Paul Gallis

1924 - 2012

Paulie Gallis was an original, a charming bigger-than-life character, a force of nature. All who had the good fortune to know him would agree, Paulie was different, a remarkable personality like no other, he was simply unforgettable. He was the affable Greek endowed with street smarts from his salad days on the hardscrabble side of Chicago. A self-made man, Paulie's endearing persona conquered all. Smitten in his youth by the bright lights of the entertainment industry, he talked his way into show business. He got in the game working for tips, running errands and doing other valet tasks for performers, vaudevillians, that played the legendary Chicago Theatre. Serving others became his life's work. He earned a sterling reputation for his uncommon dedication to clients as well as the selfless hard work, persistence, and contagious enthusiasm he invested in every project.

Perhaps Paulie's greatest gift was his great love of life. He loved people and could be counted on to find the pure joy in every day, the hidden good in every situation. Joie de vivre! It was within his power to change the climate of any room he entered, his ability to read and work a room was peerless. Moreover, Gallis engaged all unconditionally as equals. He was as comfortable in the company of strangers as he was with his superstar clientele. He treated the unknown pick up musician and the wannabe vocalist with the same grace, respect, interest and good manners he'd routinely shown Tony Bennett and his many other famous clients and friends.

In the too often brutally competitive, harsh world of record promotion Paulie Gallis was the outlier. Known for his always refreshing sense of humor and easy going style, Gallis got the job done but he did it his way. His distinctive voice and  authentic laugh made indelible impressions. Ever the gentleman, he is remembered as "sweet" and "nice" rare qualities indeed in the music promotion trade. He cared seriously about the work at hand however he also cared deeply about the people involved in that work. Generous to a fault, Paulie Gallis gave his name and countless hours of work to projects which offered little if any promise of a return. Kind and thoughtful, he was a mensch, the class act that made a difference whenever he was involved.

An unabashed evangelist of all things Chicago, Paulie was an exceptional and vocal advocate for the unsung greatness of his beloved Third Coast, that so-called Second City. When a label head offered him a major executive post which would have required his leaving the flatland and moving to the west coast, the now famous Gallis rejoinder was "If I feel the need to look at mountains I'll buy a can of Folgers Coffee."

Of course, no writing about Paulie would be complete without his unique calling card - those little yellow stickers he placed on the black vinyl he promoted. Truth be told, those stickers are the subject of many a good story. From Billboard's Claude Hall discovering one that just appeared on the door of his Sunset Boulevard office to rival promoters finding a THANKS from Paulie plainly visible above the coin collection basket of their home exit on the Illinois Tollway. Truly, Gallis was the go-to guy, the savvy problem solver, the quintessential world-class promoter.

I feel blessed to have known Paulie Gallis, honored and humbled to say he was my dear friend. I love this incredible man and miss him much. We'll not again see his like. Sui generis. Paulie would not appreciate this writing because it's all about him and over the many years I knew him it was never about him. He wouldn't allow it. What he enjoyed was talking about others, especially his family and friends. He invariably preferred the conversation filled with genuine concern, interest, curiosity and appreciation about what everyone else was doing. As he often said to me "We're here to help other people. Who have you helped today?"


Paul Gallis photo courtesy of Fred Winston

Photo: Spring Flowers Series 50

Kelly Hafermann

Cool pic, thank you!

"Presentation rule: when something appears on a slide presentation, assume the world knows about it and deal with it accordingly." William Swanson

Swanson's Unwritten Rules of Management: unwritten rule number five...

"Don't think that what shows up in a presentation is private. It will come out. Accept this as a given, and deal with this fact up front. As a leader, when people try to convince you that something you are looking at on the screen - proprietary, competition sensitive and so forth - will never leave the room, assume it already has and deal with it accordingly.

In fact, assume that it will be published in The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times or The Washington Post. And always maintain an atmosphere of total integrity."

