AD-VENTURES

The Ad-Ventures of Don Rose.

Don Rose has a lot of ideas.

Don Rose likes to mix work with pleasure.  He knows if you want to go places, put the beer or sneaker in those places in the storyboard.

Don Rose led the team that created the Budweiser Whassup campaign that had guys grabbing a beer, watching the game, and greeting each other like, well, guys.

It became so popular, the only question was, “Can we win at Cannes?” And Cannes answered, “Yes, you can.”

Then it won just about every award in the world except The Stanley Cup.

Don Rose became Mister Sister Supporter when he started his own place, going on the road with country music sisters SHeDAISY for Sleep Number beds.

His short film Hello Sister for Chicago’s Olympic Summer Games bid was The Chicago Tribune’s favorite of the 22 films presented. 

Ever since he could remember, Don Rose would photograph people and places again and again and again. At work, he would film products again and again and again.

One day he got a camera that could film moving pictures.

So now he films people with products in places again and again and again, in moving pictures that tell moving stories.

Though what all of the buttons on the camera do he still cannot remember.  

While at an equestrian show, Don Rose realized people who like fancy horses also like fancy cars, homes, and clothes.

So he decided to write and film his own equestrian show, an eight-episode branded series of music videos, THE EQUESTRIANS.

He filmed horses and riders of all disciplines in about a dozen states, at places like the International Polo Club and events like the Washington International Horse Show.

He even did jobs for The World Equestrian Center, Dressage at Devon, Equine Affaire, Old Salem Farm, Footing First, and Kent School.

But after a couple of years, he moved on to other ad-ventures because he felt like he was beating a dead horse.  

Don Rose knows it’s all about La Dolce Vita. So make every script and storyboard in Italy. 

Don Rose lives free from the tyranny of gluten-free when in Rome. Or Portofino. Or Manarola. Or Positano. Or Orvieto.

Don Rose saves room for dessert.

Don Rose once found himself in Bali. 

Don Rose was eating at a boutique hotel in Reykjavik, and realized there was only one person he knew of from Iceland: Bjork.

Five minutes later, a dark-haired woman sat directly across from him at the bar: Bjork.

From then on, it was impossible not to see her in all of the cool places in Iceland: Bjork. 

Don Rose remembers the evening news being about Saigon, Belfast, and Phnom Pehn, and seeing the horrible reasons why.

Years later it was bittersweet to see the beauty of Vietnam, Ireland, and Cambodia with those flashbacks.

On a work trip to Lithuania, Don Rose visited the Hill of Crosses in the town of Siauliai.

Some ad-ventures are solemn.   

In the 100 days following the attacks of 9/11, Don Rose traveled to all 50 states to photograph American flags that covered buildings, hay bales, fences, and mountains.

His photo-journal, Our Flag Was Still There, made with help from State Farm and DDB, was published and sold by Barnes & Noble.

Andrés Segovia said the guitar is the easiest instrument to play and hardest to play well.

Don Rose has always had guitars and excuses not to pick them up, instead air guitaring as David Gilmore or Jimmy Page or Keith Richards or Davey Johnstone or Tony Iommi or Ace Frehley or Cat Stevens or Jerry Garcia or Roy Buchanan or Robin Trower or Joey Santiago or Alex Lifeson or Johnny Marr or Keith Levene or Leo Kottke or Wes Montgomery or Joe Pass or Pat Martino or Chet Atkins or Gabor Szabo or Ali Farka Touré or Francisco Tarrega or John Williams or Pepe Romero or Andrés Segovia.

But there’s nothing like a modern plague to find work for idle fingers, so now Don Rose picks up the guitar an hour each day to practice his fingerpicking. 

Don Rose often contemplates the cosmos, the ones with shooting stars and gassy galaxies, not the ones with vodka and cranberry juice. 

Don Rose grows roses in his garden in Connecticut, near the stone walls farmers used to call The Devil’s Potatoes.

And hopefully where his legend will live on long after he’s pushing up roses.