Duck Duck Gray Duck

Reposted from AdWeek: The legacy of Pat Fallon in Minneapolis cannot be overstated. The founder and longtime CEO of Fallon, who died last Friday at age 70, almost singlehandedly turned Minneapolis into a nationally respected creative hub. He personally helped to launch the careers of hundreds of advertising people. And his agency’s work helped to transform the industry.

Upon hearing of Fallon’s death, Doug deGrood, a former Fallon staffer and now partner at crosstown agency GdB, got to work on a tribute ad for his former boss. He wrote a few lines of copy thanking Pat—not just on behalf of himself or GdB, but from the entire ad community of Minneapolis.

Then, he and a few others worked the phones, contacting more than 40 Twin Cities agencies asking to use their logos in the ad. You can see the resulting ad below—a full page running today (the day of Pat’s funeral) in the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

It’s a fitting tribute to man who gave a whole community the belief, and the example, that they could achieve great things from their home on the prairie.

See the larger image here

Buy Pat Fallon’s classic book on advertising “Juicing the Orange” here.