Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly - S8E18 - Under The Influence of My Influences

Episode Date: May 2, 2019

This week, I’ll be sharing some of the major influences in my life that helped inform my thinking and shape my career. Including a snowplow ad from my childhood, the sound effects from one very specific cartoon, hilarious actors I worked with and seeing the corner of a billboard flapping in the wind. It’s a little lesson in who’s had me under the influence...  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hi, it's Terry O'Reilly. As you may know, we've been producing a lot of bonus episodes while under the influences on hiatus. They're called the Beatleology Interviews, where I talk to people who knew the Beatles, work with them, love them, and the authors who write about them. Well, the Beatleology Interviews have become a hit, so we are spinning it out to be a standalone podcast series. You've already heard conversations with people like actors Mark Hamill, Malcolm McDowell, and Beatles confidant Astrid Kershaw. But coming up, I talk to May Pang, who dated John Lennon in the mid-70s. I talk to double fantasy guitarist Earl Slick, Apple Records creative director John Kosh. I'll be talking to Jan Hayworth,

who designed the Sgt. Pepper album cover. Very cool. And I'll talk to singer Dion, who is one of only five people still alive who were on the Sgt. Pepper cover. And two of those people were Beatles. The stories they tell are amazing. So thank you for making this series such a success. And please do me a favor, follow the Beatleology interviews on your podcast app. You don't even have to be a huge Beatles fan. You just have to love storytelling. Subscribe now and don't miss a single beat. new year new me season is here and honestly we're already over it enter felix the health care company helping canadians take a different approach to weight loss this year weight loss is more than just diet and exercise it can be about tackling genetics hormones metabolism felix

gets it they connect you with licensed healthcare practitioners online who'll create a personalized treatment plan that pairs your healthy lifestyle with a little help and a little extra support. Start your visit today at felix.ca. That's F-E-L-I-X.ca. Whether you're in your running era, Pilates era, or yoga era, dive into Peloton workouts that work with you. From meditating at your kid's game to mastering a strength program, they've got everything you need to keep knocking down your goals. No pressure to be who you're not. Just workouts and classes to strengthen who you are.

So no matter your era, make it your best with Peloton. Find your push. Find your power. Peloton. Visit Peloton at with Peloton. Find your push. Find your power. Peloton. Visit Peloton at onepeloton.ca. From the Under the Influence digital box set, this episode is from Season 8, 2019. You're so king in it Your teeth look whiter than noon, noon, noon You're not you when you're hungry You're a good influence with Terry O'Reilly. Once in a certain part of the forest, there was a very large and very stupid bear.

His name was Mr. Bear Squash-You-All-Flat. And this is why. He liked to squash things. He liked to sit on things and squash them flat. That was how a children's book titled Mr. Bear Squash You All Flat began, written by author Morell Gibson.

It's a story of a large bear who got a kick out of sitting on the homes of smaller animals in the forest and squashing them. The book was released in 1950, then drifted out of print shortly after. There was a kid in Tacoma, Washington who was born the same year the book came out. He loved Mr. Bear Squash You All Flat and asked his mother to read it over and over again.

He and his older brother Dan were fascinated by salamanders and tadpoles and snakes. They built terrariums in their parents' basement to house the critters they would collect from Puget Sound. Dan loved to pull pranks on his little brother. He would hide in the closet for hours waiting to jump out at the right time to scare the hell out of him. Or he would pretend to feed the monsters under his little brother's bed. His little brother's name was Gary Larson. In 1968, Gary went to college to study biology. But he didn't enjoy it, so he switched to a communications course.

He decided he wanted to write TV commercials. But it wasn't his calling. So he went to work in a music store selling instruments. He grew to hate that, too. He decided to make a big change and try his hand at drawing

cartoons. He submitted six cartoons to a Seattle-based magazine. Larson called his series Nature's Way. The magazine liked it and paid Larson the princely sum of $15 a week. While on vacation in San Francisco later that year, he summoned the courage to submit his cartoons to the San Francisco Chronicle. The editor not only gave him a contract, he arranged to have the cartoon syndicated to 30 newspapers across the country. The Chronicle wanted to change the name of the cartoon from Nature's Way to The Far Side.

Larson was so happy to land the contract, he later said he wouldn't have cared if they had called it Revenge of the Zucchini People. A week later, the Seattle Magazine called to cancel his cartoon because they were getting too many complaints about its demented humor. But that demented humor was starting to catch on across the country. Gary Larson's Farside cartoons would eventually be published in nearly 2,000 papers. The Far Side wasn't like other comics.

