Mcdonald's Exec Heads To Pula's Post At Warners

Three months after the exit of Warner Bros. president of theatrical marketing Chris Pula, the studio appears poised to name a replacement. Sources said Brad Ball, senior vp of McDonald's Corp.'s USA division, is in advanced talks to take the job.

Ball would run all domestic marketing chores, while Ed Frumkes, president of Warner Bros. international theatrical distribution, would continue to supervise international marketing. Ball would likely report to Sandy Reisenbach, executive vp marketing and planning, along with Warners chairmen and co-CEOs Bob Daly and Terry Semel.

Ball joined McDonald's three years ago. Before that, he owned his own ad agency, Davis, Ball & Columbatto, whose biggest client was the local McDonald's franchise in Los Angeles. He served with that company for 25 years, beginning as a field account executive on the McDonald's account in 1972.

It was Ball's agency that came up with the "Mac the Knife" character who was a staple in McDonald's television advertising -- a case of local advertising outshining national advertising. The success of that campaign led McDonald's to bring Ball aboard as an executive.

If Ball does join Warners as expected, he will be the second high-ranking executive to come to movie marketing from the ranks of the fast-food business, following Disney marketing chief John Cywinski, who joined that studio two years ago after working for McDonald's' archrival Burger King.

The two fast-food companies have had a curiously entwined history with Hollywood. McDonald's, with its $425 million-plus advertising budget, has a 10-year exclusive tie-in with Disney, which it wrested from Burger King. Ball was a key individual behind that deal.

Warners has been searching to replace Pula since the executive left the studio less than a year after joining it, following a long stint at New Line Cinema.

A spokeswoman for the studio would only say, "No final decision has been made. We expect to make one within the next 10 days."