t heard, “Jersey Shore” is returning for a second season with it’s original cast members. Our country is going down the tubes, because of the tube, but it’s never been so much fun.

Brian Laesch compiled these links for Eleventh Hour’s “beyond the world of recruiting” blog.

Last night marked the end of Conan O’Brien’s 7 month run as host of NBC’s long-running franchise “The Tonight Show.” His successor, obviously, will be the same person he succeeded: Jay Leno. The chin returns. (Which I say with the utmost respect. I just like calling Jay Leno “the chin.”)

What will happen? Where will Conan O’Brien end up? Fox?

How will Jay Leno fare in his return? Huge ratings spike (beyond the initial guaranteed spike due to curiosity, of course)?

Who cares. Well, besides NBC. I mean, the cool thing to do is say that you don’t care…but deep down, everybody has an opinion on the feud that took place the last few weeks–unless they don’t care about either host, or television in general. I’ve already prepared myself for a world without Conan when he was originally on hiatus, waiting for The Tonight Show to begin. But that doesn’t mean I want it to be that way. The return to Jay Leno doesn’t seem “progressive” enough for the NBC. Oh well.

In case you missed Conan’s final show last night (weird to be typing that already), here it is, in it’s entirety, on Hulu.com. It’s good that NBC realized that no matter how much Conan badmouthed them these last two weeks, it was good for ratings, including online. Adios, Conando. (Too sentimental?) Here it is:

Brian Laesch will be awaiting the return of Conan O’Brien.

James Cameron’s Avatar surpassed the $300 million mark on New Year’s Day. After already having a great 2009 in just a few weeks, it looks like there is no slowing down the film on it’s way to a great 2010. Repeat viewers should start soon (if they haven’t already). (What is it about James Cameron films and repeat viewers? Is it that his films are best seen on the big screen?) By now, you’ve probably seen the film, or, at least, know 10 people who have. In my opinion, James Cameron has shown that a successful movie’s primary redeeming quality can be special effects. Usually when the technology is the star of the show, the movie is still incredibly lame. Avatar, however, may not be a refreshingly original story, but it is a refreshingly original cinematic experience (best seen in 3D).

I think it’s definitely worth checking out. You should recruit (get it? a little Eleventh Hour humor there) some friends and go see it. But don’t have high expectations for the story or your emotional attachment to those strange-looking blue characters. Your mind will be blown, but not from the depth of the characters or the plot. The blinking, flashing, neon lights will do that. And you’ll be glad they did. (Note: the theater where I saw Avatar did not have a bar.)

It appears that there is no stopping Avatar in 2010. My guess is that we’ll still be hearing about it into February. It may even still be going strong come Oscar time. Although, I don’t believe it should be nominated for Best Picture. Then again, aren’t they allowing 35 films to be nominated for Best Picture this year? Maybe it gets in by default. It should have the technical awards locked up already.

Brian Laesch wishes James Cameron a Happy New Year!

Welcome back to Around the Creative World. “We’re like fire and ice, taking over the whole world.” Today is Tuesday, December 8th, 2009.

I kind of feel like Conan O’Brien doing a monologue right now. Why? Because, unlike some past “shows,” I know today’s list of links is good. Not that others have been bad…but, I’m especially excited about today’s crop of URLs.

As Diddy always says, annoyingly, on Twitter, “LET’S GO PEOPLE!!!!”

• Let’s start this morning off right with a little Rhianna featuring Shy Ronnie. (I can’t believe how sick this track is, bro.)
• That’s not doing it for you? OK, watch this new UPS White Board ad while I find a better link.
• Oh. Here it is… Complete episodes of Mystery Science Theater 3000 are now streaming on Hulu. Merry Christmas.
• The United States government has deployed Lil Wayne to Mexico to battle Mexican drug cartels. Operation “Weezy F. Baby” is in full effect. Nancy Reagan must be so proud.
• NBC Universal’s Jeff Zucker praises the Comcast deal. (I didn’t really read this article. I just wanted to namedrop Jeff Zucker.)
• Twilight’s rein at the top over? Somewhere a fake vampire teen is crying…but The Blind Side has taken over the top spot at the box office. Yes! Jocks win again!
• AdvertisingAge: Google Goes After Social-Network Search With Facebook, MySpace
• JetBlue releases a holiday gift guide “for those times when you’re not on JetBlue.” I need one of those “knee jockeys”…for real.
• Quenton Tarantino is featured in a random commercial for Japan’s Softbank here.
• American kids love Paraguay’s Pulp Cola! (Even though I think this actor is 33.)
• North American Breweries is planning to display the world’s largest beers at their headquarters in Rochester, NY. (Is Tuesday morning too early to be thinking about beer?)
• Anybody else notice the cool Popeye logo on Google today? For that matter, does anyone in the world have a day where they don’t use Google?
• Russell Simmons and Global Grind have acquired CelebrityTweet. I’m guessing that the name Russell Simmons is what makes this acquisition a story.
• On that note,  I leave you with the latest effort from the newly-signed Def Jam artist (not really) Shy Ronnie. (Yes, again.)

