{{short description|Irish-American creative director (born 1966)}} {{Infobox person | name = Vinny Warren | image = | caption = Portrait of Warren as shown on his website. | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1966|4|5|df=y}} | birth_place = Galway, Ireland<ref name="irish">{{cite web|last=Lee|first=John|title=Vinny Warren - WASSUP with this Irish ad legend?|url=https://www.irishstewpodcast.com/s3e1-vinny-warren-wassup-with-this|publisher=Irish Stew|accessdate=December 12, 2022|date=September 13, 2021}}</ref> | known_for = Creating Whassup? advertising campaign | occupation = Advertising creative director }}

'''Vinny Warren''' (born 5 April 1966) is an Irish-born American advertising creative director, most notable for his iconic "Whassup?" campaign for Budweiser (Anheuser-Busch).<ref>{{cite news|last=Lauro|first=Patricia Winters|title=THE MEDIA BUSINESS: ADVERTISING; Whassup? America's Asking|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/02/16/business/the-media-business-advertising-whassup-america-s-asking.html?pagewanted=all|accessdate=January 29, 2011|newspaper=The New York Times|date=February 16, 2001}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Baar|first=Aaron|title=Creative Director Warren Exits DDB in Chicago|url=http://www.adweek.com/aw/esearch/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003352803|publisher=Adweek|accessdate=January 29, 2011|date=November 6, 2006}}</ref> Warren was inducted into the Clio Awards Hall of Fame in 2006.<ref name="clio">{{cite web|title=WASSUP?, BEAR, FOX, INDUCTED INTO CLIO HALL OF FAME|url=http://www.campaignbrief.com/2006/05/wassup-bear-fox-inducted-into.html|publisher=Campaign Brief|accessdate=January 29, 2011|date=May 15, 2006}}</ref> He is based in Chicago, Illinois.

==Early life==

Warren was born in Galway, Ireland in 1966.<ref name="irish" /> Warren attended the National University of Ireland, Galway,<ref>{{cite web|last=Murphy|first=Judy|title=Vinny's 'Wassup' moment became worldwide slogan|url=https://connachttribune.ie/vinny-s-wassup-moment-became-worldwide-slogan|publisher=Connacht Tribune|accessdate=February 14, 2022|date=August 20, 2013}}</ref> and moved to London in 1988, where he studied design and art. In 1990, Warren won a US Diversity Immigrant Visa lottery<ref>{{cite web|last=Burn|first=David|title=The AdPulp Interview: Vinny Warren|url=https://adpulp.com/the_adpulp_inte_7/|publisher=AdPulp|accessdate=February 14, 2022|date=December 4, 2009}}</ref> and moved to New York, where he briefly worked as a horse and buggy driver in Central Park,<ref name="irish" /> before being hired by advertising executive Ed McCabe in 1992.

==Career== Warren worked as a copywriter at McCabe & Co. Advertising from 1992 to 1994. In 1995, Warren moved to Chicago,<ref name="irish" /> where he continued to work as a copywriter before being hired as a creative director by Doyle Dane Bernbach in 1998, where he worked extensively on developing advertisements for Budweiser.

In 1999, Warren developed the "Whassup?" campaign along with art director Chuck Taylor,<ref>{{cite web|last=Clark|first=Kendra|title=World's best ads ever #15: Budweiser simply asks, 'Wassup?'|url=https://www.thedrum.com/news/2022/06/14/world-s-best-ads-ever-15-budweiser-simply-asks-wassup|publisher=The Drum|date=June 14, 2022|accessdate=December 12, 2022}}</ref> based on the short film ''True'' by Charles Stone III, who also directed the Budweiser variant.<ref>{{cite web|last=Elliot|first=Stuart|title=Responsible Party: Charles Stone III; A Buzzword Rises From an Inside Joke|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/04/16/business/responsible-party-charles-stone-iii-a-buzzword-rises-from-an-inside-joke.html|publisher=New York Times|date=April 16, 2000|accessdate=December 12, 2022}}</ref> The ad was a success, winning an immense number of advertising industry awards, including a Cannes Lions Grand Prix,<ref>{{cite web|title=Day 26 - Cannes winners remembered - Budweiser "Whassup"|publisher=CampaignLive|url=https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/day-26-cannes-winners-remembered-budweiser-whassup/1398369|date=June 13, 2016|accessdate=December 12, 2022}}</ref> a Grand Clio,<ref>{{cite web|title=THE ANSWER TO `WHASSUP': BUDWEISER SALES|first=George|last=Lazarus|publisher=Chicago Tribune|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2000-05-26-0005260409-story.html|date=May 26, 2000|accessdate=December 12, 2022}}</ref> and others. In 2006, the advertisement was inducted into the Clio Awards Hall of Fame.<ref name="clio" />

In 2006, Warren started his own advertising agency, The Escape Pod. Warren served as executive creative director<ref>{{cite web|url=https://adage.com/article/agency-viewpoint/big-beer-finally-sobers/311084|title=BIG BEER FINALLY SOBERS UP|publisher=AdAge|date=October 31, 2017|accessdate=December 12, 2022|last=Warren|first=Vinny}}</ref> of The Escape Pod until 2021, when Warren left the agency and became a freelance creative director.

==Personal life==

Warren has a wife and children, and lives in the suburbs of Chicago.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://adpulp.com/the_adpulp_inte_7/|last=Burn|first=David|title=The AdPulp Interview: Vinny Warren|date=December 4, 2009|accessdate=December 12, 2022}}</ref>

== References == {{Reflist}}

== External links == * [https://www.vinnywarren.com/ Official Site] * [http://theescapepod.com/blog// Vinny Warren's blog]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Warren, Vinny}} Category:Living people Category:American businesspeople Category:1966 births

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