"Igor" (weather spot, KUSA, Denver)

In really competitive TV markets-- and Denver is one of fiercest-- one of the great pleasures in (professional) life is tweaking your chief competitor, which was the purpose of this spot. The hero prop was my caricature of "Igor," their newest weather promotion mascot.

I designedl, propped and built the set on a shoestring budget; the giant switch wielded by the mad scientist was just corrugated cardboard hot-glued together and spray-painted with primer.

If it looks like I'm sweating in the lower photo, it's because the motors I'd worked on 'til 2am the night before to spin the rotary dial "eyes" took a dump right after the first take. It was 7:30am on a Saturday, and 17 people were drinking coffee and staring at me as I pulled a miracle out of my a**.

This is the real reason art directors wear dark pants.