Brian Laesch will someday retire from the link-compiling game. But until that day, he’s known as the “Best Link Compiler Alive.”

What a really, really, really good look

Hope you had a good Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday. I only participated in one of the three. Can you guess which one?

After finally recovering from the Tryptophan (aspiring witty-types love this word; I only use it for search engines), I’ve decided to get back to work and post another edition of “Around the Creative World.” So here are your links for this Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009. (It’s hard to believe we’ve been through a decade of the 2000s.)

• Guess which movie won the Box Office this holiday weekend? You guessed it…Frank Stallone. I mean, Twilight Saga: The New Moon.
• You’ve probably seen this, but here is the Chinese news reenactment (using The Sims) of Tiger Woods’ recent accident. (Also featured in this morning’s Rundown.)
• Are you ready for MTV’s “Jersey Shore”? Taking back the word “Guido.” (There is nothing I can say that would add to the ridiculousness of this show’s cast members.)
• AdvertisingAge: How Will Accident Affect Tiger Woods’ Blue-Chip Endorsements?
• I have no idea which round we are in of the Verizon-AT&T “Battle of the Map,” but I’m really enjoying it. AT&T decided to relate to the Idiocracy crowd by responding with a campaign from the out-of-shape Luke Wilson. (Full-disclosure: I’m currently a member of “Team Verizon.”)
• Is this the future of TV? (I’m gonna be completely honest, I didn’t read this one. I don’t have time to read science fiction novels these days, unfortunately.)
• PETA loves trying to ruin Thanksgiving.
• Spirit Airlines wins the award for “Most Unnecessary Use of a Current Pop Culture Event in a Sales Promotion.”
• TechCrunch: Google Gives Publishers More Control Over How It Crawls Their News
• I think the CIA is probably following me on Twitter. (You know that Eleventh Hour is on Twitter, right?)
• Maxim magazine will not go gently. It is going to unleash hell in December! Oh…sorry. I thought I was Pittsburgh Steelers’ coach Mike Tomlin for a second.

On that note, I’m done. Try not to unleash too much hell this month. Enjoy the holiday season while it’s here. Recession, or not.

Brian Laesch compiled this list of links. It is the most important list of links ever compiled.

Today is Tuesday, November 17th, 2009. Did anybody watch last night’s Monday Night Football game (Cleveland vs. Baltimore)…?

Good, me neither. I’m going to go ahead and forget it happened, and imagine the Sunday Night Football game (Colts comeback against the Patriots) was the Monday night game. The mistake by the lake has major problems with their football team. I’m really glad I missed the game.

Anyway, that was just the obligatory small talk I like to throw out there before I get to the meat and potatoes. I like to treat my posts like the Regis and Kelly show (minus the housewife audience). I’d tell you some light stories about my weekend, but all I did was move. It wasn’t too exciting. Although, I did tweet that I think Budget Rental Truck is now better than U-Haul (based on price, at least) and a U-Haul representative on Twitter responded within a couple of hours, stating, “Next time you need help, let us show you how U-Haul is the better choice.”

Now that’s good brand monitoring right there. But unless U-Haul starts offering me the same 20% discount that Budget does, I beg to differ. At least, for my moving purposes. I just need the cash.

Here are the links:

• 2012 easily won the weekend box office, taking home $65 million domestically. It will be interesting to see what it does this weekend, after everybody discovered they were lured by an awesome trailer to a horrible movie. (I haven’t seen it…but I did see The Day After Tomorrow, which was the worst movie in the history of movies, let alone apocalyptic movies.)
• Speaking of This Week’s Sign That The Apocalypse Is Upon Us (shouts out to Sports Illustrated, y’all), Boyz II Men is back with a new album. (OK, maybe that was a bit  harsh. I bought Colleyhighharmony and bumped it in elementary school like everybody else. “End Of The Road” is the number one 6th grade slow jam of all time. Of all time!)
• CNN: Dictionary word of the year: ‘Unfriend’
• South Park spoofs the upcoming James Cameron biopic sci-fi epic, Avatar, with “Dancing With Smurfs.”
• “YouTube Direct” plans to make it easier for “citizen journalists” to get exposure with online and TV news outlets.
• Philadelphia Eagles tight end Brent Celek has a little bit of captain in him, $10,000 was donated to charity, Captain Morgan received great brand recognition, and the NFL still stands for the “No Fun League.”
• Oxfam and 15 Ideas of Chicago want to spread a very special message this holiday season: You should give a sh*t.
• Miracle Whip vs. Stephen Colbert. Who you got?
• Verizon vs. AT&T. This is getting good.
• Me vs. Twitter. Crickets.
• In closing, a U.S. Marine urges us to fight terrorism by fighting extreme poverty… That probably should have been the first link. Matter of fact, here is the video:

Brian Laesch compiled this list of links for Eleventh Hour.