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you can't really begin an encomium to Harry Keeshan without first addressing the Burning Question, the somewhat intractable rumor that has floated through the corridors of the country's top media agencies for more than a decade. And while we are loathe to throw water on something that has taken on the hallmarks of a cherished urban legend, we thought it was only right to put the issue to rest on the same day Mr. Keeshan picks up his Media All-Star hardware. Which is to say: Harry Keeshan is not related to Captain Kangaroo.As CEO of PHD North America, Steve Grubbs has heard that sort of thing before, and to no small sense of bemusement. "It's a bit of industry lore that's been passed down from assistant buyer to assistant buyer," Grubbs says. "But point of fact, Harry's not related to Bob Keeshan … Although it makes for a good story."If Keeshan can't exactly dine out on stories of backstage chats with Mr. Moose, his professional bona fides are still mighty impressive. As executive vp and director of national broadcast at PHD, Keeshan, Mediaweek's 2006 All-Star for National TV/Cable, oversees the North American broadcast/cable portion of the agency's $7 billion global media planning, working with clients like Old Navy, The Gap, Charles Schwab & Co. and Enterprise Rent-A-Car. And in keeping with the ever-evolving demands of the ad sales marketplace, Keeshan and his team this year have placed particular emphasis on structuring media plans that look beyond the traditional 30-second spot, while maintaining an unswerving conviction that TV is still the richest environment in which to develop a brand message."You still see plenty of impact with the 30-second spot, and there's still an awful lot of power behind them," Keeshan says. "But with broadband opportunities and other nonlinear platforms, we're extending the message a little for our clients." Take, for example, the campaign Keeshan's team developed for Old Navy, which tied the retailer's brand to the popular VH1 show Best Week Ever, an irreverent and humorous deconstruction of the pop culture landscape that helped the Viacom network climb into the top 10 among all ad-supported cable channels in the adult 18-34 demo last season. That effort was designed to drive foot traffic to Old Navy outlets with the promise of an in-store game and prizes ranging from a 2006 Chrysler Crossfire to discounts on Old Navy apparel.Old Navy's Best Week Ever ran Aug. 5-13, and served the dual purpose of creating further buzz for VH1 and driving back-to-school shoppers to their local Old Navy outlets. "The benefit of putting together a campaign that was a synthesis of TV and in-store was that both the client and the network got the benefit of each other's brand recognition," Keeshan says. "By going to the store to sign up for the contest, they're literally interacting with the messaging … which pushes the partnership between the client and the consumer and the client and the network forward."If many observers this year expected more nontraditional campaigns to be executed than what the agencies ultimately were able to deliver, Keeshan says that the industry is starting to find its feet. "I think what we saw this year was conversion but with the added element of control," Keeshan says. "The content providers were trying to pull everything just a little closer to their world than they did in the past, so not only have we seen more networks moving inventory to broadband and other platforms, but they're moving their content online as well … The impact of being able to view content maybe 10 or 12 hours after it airs on broadcast is increasingly important to them."That said, there remains a significant learning curve to putting together effective multiplatform campaigns. "I'm not sure that we're all there on the same page just yet, as far as the agencies, the clients and the networks are concerned, but we're getting there," Keeshan says. "One thing I haven't heard enough people ask, though, is if it's possible that the consumer isn't quite there yet either."Another campaign that emphasized the expansion to digital platforms was the "Talk to Chuck" plan, which was originally developed for Charles Schwab by Euro RSCG Worldwide, New York. It was Keeshan's contention that the plan would carry even greater impact when rivered over to targeted online platforms devoted to news and sports. The initial buy included NFL and NCAA football broadcasts and post-season baseball games, plus a deep list of cable networks, while the online component included major portals like Yahoo, AOL and MSN. From there, the buy extended to a number of sites that feature a healthy interactive-media component."What we wanted to do was to highlight Schwab as the leader in the financial services category as we were coming out of a period that saw lower spending in the category," Keeshan says. "We focused on the 'conversational' element of the campaign, the idea to appeal to younger investors as well as the more traditional investment profile." For Grubbs, the Schwab and Old Navy campaigns are emblematic of the way Keeshan goes about his business. "Some of our clients are very interested in the digital space, and the thing is, you have to build those kinds of packages from scratch," Grubbs says. "And that ability to develop a plan from the ground up is just one area where Harry and his team really shine."And if the ever-evolving nature of the business often calls for the occasional run of 14-hour days, Keeshan's always ready to roll up his sleeves. "Harry's here as early as anyone and as late as anyone," Grubbs says. "He never asks anyone to do something that he wouldn't do himself … The guy has more integrity in his little finger than anyone I've ever met in my 22 years in the business."Oh, and a final note: That Captain Kangaroo business aside, it turns out that Keeshan is related to one bold-print name after all. "[Initiative CEO] Alec Gerster is his cousin," Grubbs says. "So you could say that media is truly in Harry's blood. If you look at him, they look very much alike, practically like brothers." Anthony Crupi is a senior reporter at Mediaweek.

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