Recently the day job has me involved in a number of new initiatives where an NDA is required. After decades of work in the confidential activities of startups, turnarounds, acquisitions and divestitures my sense is William Swanson is correct. As a practical matter the NDA is not worth much. It does serve to memorialize the sensitivity of the situation, it does put all parties on notice creating a record in the process but it does not prevent disclosure. Further, it does not provide for any realistic remedy. Seems to me you either trust those involved or you don't. Swanson is right. Total integrity, always.

Congrats & cheers: Paul Gallis, Clark Weber and Jim Scully on a simply outstanding event! The Chicago's Music Row reunion was one to remember, a rare moment filled with bold-faced names. The magic of the gathering was the diversity, the depth, the rich mix of those attending. Different generations from different career paths coming together. New kids on the block, folks at the top of their game, and pros from all walks hanging out with true legends. A heady time for us mortals in attendance. Many played catch up, others met for the first time. Fun for all attending. Art Vuolo rolled video and is certain to release one if his commemorative DVDs. Paul tells me the official photog will have pics to share soon. If you happened to have been at the event and have pics to share please send them (jpeg) to Paul at Chicagosmusicrow (at) gmail (dot) com.

While in Chicago enjoyed an incredible dinner with the legendary Fred Winston. Fred has a knack, a gift for discovering and sharing really exceptional small rooms; he finds places packed with character and overflowing with amazing food. The groceries were terrific and Fred's company purely one-of-a-kind. Tom Kent said it best recently. Referring to the Robert Redford character in the film The Natural, Tom said "Fred is the Roy Hobbs of radio, he is the best that ever was."

Speaking of Redford his first Sundance Cinema opened here yesterday. As a former theatre circuit owner allow me to say it is one beautiful property. Kudos and cheers to Redford and company. Dean Robbins has the back story via Isthmus here.

Where is the line? Who draws it? It's the topic of discussion. Imus, Sharpton, O&A, JV & Elvis. How far is too far? What should the consequences be? My suggestion is the marketplace is the best arbiter and should be in all cases not involving violations of the law. It's a shame, too many operators are afraid to stand up today. What is needed now more than ever is for operators to stand up in support of their performers. We need operators who understand the importance of doing the right thing, standing up to defend their way of doing business. Operators willing to allow the marketplace to decide.

Leadership must take responsibility. Performers don't just go off the rez by themselves. In my experience this most often happens as a result of benign neglect. What management allows it encourages. Performers need guidance, need coaching, need direction, need to understand where the boundaries are (even the ones we draw in chalk, having a show road map on a magic slate is far better than no understanding). The Imus, O&A and JV & Elvis incidents each represent a failure of leadership. Consistently, the #1 complaint of performers is "no feedback," the #2 complaint is "when feedback is given it's negative." The secret is to catch performers doing something right. The process begins with a deep understanding of standards, expectations and consequences.

The operating practice "not to offend" was born in the earliest days of broadcast. From his new book, Same Time, Same Station, James L. Baughman writes "They (CBS & NBC), in effect, collectively signed a social contract by entering radio. They would curtail their freedom of expression - laboring not to offend the moral guardians - in exchange for continued access to the great audience of radio listeners...Television's first generation of executives and producers understood radio's basic commandment: the moral sensitivities of any significant portion of the great audience must not be upset. That 'portion' might not represent most viewers. Indeed, a minority adept at letter-writing wielded extraordinary power...Broadcasters were expected to behave...Remarked the actor and producer Desi Arnaz, 'You are coming into their house." ("The Mother of Television", pgs 15, 25).

The notion of being "an invited guest" in someone's home, the once accepted operating mindset, may now seem quaint, indeed anachronistic. Too often it remains the single perspective of law makers, regulators and the gang of self-proclaimed media watch dogs. Work done or positions taken in the name of protecting our children has become a popular, albeit potentially chilling, cause celebre.

Perhaps the lesson learned is the power of the freak show. The monster that must be fed. The always on world of the 24-hour news cycle. Sound bites driving storytelling without the homework of proper context.

