Shoptalk

"I warned (TBWA) that we're going to spin this thing out of control. They're going to know us everywhere in the world before we're done." --Lee Clow addressing staffers at TBWA/Chiat/Day's Playa del Rey, Calif., office on his recent promotion to chairman of TBWA Worldwide. GREENER PASTURES Rick Hadala Seeks More Cash from IPG Rick Hadala isn't fading away as quickly as Martin Puris might like. Sources say Hadala, who was first "shocked, then angered" by his dismissal from Ammirati Puris Lintas, is considering legal action against the shop because he is unhappy with his settlement. Hadala, who was APL's CEO of North American operations for only seven months, received one year's severance, say sources. Executives at IPG, where the dismissal occurred at 9 a.m. on Monday, April 5, are dealing with Hadala's attorney, sources said. Neither the holding company nor APL boss Puris will talk about the firing. Hadala, a former McKinsey executive, has apparently retreated to his Buffalo, N.Y., home. He did not not return messages left there. Interestingly, IPG's new annual report calls Hadala's hire a "bold step to enrich the New York office's strategic capabilities." Some speculate that IPG's Phil Geier may grant Hadala's demands, as his hands are full with another legal matter: IPG is in arbitration with former Lowe & Partners/SMS co-chairman Marvin Sloves, whom it charges with breach of contract, fraud and helping Mercedes-Benz, Lowe's cornerstone client, "take its business away." IPG seeks $25 million in damages from Sloves. MALE BONDING A group of San Francisco creatives who bonded in the trenches at Goodby, Silverstein & Partners still escape the grind together--despite being rivals the rest of the year. Each March for the past four years, the all-male group of eight to 10 execs has met in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, for five days of fun. Attendees include Leagas Delaney's Harry Cocciolo and Sean Ehringer, Steve Stone and Bob Kertstetter of Black Rocket and Grant, Scott & Hurley's Grant Richards and Scott Aal, along with a few creative directors-turned-directors. "It's a great time for drinking beer, fishing and riding around on jet skis and motorcycles," says Ehringer. "The idea is to really get away from it all." This year, however, some of the party boys slipped laptops into their luggage. Not cool, dudes. Expect a computer ban next year. The three agencies also intend to continue to hold occasional get-togethers for their combined staffs, such as the joint Christmas Party two years ago and a barbecue bash last year. Can't let interagency competition wreck a good party. BURNING DOWN THE HOUSE Thirsty? Have Some "Sex on the Client" Some say wild parties are a thing of the past in the ad business--but not at Robaire and Hogshead. Jean Robaire and Sally Hogshead, who head the "freelance creative department" in Venice, Calif., invited 600 guests to their chic loft to celebrate the shop's first anniversary. The theme: a "traveling freak show." It lived up to the billing. Among the highlights (or lowlights): Oral cigarette extinguishers, contortionists, the "Human Candy Head" and an out-of-control dominatrix. Guests such as Team One's Nic York, Matt Bogen and John Figone; Ammirati Puris Lintas' Mark Ronquillo; Suissa Miller's Suzanne Marks; TBWA/Chiat/ Day's John Shirley, Amy Miyano and Hank Hinton; Deutsch's Jason Elm and Andrew Baker; and Juan Perez of GSD&M imbibed cocktails such as "Sex on the Client" and "(310) 821-1000" (the number for the Yellow Cab Co.). Hot dogs and sweets were served by naughtily-dressed "Candy Girls." Entertainers included the Pain-Free Rubber Girls, who spewed fake blood while lying on a bed of nails and hitting one another with sledgehammers, and "Daniella the Magnificent"--of the New York performance-art band Gwar--who wore a Mad Max outfit and nearly set the shop ablaze with torches. Leagas Delaney's Harry Cocciolo, who left near 2 a.m., tells ShopTalk: "It was a great party It's always a great party when you have a fire-breathing dominatrix."

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