On My Radar: Mal Ward

What’s the advertising idea from your childhood you most remember?

I feel like this is a trick question to figure out how old I am, but fine, I get it, it’s a piece on nostalgia, and you cannot exactly ask some Millennial or work-from-home Gen Z-er about this. So, it’s a bit of a tie. First up is this 1981 men’s cologne masterpiece for Canoe [below]. This held all the promise, intrigue and, dare I say aspiration a 10-year-old me could want. If I could just get a sailboat and some nautical flags together, I’d be in business. 

Next up is the Sam Breakstone campaign starring the great Michael Vale, who would go on to become the “Time to Make the Donuts” man. These ran forever, at least in New York, where I grew up. I loved the serial nature of the ads and, of course, the absurdity and humour. The simple reason these were good and still hold up is that they are entertaining.

What website(s) do you use most regularly?

Google Maps. How staggeringly awesome is this site/app? To start with, figure out how to get anywhere in the world by way of your feet, bike or vehicle? I’m all in. And then see pictures and read ridiculous amateur reviews of any place in the world? Come on. This is logistical perfection and a window into the human mind, all packaged up in one solid UI. 

What’s an old piece of tech that you either still use or have fond memories of using?

I still use wired headphones on my iPhone despite the years spent detangling. I still wish I had an iPod Nano that wasn’t connected to the internet. I really did love typing on a BlackBerry. I also have every cell phone I’ve ever had. 

What product do you wish was still around? 

McDonald’s French fries made in beef tallow.

What was the film that most impacted you growing up?

Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing. I went and saw this two nights in a row as soon as it opened and was just blown away by what was on the screen. It was in your face and electrically charged. I grew up in Brooklyn for half my childhood, and seeing a part of the borough represented on screen in all its complexities was seminal and inspiring to me. And then hip-hop, which in 1989 still wasn’t exactly mainstream, felt like it got the respect and spotlight it deserved. 

What film do you think everyone should have seen?

Better Off Dead, directed by Savage Steve Holland, is a comedic masterpiece and the pinnacle of 1980s absurdist teen comedy. Jonathan Glazer’s Sexy Beast is shot-for-shot perfection. If you want to know how to tell a story, create intrigue, direct actors, and where to put the camera, then this is it.

What’s your preferred social media platform? 

Instagram. I’m so ancient that I remember when the founders had a booth at SXSW to introduce the platform. Anyway, it’s great for the obvious reasons. It’s also become a carousel of nonstop targeted ads, algorithmic suggestions and images of lifestyles that distort and damage young and old minds alike. But, man, I cannot get off it, and that dopamine hit of 'likes' still hits hard.

What’s TV show do you wish they’d revive?

I cannot possibly give one answer to this. Barney Miller, Northern Exposure, Extras, Fleabag, Gomorrah, The Sopranos (duh), I May Destroy You, Zero Zero Zero, What’s Happening, Hill Street Blues, In Living Color, The Jeffersons and Hong Kong Phooey.

What’s your favourite podcast?

Sam Harris’ Making Sense. We live in a ridiculously complex time where a shared base of knowledge and facts no longer exists. And then, much of our news and supposed journalism is more about clickbait, outrage and doomscrolling. So, to have the nuanced, deep-dive conversations, insight and knowledge that Sam and his varied guests bring to each episode, whether I agree with them or not, is something that has expanded my thinking and perception of our world in a meaningful way. 

What most inspired you growing up?

Surfer Magazine, Spin Magazine, Yo! MTV Raps, Stussy, DefJam Records, WLIR, WRKS, WBLS, the South Shore of Long Island, the New York Knicks, egg sandwiches, Keith Herring, Christian Hosoi, Tom Curren, Tom Wolfe, Tom & Jerry, New York Hardcore, Road Warrior, the west side of Los Angeles in the late 1980s.

If you could only listen to music from the 80s, 90s or 00s, which would it be? 

There is no choice other than the 1980s. The rise and evolution of hip-hop, techno, house music, new wave and post-punk are reasons enough. And yes, I know there were earlier pioneers in each of these genres in the previous decade, but this was the golden age in each. And then some more supporting evidence for the doubters – The Smiths, Sonic Youth, Pavement, Public Enemy, Madonna, New Order, Prince, A Tribe Called Quest, Metallica, etc etc etc.