There was no hero. Every cartoon featured a different set of characters. Sometimes it was people. Sometimes it was aliens. Sometimes it was animals. The humor was decidedly offbeat and hilarious. For example, we see a kid trying to push the door open to the Midvale

school for the gifted. The sign on the door says pull. Another has a kid lying in bed scared to death with two monsters lying under it where one monster says to the other I've got it again Larry, that eerie feeling there's something on top of the bed.

Clearly, a nod to Larson's brother Dan. One cartoon created a bit of controversy. It showed a female ape picking something off the back of a male ape. The caption read, Well, well, another blonde hair. Conducting a little more research with that Jane Goodall tramp? The Jane Goodall Institute was furious. Jane Goodall herself thought it was hilarious.

Then, in 1995, Larson decided to stop creating the far side. He didn't want to start repeating himself, so he put down his pen at the age of 44. Gary Larson created over 4,300 Far Side cartoons from 1986 to 1995. He has sold over 45 million Far Side books and is considered one of the most original comic artists of all time. He says his unusual view of life was inspired by his family's morbid sense of humor and the fact his older brother constantly pranked him. He also cites the book Mr. Bear Squash You All Flat. Larson says it fascinated him as a kid. He couldn't get enough of a story about a big bear squashing the homes of little animals. That absurd humor exerted a huge influence on him. Everybody has been influenced by the people and things in their life, especially creative people, and I'm no exception. My career in the world of advertising has been heavily influenced

by commercials I saw as a kid, by writers, by actors, and by one very specific cartoon. Each of them helped inform my thinking, shaped my sensibilities, and some even threw a little twisted humor into the mix. You're under the programs. I watched both with equal zeal. And even though I had to go to bed when the theme song for Bonanza came on, I still lay in bed listening to the television until I fell asleep.

And certain commercials always stayed with me. For example, I remember a specific one from the late 60s, early 70s. The goal of the ad was to get motorists the various warning signs and hazard colors on the back of a snowplow. Then, the voiceover said, You'd think with all this stuff on the back, a snowplow would be a hard thing to hit. But every winter, someone does. Next, the voiceover says something that probably made me remember this commercial. It was a line that you would never hear in this era.

What else can we stick on the back? A tail gunner? When you see the flashing blue light, please slow down. Suddenly, a crazy animated tail gunner appears on the back of the snowplow and starts firing. A message brought to you by the Department of Highways Ontario. It was highly unusual. The animation smacked of Monty Python. But it showed me that even a snowplow commercial from the government could be creative.

In other words, that ad taught me there was no such thing as a boring product. I was very fortunate to attend a weekly master class in the use of sound effects many years ago. That tutorial was delivered courtesy of the Coyote and Roadrunner cartoons I watched as a kid. I don't think sound effects have ever been done better or with more humor. And that cartoon was created in the 1950s when technology was a tad more basic than it is now. I loved the ever-inventive Wile E. Coyote and the contraptions he would order from the Acme Corporation, which, by the way, stood for a company that manufactures everything. Those contraptions gave animator genius Chuck Jones

a smorgasbord of sound effects possibilities. I learned a lot from that cartoon. For example, I learned that something falling off a cliff was funny when it made a whistle. I also loved the sound the Roadrunner made when he stuck his tongue out at Wiley. Many years later, I co-founded a sound production company. All that learning I absorbed while sitting in front of the TV on those Saturday afternoons paid off. Thanks, Chuck Jones.

I remember a commercial from 1979 that made a big impact on me. And it wasn't even aimed at me. It was for Chanel No. 5 perfume. It began as a beautiful woman sits by a spectacular pool. I am made of blue sky and golden light. Then a man magically appears at the other end of the pool. He dives in and swims underwater toward her. And I will feel this way forever.

He rises out of the pool at her feet, then disappears. Share the fantasy. Chanel No. 5. There was a lot of talent in that commercial. The mesmerizing music was by a composer I had not heard of at the time, named Vangelis. The director was Ridley Scott.

He was a busy commercial director back then, shooting around 100 commercials a year. He was less than a year away from directing his first big movie, Alien. Then would come a big Hollywood career with movies like Blade Runner, Thelma and Louise, and Gladiator. The male voiceover at the end,

did you recognize it? Share the fantasy. Chanel No. 5. That voice belonged to another famous film director. His name, John Huston. The words, share the fantasy, summed up that commercial perfectly. Everything about it seemed like a dream. I'd never seen a commercial quite like it before.