Closed circuit to TV producers: Stop calling Al Sharpton. The man is a hack past his best used by date. Granted having him comment on matters of race is the quick and easy solution to getting a "black pov" into the mix but here's the deal - Sharpton has a pattern, he does not speak for others but only for his own benefit. Hint: neither Jessie, Tavis, or any other single public figure speaks for or represents the community. What's needed here is clear. Do the homework and develop a stronger, more relevant rolodex of qualified thought leaders. You should not be waiting for a race issue to invite persons of color to join the conversation. When the talking heads are all white and male you have lost your way.

"I do have a great deal of sympathy with the people who run printing presses because I think they're screwed...the people who do news and the people who fact check it have great futures ahead of them." Craig Newmark

My thanks to Staci D. Kramer of paidContent for today's quote. It's from her coverage of the NAA National Convention in New York here.

In Chicago for the Paulie Gallis Music Row Reunion. Our favorite media scribe Robert Feder headlines today's column with the story. Very cool Robert!

"You cannot bore people into buying your product." David Ogilvy

The always amazing Paul Gallis checked in to say everything is looking good for next month's big reunion. Chicago Music Row will happen Tuesday, May 8 at Yolk, 1120 S. Michigan Avenue. 3pm until the last story is told. Open to all who work or have worked in or around the Chicago music scene. Radio, records, retail, A&R, producers, distribution, sales, venues. More info here. Clark Weber and Jim Scully are the event's MCs with Paul. This should be one to remember. See you there!

More than spots & dots: The eBay TV ad sales exchange seems to be in trouble - no inventory. The platform funded by HP, Home Depot and Phillips will not be supported by the cable networks. Louise Story writes Cable TV Networks Boycott eBay Ad Exchange via NYT here. "We don't believe that eBay is going to get this right" says CAB prexy Sean Cunningham. Ouch!

The seven cable networks that tested the exchange over the last month decided it went too far in removing humans from the ad sales process. Cunningham added "The grand-majority is about idea driven packages that have got multiple consumer touch points that activate these brands." So he seems to be saying it's more than spots and dots. More than push print and buy.

If one is able to book almost anything online these days why is it just not possible to book advertising? First, what's being done today is not simply booking, it's online negotiating - it's one kind or another of ad auction. My sense is the hurdle here is all about the bid ask, the process. This is about seller fears. The fear inventory will become a commodity. The fear of a collapse in pricing. The fear of losing pricing power. The fear of those paying full retail migrating to wholesale. Exchanges offering remnant inventory face an even bigger challenge. Why is the buyer not able to buy the good stuff?

What broadcast and cable are having a difficult time letting go of is "the deal." The process. Sellers making deals with their clients with the help of their managers. Some bonus weight here, a bit of value-added there, tweaking the pricing, adjusting the dayparting, add the cool idea and voila! The deal is done. Can't this be done online? Of course but offline haggle is in the seller dna. The selling more art than science with a dash of sport.

The flaw is the liquidator model

"Price becomes an objection when you fail to articulate value" said my dear friend Norm Goldsmith. Media should take a lesson from the successful. Do what The Four Seasons does. Put all of your inventory online. Allow customers to add promotions, signature sponsorships and other "touch points" from a comprehensive menu. If one can design a car or five star holiday online it should certainly be possible to design an ad campaign online. Use your online platform to manage all of your inventory - prime, off prime, promotions, remnant, everything. What's wrong with the exchange idea is the exchange idea. An auction of some inventory has narrow, limited appeal and self limiting potential.

A better start would be an exchange as one moving part of a robust sales platform rather than the entire platform being nothing but auction. Sell full retail, subject to some real-time pricing supply/demand dynamics (think airlines, hotels, et al), and sell off discounted inventory that needs to be moved. Offer incentives to book online. Perhaps you have buyers earn access to the discounted inventories? Require buyers to qualify for access to the exchange portion of the platform. But sell everything. Make it easy for the customer to buy at any price.

YES, this does put your sellers in competition with the platform. The more realistic pov is your sellers are an important part of your sales platform, so is your national rep. The business case for moving forward is clear. If you always do what you've always done, then you'll only get what you've always gotten. To succeed sooner you must learn to fail faster.

There is more than one right answer here. It's not either or it's AND.

