Saatchi 17 Wins Effies Post Exodus

After leaving Saatchi, famously, as the Saatchi 17, Ad Age reports four of the 17, all of whom are currently employed at Interpublic, won, in an awkward and final snub to their former employer, Effies for work done while at Saatchi. If that wasn’t enough drama for the evening, Leo Burnett Chief Creative Officer Cheryl Berman, during her opening speech, wondered why creative giants Lee Clow, Dan Wieden and Jeff Goodby were not in attendance citing the second class value placed on the Effies, which measure performance over beauty, by many in the industry. Perhaps if the Effies were held at a location a bit more exotic than the New York Marriott Marquis, us shallow ad folk might be a bit more willing to whip out our bling and attend. Then again, we’re all about the flash and the glamor, right? Beauty over brains. Art over commerce. Kick ass creative over steroidal sales increases. What fun are sales increases when you can play Hollywood wannabe in Cannes?

Oh, lest we forget what’s important here, TBWA/Chiat/Day’s iPod Silhouette campaign took top Effie honors.