MARKETING MIX: Saatchis' siesta man prepares to face Toyota hoax

by MATTHEW ARNOLD, Marketing 21-Mar-02

Attentive Mix readers will recall the antics of Toyota commercial director Mike Moran and his hapless Saatchi & Saatchi pal Johnny Wright.

Wright suffered the terrible misfortune of being photographed (by the entire floor - thanks to Moran's prompting) dozing under his desk following a soggy client luncheon (Marketing, February 21).

Well, if that wasn't humiliation enough, the mischievous Moran had one more prank up his sleeve. He fired off a letter to Wright's boss, Saatchis' chief executive James Hall, purporting to be from a very irate Toyota managing director Graham Smith and berating the booze-loving Wright for getting his innocent commercial director pissed and bringing shame on the house of Toyota.

In on the joke, Hall played along and when Wright returned from holiday, presented him with the letter and ordered him to go to Toyota to grovel and beg forgiveness.

Wright smelled a rat and called Moran, but Mike played dumb. So Wright showed up at Toyota expecting a dressing down and was met by a secretary who guided him to a waiting room, where he waited uncomfortably. And waited.

And waited. For an hour. Before Moran and Smith burst into the room laughing and took him out for lunch.