Funny Business: Moguls, Mobsters, Megastars, and the Mad, Mad World of the Ad Game

Funny Business: Moguls, Mobsters, Megastars, and the Mad, Mad World of the Ad Game is an uproarious anthology of stranger-than-fiction anecdotes from life in the creative world of the advertising business. Author Allen Rosenshine, who worked his way up to CEO of a major advertising corporation, tells of gently breaking bad news to mobsters, schmoozing with stars, warding off attempts to take him for a sucker, and many more madcap adventures. Funny Business is not a "how-to" book for would-be advertisers in the traditional sense; it's a slice-of-life with extra irony on top from an insider's point of view. An incredibly entertaining memoir from cover to cover, Funny Business is sure to delight readers of all walks of life with their recommended daily allowance of wit, wisdom, and mirthful laughter!

Allen Rosenshine has been named among the one hundred most influential people in advertising in the twentieth century by Advertising Age. In 1985 he became the CEO of BBDO and a year later he was instrumental in creating the world's largest and most successful marketing communication company, Omnicom Group. Rosenshine in his Funny Business: Moguls, Mobsters, Megastars, and the Mad, Mad World of the Ad Game presents a collection of writings about his personal and often humorous experiences in the world of advertising. Essays run the gamut from simple advice he received from Mohammed Ali to some weird ideas from a member of the Mafia. And as Rosenshine points out in his introduction, "no matter how many hundreds of billions of dollars are spent on advertising every year, and regardless of how seriously some people who run agencies make take themselves, there is at least much lunacy as logic where Madison Avenue crosses the streets of the corporate world." In the main, Rosenshine has written a funny book made up of short chapters that are a combination of creative non-fiction, autobiography and philosophical treatise reflecting many of the unusual and unstable characters he has encountered over the course of his advertising career where logic very often runs amuck. It should be mentioned that the book is not about the rules or strategies pertaining to advertising, as this was not the author's intention and as he states, "frankly, I much more enjoy telling stories I think are funny." Some examples of Rosenshine's humor is the time he met with an executive from AT & T who had been asked to watch an ad where an actor would be dialing a number on a telephone. The executive was horrified when he noticed that the phone was not held in accordance with the established procedures of his telephone company and why didn't the advertising firm know of these procedures. Another time a CEO had fallen asleep during a presentation and Rosenshine was at a loss as to what to do. To his surprise, the executive awoke at the end of the presentation and without the slightest allusion as to what transpired, indicated to Rosenshine and his crew that his people have already approved the campaign and it was fine with him. After which he shook hands with everyone and showed them the way out of his office. Then there was the time where Bob Newhart was turned down as not being funny. In another instance a member of the mafia came up with the brilliant idea that the famous heavyweight champion, Joe Louis, should advertise for a bank, notwithstanding that Louis was bankrupt and heavily in debt to the IRS. In the end what makes this book a delight is that Rosenshine has the knack of laughing at his experiences that make him essentially human and not at what makes him famous or successful. His message about the advertising game comes out very clear and although the business may be nerve wracking, ego wrenching and at times family breaking, as long as you don't take yourself t

Mr. Rosenshine writes a witty, endearing host of stories about the most misunderstood industry in business: the ad biz. You don't have to understand the ins and outs of the ad agency business to enjoy this book. All you need is a keen sense of the ridiculous and an enjoyment of good story-telling. He writes for all of us with short attention spans and each story is short and punchy. Don't read this book on a plane because some of the stories will have you laughing out loud and you will look like a lunatic.

I loved this book. It's a rollercoaster ride of the wacky world of advertising told by a master. You don't have to be in "the business" to enjoy every word. The table of contents alone is worth the price of the book -- no kidding.

Allen Rosenshine has managed to present in a very humorous and insightful way the inner workings of the advertising industry. I had difficulty putting the book down and found myself laughing out loud at his many unusual experiences in his dealings with his clients and high profile list of stars and sports figures. It's a must read