It was quiet. It was beautiful. It was sexy. It showed me it was possible to create an incredible feeling in just 30 seconds. I always remembered it, which is interesting, because it wasn't aimed at what was then a 20-year-old me. It was aimed at women, slightly older women at that. Advertising Age magazine ranks it number 36 on the top 100 commercials of all time. I agree. Stan Freeberg was a renaissance man. In the 1940s, he began to do voice work for both the Warner Brothers cartoons and the Jack Benny Show. He did radio, he did television, he did political parody. He created

legendary comedy albums beginning in the 1950s. He also wrote and produced groundbreaking commercials. Freeberg won 21 Clio Awards, the Oscars of Advertising, three Emmys, and a Grammy. Keith, if you add up all the Emmys we've won to date, including last year, how many do we have now? None. That's right. Stan's commercials are enshrined in the Museum of Radio and Television in New York and the Smithsonian.

His creativity had a big influence on me. I admired his big, bold ideas, and I particularly admired his mastery of radio as a medium. We once had a long telephone conversation about our mutual love of radio. You may remember this famous Stan Freeberg radio bit that I played a while back. He created it for the Radio Bureau in 1964.

Radio? Why should I advertise on radio? There's nothing to look at, no pictures. Listen, you can do things on radio you couldn't possibly do on TV. That'll be the day. All right, watch this. Okay, people, and now when I give you the cue, I want the 700-foot mountain of whipped cream to roll into Lake Michigan, which has been drained and filled with hot chocolate.

Then the Royal Canadian Air Force will fly overhead towing a 10-ton maraschino cherry, which will be dropped into the whipped cream for the cheering of 25,000 extras. All right, cue the mountain. Cue the Air Force. Cue the maraschino Cherry. Okay, 25,000 cheering extra. Now, you want to try that on television? Well...

You see, radio is a very special medium because it stretches the imagination. Doesn't television stretch the imagination? Up to 27 inches, yes. Still perfectly relevant 55 years later. Stan Freeberg was the master of the big idea and big production values. Who listens to radio? That go-where-you-go medium called radio That's with you every night

Through the long commuter fight And in the morning with your toast and marmalade-io Who listens to radio? No matter if it's summer, winter, spring or fall. Who listens to radio? Only 150 million. 150 million people. That's all

Vocals by Sarah Vaughan Orchestra arranged and conducted by Quincy Jones Yep, Stan thought big He was especially good at big production numbers with music Not many people attempt that in radio commercials But Stan was the man Who puts eight great tomatoes in that little bitty can? Who puts eight great tomatoes in that little bitty can?

Who puts eight great tomatoes in that little bitty can? You know who, you know who, you know who. In case you don't, it's Cantadena tomato paste. That just makes me laugh. Stan's music work on radio was inspiring. Our company produced this next radio commercial for a cheese company called Tillamook. The goal of the commercial was to persuade listeners to taste Tillamook's sharp cheddar and to not be afraid to try a sharp-tasting cheese.

You needn't be afraid of the rain that visits the meadows of Tillamook and yields the precious grass eaten by cows who know the difference. Why? For it is Tillamook, that's why. This greener grass makes for sweeter milk, gathered fresh every day to become Tillamook cheddar cheese, a cheddar that slices, melts, and tastes better than any other, so you need not be afraid.

You may have enjoyed this rich and flavorful Tillamook Cheddar Cheese many times, but still you find yourself longing for more. Come with me to a new place, a place called Tillamook Sharp Cheddar Cheese, and if you dare, Tillamook Extra Sharp. Try it on your burgers, try it in your tacos, but try it. Don't be afraid, you cat. You're afraid of the cheese. You're afraid of the cheese. Tillamook, if you've been there, you know.

The voice in that commercial is James Blendick, a wonderful Stratford actor. The choir was made up of just three singers we doubled and tripled. One of those singers was the late, great Billy Vann of House of Freitenstein fame. Bet you didn't know Billy was a singer too. It was a complicated commercial to build with music, sound effects, narration and choir. But the result is pretty amusing. Thanks for the inspiration, Stan Freeberg.

