PrograMADic: Scene 11
With A Special Cameo Appearance
Welcome back to “PrograMADic” for Scene 11. In this scene, we have a very special cameo appearance with Brian O’Kelley. More cameos to come as the story unfolds. Enjoy!
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ACTION! 🎬
11. INT. NYC FANCY RESTAURANT - 1999 It's lunchtime. We meander through a busy restaurant, probably an upscale Italian place like Emilio’s Ballato or a Frenchy place like Balthazar. We hear internet ad chatter and see deal-making in action as we pass through the place. Our CONSULTANT Sherpa is sitting at a table. We finally meet him. [Note: The background restaurant scene transitions from what it was like in 1999 to the present time 2023] CONSULTANT I told you we'd meet. Too bad it's in a place like this. Back then it was banner ads. Today's all "programmatic" ad exchanges. (uses air quotes with a dose of skepticism) In '99, the Goodriches needed to expand their business as fast as possible. And they needed to do more than find people like this (gestures to the dining room) who only sell overpriced banner ads. They needed to find a guy who could goose an ad server. Ad-serving technology was at the center of it all. Do you even know what an ad server is? I didn't think so. So, who better to explain it than The Godfather of Programmatic himself, Brian O'Kelley... aka "BOK". (uses air quotes, again) We close in on BOK. A kind-looking motherly woman is sitting next to him at the table with our CONSULTANT. It's BRIAN's mom. MOM Go ahead, Brian. Explain what that ad server thingy does like you did for me in 1999. (looks directly into the camera) I had no idea what my smart son did for a living, but I had to tell my friends something. BOK Ok, let's give it a go, Mom. You like reading the newspaper, right? MOM I never miss a day... you know that. (silly, dismissive) The waiter places various starter plates on the table and pours water. BOK Well... the internet is just like a newspaper only much bigger with lots of articles and pictures. Some people want to put their advertisements in this huge newspaper to show them to lots of readers. In your newspaper, like this New York Times right here, (pick up folded newspaper off the table) it's people who decide which ad goes where. An ad server is just like that person in charge of deciding where and when those advertisements should go in the newspaper. When someone like you or me opens this endless newspaper called the Internet, the ad server tries to understand who you are and what you like. For example, if you like gardening, which I know you do, the ad server will make sure you see ads about gardening tools. If you like baking or sports, the ad server wants to show you ads about baking items or sports products. That's it. That's how an ad server works. Only difference is it does that job billions of times every day. MOM (looking into the camera) There you have it. That's why he's the Godfather. CONSULTANT Back to the Goodrich brothers. They needed to find a guy who could trick an ad server and create money from nothing. That's called an "arbitrage." And that's what Wallach saw before anyone else. But they also needed a tech guy to code it. That's where this guy came in handy. (thumb points to BOK, he's eating a forkful of twisted pasta) Brian invented a whole new technology for the Goodriches. And not just any technology. He built a technology that would change the way the entire advertising business works and open a can of worms worth billions of advertising dollars. FADE OUT:
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Disclaimer
This script and musical is a work of fiction based on real-life events. Artistic liberties have been taken to enhance the narrative and create a compelling experience. Certain sequences, dialogues, and character interactions have been fictionalized or altered for dramatic effect. While certain elements and characters might be inspired by true stories, the portrayal of events, people, and circumstances has been dramatized and fictionalized for the purposes of entertainment and does not intend to present a factual account of the events, and any resemblance to real people, places, or incidents is purely coincidental.