Obie Judges - 2000
Chief Judge
Rick Colby
Colby Effler & Partners
Rick Colby is president/executive creative director of Colby Effler & Partners. CE&P was formed less than three years ago and has quickly grown to $70 million in billings, 11 clients and 60 people. Rick’s work has been honored nationally and internationally in virtually every major awards show and he has been featured in AdWeek, Advertising Age, Los Angeles Business Journal, and E! Entertainment Television, among other forums.
David Bernstein
Kelland Communications
David Bernstein is managing partner of Kelland Communications, Ltd. David has been a copywriter, agency TV producer, then creative director of three international agencies, before starting The Creative Business whose client list was dubbed “The Who’s Who of British Marketing.” In his capacity at Kelland Communications, he advises companies on communications, internal and external. An occasional playwright, David is author of six books, including Advertising Outdoors: Watch this Space, a critique of advertising outdoors.
Michael Grieco
N.W. Ayer
Michael Grieco is executive VP and group creative director for N.W. Ayer, and has created successful ad campaigns for some of the agency’s biggest accounts--AT&T, DeBeers and Folgers, among them. He leads the N.W. Ayer team responsible for the “Work Hard, Fly Right” campaign for Continental Airlines. A recipient of numerous advertising awards, Michael created a poster design now part of the permanent collection in the Cooper Union Museum.
Rob Richards
Eller Media Company
Rob Richards is senior vice president and national creative director for Phoenix-based Eller Media Company. An artist and creative director in the outdoor industry since 1984, Rob has helped shape countless outdoor campaigns nationwide. An accomplished illustrator for trade journals and magazines, Rob’s work has been published in Communication Arts and Gotcha! The Art of the Billboard. He has been honored at the Addy Awards and was recently awarded a Prisma at the American Institute of Graphic Artists show.
Charlie Robb
Smith & Robb Advertising
Charlie Robb is creative director and partner of Smith & Robb Advertising, the brains behind the “God Speaks” billboards of 1999. Charlie began his career as a writer at Ketchum Communications in Pittsburgh. He then worked for a number of agencies in Chicago including BBDO, Cunningham & Walsh and Foote, Cone & Belding, creating campaigns for Kraft Miracle Whip, Lucky Strike International, Zenith, Harris/Lanier, Molson Export Beer, among others.
Rick Robinson
Infinity Outdoor
Rick Robinson is Infinity Outdoor's national creative director, tall wall provocateur, and preacher of the billboard gospel. A true industry ambassador and an artist in his own right, Rick has taken his "Urban Gallery" show from Venezuela to Belgium to numerous markets across the United States. He recently opened a solo sculpture exhibit in Venice Beach, CA. With over 15 years in the business, Rick is a sought-after voice on the lecture circuit, sharing the creative power of outdoor advertising with universities and advertising clubs.
David Yacullo
Outdoor Services
As president and CEO of the largest out of home media management company in the U.S., David Yacullo has helped build Outdoor Services into an industry power house. With billings in excess of $375 million, Outdoor Services works with clients such as Disney, Nike, Nestle, Bank of America, Nextel and Chrysler/Dodge. David has worked with Outdoor Services for more than 11 years in Chicago, Dallas and Los Angeles, before moving to New York last year.