I had another inspiration in those early years of my career. His name was Chicken Man. And we'll be right back after this message. BetMGM is an official sports betting partner of the National Hockey League and man. And we'll be right back after this message. matter your team, your favorite skater, or your style, there's something every NHL fan is going to love about BetMGM. Download the app today and discover why BetMGM is your hockey home for the season. Raise your game to the next level this year with BetMGM, a sportsbook worth a selly, and an official sports betting partner of the National Hockey League. BetMGM.com for terms

and conditions. Must be 19 years of age or older to wager. Ontario only. Please play responsibly. If you have any questions or concerns about your gambling or someone close to you, please contact Connects Ontario at 1-866-531-2600 to speak to an advisor free of charge. BetMGM operates pursuant to an operating agreement with iGaming Ontario. Another big influence on me was a radio writer and voiceover legend named Dick Orkin. He had one of the greatest radio voices of all time. He was kind of a hapless voice, and Dick used it to perfection.

Here he is in a commercial for a store called Dayton's. The premise is funny. Dick is trying to convince his boss to let him leave early so he can get to Dayton's Fabulous Warehouse sale. Except, it's Dick's first day on the job. So, Shirley, welcome to the stenographic pool. Thank you, sir. Any questions? Yes, may I be excused to go to Dayton's Fabulous Warehouse Sale?

Mr. Shirley, you've only been with the firm five minutes. Well, I know, but Dayton's has this big sale. No. Appliance. No. Furniture. No, no, just get to work, Shirley. Right. Yes, what?

Sir, I forgot. My mother, my sister is getting, let's see, married. So, can I go to the... No, no, no. You're going to Dayton's Warehouse Sale. Oh, great. Thank you, sir. Shirley, get to your short, Ann. Okay. Uh, sir.

Yes? I don't want to panic you or anything, but I think an earthquake is due any second, so could I... No. Oh! What now? Oh, I think my appendix is back. Oh, my son. Mr. Shirley, the only way you're going to get out of here to go to Dayton's fabulous warehouse sale is by being fired, understand? Yes, sir.

Okay. Fathead. You're fired. Thank you. You won't regret this, sir. Dick Orkin is also famous for creating a legendary radio series called Chicken Man. I remember hearing it when I was a kid in Sudbury and being glued to the radio to hear the next installment. Chicken Man was a hapless superhero dressed as a giant chicken. And he only worked weekends because he sold shoes during the week.

Now, another exciting episode in the life of the most fantastic crime fighter the world has ever known. Chicken Man! He's everywhere! He's everywhere! Dick Orkin created Chicken Man in the mid-1960s as a parody of Batman. It became a huge hit and was even broadcast on Armed Forces Radio to the troops in Vietnam. It continued to be rebroadcast well into the 1990s and beyond. How do you do?

Yes. I have a newspaper ad here I'd like to run. Oh, swell. I'd love to hear it. It should read as follows. Yes. For hire, the most fantastic crime fighter the world has ever known. Yes. It shall be my secret duty to seek out all criminals in the city's streets and dark alleys.

No matter where they hide, I shall pursue them night and day. I will give them no rest until they have been crushed by one blow from my mighty fist. Well, this is an interesting development, isn't it? Yes, I think it is. It was a classic radio series.

Great character voices, great use of sound effects, absurd and hilarious storylines. I was lucky to work with Dick Orkin several times. He taught me that casting was everything in radio ads, that picking just the right voice could make or break a commercial. He also showed me that a good actor can deliver a funny line, but a truly funny actor can make anything funny. So my mission was to always try and find actors who had that gift for radio. One of those actors was named Jim Lawless.

He wasn't a commercial voiceover actor. He was a respected Shakespearean actor. That's what made him so amusing. He exuded gravitas. When you put his stentorian voice up against mundane words, it was always funny. Here's a radio commercial I wrote for a brain teaser board game called Mind Trap. The goal of the campaign was to launch the game and let people know

you can enjoy some one-upmanship if you played with people you wanted to one-up. Okay, your boss is going places all thanks to your hard work, and when he thanks you, he says, Good work, Stan, which is okay, except your name is Gretchen. Suddenly, you discover Mind Trap, the game. The idea is simple. Whoever answers the most brain-cheesing questions wins, and you don't have to be an exec VP to guess the answers.

It's a level playing field. So invite Mr. Attaboy, Pat on the back, well done, wink-wink turkey in lieu of a Christmas bonus, over for a game and lower the hammer. On Monday, you'll be promoted or fired beyond belief. Mind trap. It's a game of one-upmanship and your ship just came in. Another unexpected commercial voiceover sensation was none other than George McLean, the longtime CBC TV news anchor.

