Fall 2012 - Cistercian Preparatory School

GIVINGBUSINtheThe “Burger Boys” in their nationwide televiClayton Long ‘00, Tom Campbell ‘00, BriaGrowing numbers ofgood reasons toBY DAVID EXALLALL OF A SUDDEN, there they were. FourCistercian classmates on TV singing anode to, um, hamburgers (really). It didn’tmake any sense, but it was funny. Andit moved product. Cistercian quirkinessgone nationwide — for profit.From the fourth quarter of 2009 through 2010, the“Burger Song” aired nationally on E!, The Food Network,AMC, NBC’s “30 Rock,” “Saturday Night Live,” andMonday Night Football on ESPN. The 10-second“moment” — the most popular spot of Cisco’s “Do YouFlip?” campaign that introduced the Flip video camera —gave Cistercian collegiality rare visibility.“The high school chums have been trying to drum upbusiness as viral marketers,” said a December 3, 2009New York Times story, “who can create funny, low-costvideos for clients through their Web site, the BajillionairesClub” (www.BJCstudios.com).Tom Campbell ’00, John Erdman ’00, Clayton Long’00, and Bryan Madole ’00 don’t always make this kindof splash working together, but they almost always havethis much fun.“It all goes back to Dr. [Tom] Pruit’s class,” saidMadole. “He would ask for a ‘creative response’ to a book.Our responses often took the form of videos.”They recast The Canterbury Tales as a Western, portrayedHamlet in a bowling alley (think “The Big Lebowski”), andreinterpreted The Crucible as a “rockumentary” for JackieGreenfield’s junior English class.“I loved those guys,” said Greenfield. “They had a goodtime, but they took their art seriously.”“Mr. [Roberto] Mungia helped us get our videos intoISAS,” Madole added. “BraveArt was a great outlet. AndMr. [Jim] Reisch was instrumental by offering a videoelective our senior year.”“It was great that we were able to explore this interestwe had so early on,” Long added, “and given completecontrol over making our own projects. It’s not something alot of freshmen have the opportunity to do.”After going their separate ways in college, they reunited14 THE CONTINUUM • FALL 2012