P.S. Nothing says you can't have it both ways and then some. Sell online, sell offline to customers who prefer face calls, personal contact, and lots of service or some combination to meet every customer need. High tech with high touch options. No one is going to like that approach but the buyers. Google or Microsoft will probably be the first to make it happen.

All it will take is a broadcaster or a network with nothing to lose.

Congrats & cheers: Joey Vartanian, King of Chicago night life, on his 25th year in the bar trade.

"Things done well and with a care, exempt themselves from fear." Shakespeare

"One age cannot be completely understood if all the others are not understood. The song of history can only be sung as a whole." Jose Ortega y Gasset

As announced today via Robert Feder, Joel Denver and others, the legendary Paul Gallis will stage the biggest reunion of Chicago music industry professionals ever held. All folks from records, radio and other music related enterprises (e.g., concert promotion, retail, rack jobbers, et al) are invited to attend. Joining Paul in this project are his equally celebrated friends Clark Weber and Jim Scully. Save the date: Tuesday, May 8. Details and rsvp info here. See you there!

Claude Hall's last hurrah: Which reminds me, the great Paulie Gallis deserved and won the "Independent Promotion Executive of the Year" award at Claude's last Billboard International Radio Programming Forum. New Orleans, 1976. That storied meet was the model that later inspired the first NAB RPC (Radio Programming Conference).

Sherman, to the wayback machine: Courtesy of Bill Gavin. Gavin's "Men of the Year" Awards were the radio "Oscars" of their day. Since Paulie Gallis is bringing up names I have not heard in decades, let's make mention of some award winning Chicago pros from the past. Here are the Chicago pros and their top national honors in the prestigious Gavin awards...

• Dick Biondi, WLS, Disc Jockey, Top 40, 1961, 1962
  
• Ralph Beaudine, WLS, Radio Man of the Year (five-way tie), 1962
  
• Chris Lane, WJJD, Radio Man of the Year, 1965
• George Dubinetz, WJJD, General Manager, C&W, 1965, 1966, 1967
  
• Chris Lane, WJJD, Program Director, C&W, 1965, 1966, 1967
  
• Chris Lane, WJJD, Music Director, C&W, 1965, 1966
  
• John Trotter, WJJD, Disc Jockey, C&W, 1965, 1967
  
• E. Rodney Jones, WVON, Disc Jockey, R&B, 1965, 1967, 1968
  
• Gene Taylor, WLS, General Manager, Top 40, 1966
• Lucky Cordell, WVON, Program Director, R&B, 1966, 1967, 1970
  
• WLS, Radio Station of the Year, 1968
• Lucky Cordell, WVON, Station Manager, R&B, 1968, 1969
  
• John Rook, WLS, Program Director, Top 40, 1969
• Art Roberts, WLS, Music Director, Top 40, 1969
• Paul Christy, WCFL, Music Director, Top 40, 1970
• E. Rodney Jones, WVON, Music Director, R&B, 1970
• Wally Phillips, WGN, Disc Jockey, Rockless, 1970
• Jerry Cobb, WVON, Disc Jockey, R&B, 1970
• Larry Lujack, WLS, Disc Jockey, Top 40, 1971
• WVON, Distinguished Service Award, 1972

The 1962 Radio Man of the Year tie included Gordon McLendon (prexy McLendon stations), Jack Thayer (GM of WHK), Sam Holman (PD of WABC) and Harvey Glascock (GM of WIP). Amazing. Love that category Wally took - "Rockless" - WGN would have been "Full-service MOR" in those days.

Congrats & cheers: Ian Rogers named GM of Yahoo! Music. Michael Harrison has published his Heavy Hundred 2007. Billed as "the 100 most important radio talk show hosts in America" the annual list is always a subject of discussion. This year's top ten...

1. Rush Limbaugh
2. Sean Hannity
3. Michael Savage
4. Dr. Laura
5. Ed Schultz
6. Opie & Anthony
7. Laura Ingraham
8. Mike Gallagher
9. Neal Boortz
10. Glenn Beck

Mancow ranked #11, Howard Stern #12. The Heavy Hundred plus another 150 noted talkers, the complete Talkers' 250 here.