George began in radio in 1946 and longtime CBC TV news anchor. George began in radio in 1946 and joined CBC ten years later. He retired in 1986. The amazing thing about George McLean was that he didn't become a commercial voiceover sensation until he was in

his 80s. I was casting a commercial for the Toronto Blue Jays, starring players Joe Carter and Otis Nixon. The idea was to introduce them as if they were ex-presidents of the United States. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Carter and Mr. Nixon. So, we arranged an audition to find a dignified actor to deliver that line. While listening to the auditions, I suddenly heard

the perfect voice. When I looked at the name on the list, it said George McClain. I asked our casting director, is that the CBC George McClain? And she said, yep. George showed up to the radio session wearing a suit. The Blue Jays were in shorts. But that was George. He had a formality about him. Like Jim Lawless, George was hilarious when you put that formality up against slightly absurd words.

We produced a radio commercial for another game called Act One, where you have to act out scenes from movies and your teammates have to guess the movie. And because most people are terrible actors, playing the game is a lot of fun. So I cast George McClane.

Hello. I'm here to tell you about Act One, the popular new game where players act out scenes from movies and TV shows until a teammate guesses the title. Okay, what if you're a man and you pick a card that requires you to act out a woman's part? I'm something of an old hand at this, and what I do is make my voice go higher. To demonstrate, I'll act out Catherine's death scene

from the movie The English Patient. My darling, I'm waiting for you. How long is a day in the dark or a week? The fire is out and I'm horribly cold. I know you'll come and carry me out into the Palace of the Winds. That was actually me, not Kristen Scott Thomas. It's tricks like this that can mean the difference between winning and losing. If you're a woman and you get a man's part, try lowering your voice. Practice makes perfect.

But first, you must get the game. It's now available, along with the new young adult version at Blockbuster Video, Toys R Us, and Dufferin Game Room Store. Act 1. If you can't be a star, at least you can act like one. So Funny,

written by my friend Bill Martin. After that campaign, everybody wanted George McClane in their commercials. I think I must have made more than 50 commercials with George. All that newfound fame

arriving when George was in his 80s. If we could all be so lucky. I loved working with him. He was fun, he was a gentleman, and he always came to recording sessions dressed like he was going to court. My friend George passed away at the age of 92, and he was still in demand. Back in 1971, there was a highly creative billboard done here in Canada. As a matter of fact, it was inducted into the Canadian Billboard Hall of Fame. It was created by Oscar Ross at the Goodest Goldberg Soren advertising agency in Toronto.

The idea was incredibly simple, but I never forgot it. Picture this. It was a billboard with one corner of it actually peeling off and flapping in the wind. All it said was, quick, the Elmer's glue.

So smart, so visually arresting, so memorable. It taught me something. It showed me that the medium itself could be the idea. The fact Oscar Ross used the actual paper on the billboard as part of the idea was an epiphany to me. Many years later, I took that lesson to heart. A group of nuns in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario

called my company and said they had a branding problem. Needless to say, I was intrigued. When I met with the nuns, they were smart, savvy, and knew exactly what they needed. They said that since they don't wear habits anymore, they had no visibility, or as they said, we lost our branding. They wanted

an advertising campaign that spoke to women who were feeling a spiritual calling. The ads were to say the nuns of Sault Ste. Marie were still out there and ready to talk. The transit company in the Sioux had donated some interior ad space in their buses. So we created an ad that said, If you're looking for answers, you're looking in the right direction. But here's the thing. We wanted to put that ad on the ceiling of the buses. Which the bus company promptly refused to do because they had never done it before. We said, but it's possible.

They said, we don't do that. We said, but it's possible. We persisted. They finally relented, proving one of my favorite maxims, dare and the world will always yield. So when bus passengers looked up, meaning the big up,

they saw a message from the Sisters of St. Joseph of Sault Ste. Marie. The ceiling became part of the message. Inspired by Oscar Ross and the Elmer's Glue billboard. New year, new me. Season is here and honestly, we're already over it enter felix the health care company helping canadians take a different approach to weight loss this year weight loss is more than just diet and exercise it can be about tackling genetics hormones metabolism

felix gets it they connect you with licensed health care practitioners online who'll create a personalized treatment plan that pairs your healthy lifestyle with a little help and a little extra support. Start your visit today at felix.ca. That's F-E-L-I-X dot C-A. Whether you're in your running era, Pilates era, or yoga era, dive into Peloton workouts that work with you. From meditating at your kid's game to mastering a strength program, they've got everything you need to keep knocking down your goals. No pressure to be who you're not.

Just workouts and classes to strengthen who you are. So no matter your era, make it your best with Peloton. Find your push. Find your power. Peloton. Visit Peloton at onepeloton.ca. My favorite advertising of all time is the 1960s Volkswagen campaign. I have mentioned it often. It was created by the great Doyle Dane Burnback Agency.

I call them the Beatles of advertising because they changed everything. They brought humor to advertising in the early 60s when ads were still stuck in a very sober, see the USA in your Chevrolet era. Then along came the lowly Volkswagen, a small, homely-looking German car in a post-war world. Volkswagen only sold a grand total of two cars in 1949, so the carmaker eventually fired their advertising agency and hired Doyle Dane Burnback. That agency made VW famous. Understand something. Nothing changed but the advertising. The car was the same. The Volkswagen marketing department was the same. The only thing that changed

was the thinking. What DDB brought to VW was searing honesty mixed with incredible wit. A print ad from the early 60s featured the headline, Ugly is only skin deep. And the ad began with the headline, Ugly is only skin deep. And the ad began with the sentence,

It may not be much to look at. What other car, to this day, would dare call itself ugly in its own advertising? Another ad was completely blank. All it said was, No point showing the 1962 Volkswagen, it still looks the same. Still another poked fun at how slow the VW was. It showed a VW driver getting a speeding ticket. The hilarious headline? It's possible. While DDB made fun of the car, it also highlighted the fact VW was incredibly affordable to buy. Mr. Jones and Mr. Krempler were neighbors. They each had $3,000. With his money, Mr. Jones bought himself a $3,000 car.

With his money, Mr. Krempler bought himself a new refrigerator, a new range, a new washer, a new dryer, a record player, two new television sets, and a brand new Volkswagen. Now Mr. Jones is faced with that age-old problem Keeping up with the Kremplers Soon, VW was the biggest selling import in North America I love the self-deprecating nature of the VW work The powerful thing about self-deprecating advertising

Is that it lets people know the brand doesn't take itself too seriously Here's a commercial I wrote for the Toronto Symphony Orchestra is that it lets people know the brand doesn't take itself too seriously. Here's a commercial I wrote for the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. The goal was to tell people they shouldn't feel intimidated by the symphony. Someone in this city right now is facing a fear they can't seem to overcome. Fear of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. Take Walter S. of Toronto. I'm afraid I'll mispronounce Wagner or Shostakovich.

Shostakovich. Him too. Don't let this stop you from seeing the TSO. And if you do mispronounce a composer's name, you'll only have to pay a small monetary fine. We're kidding. We don't do that anymore. Call the Roy Thompson Hall box office for tickets.

The Toronto Symphony Orchestra. You should only be afraid you'll miss it. Taking the perceived stuffiness out of the symphony with self-deprecating humor told people that TSO could poke fun at itself. And therefore, classical music lovers had nothing Everybody has major influences in their life. The Beatles were influenced by Buddy Holly. Elvis was influenced by Dean Martin. Beethoven kept a picture of Bach on his desk. You begin by imitating your heroes, then slowly, surely, you develop your own style.

As someone once said, you may drink Gatorade, but what you sweat is your own. My advertising sensibilities were certainly forged by some mighty inspirations. A perfume commercial, a snowplow ad from my childhood, a master class in sound effects courtesy of a coyote and a roadrunner, a profound lesson in casting from Dick Orkin, looking up in awe at Stan Freeberg's big thinking, seeing a corner of a billboard flapping in the wind. A boss once said my ads were like the far side. He meant it as a criticism.

I couldn't have been prouder. That slightly twisted Larson-esque humor had seeped into my cells. There comes a time in your life when you should tip your hat to your heroes. The ones we're lucky enough to meet and the ones who influence us from

afar. To all those inspirational people, I say thank you. You definitely had me under your influence. I'm Terry O'Reilly. This episode was recorded in the TerraStream. Producer, Debbie O'Reilly. Sound engineer, Keith Ullman. Theme music by Ari Posner and Ian Lefevre. Digital content producer, Sidney O'Reilly. If you liked this episode, you might also enjoy an episode titled

Advertising Alumni, Season 3, Episode 11. You'll find it in our archives wherever you download your podcasts. See you next week. Under the Influence. All meat, no filler. Hey, I like your style. I'd like your style even more if you were wearing an Under the Influence t-shirt. Just saying.

You'll find them on our shop page at terryoreilly.ca slash shop.