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MSA
From: Cyd Keestler, MSA
To: In-Store Promotions Department, Dean and Deluca Gourmet Foods Inc.
RE: Steely Dan/Dean and Deluca "Urban Picnic" Promotion
Date: December 19, 1999

To Whom It May Concern:


My firm represents the musical group Steely Dan, who have sold over 11 million albums worldwide over the last 27 years. The group is preparing to release a new album of original songs entitled "Two Against Nature", their first in many years. The group's songwriters Donald Fagen and Walter Becker are universally admired for their clever and attractive compositions, and this particular set, rife with allusions to the refined pleasures of New York life at the millennium, is outstanding.

There is one particular song on the new album, "Janie Runaway", in which the name "Dean and Deluca" is prominently mentioned. The line goes as follows:

"Let's grab some takeout from Dean and Deluca -
A hearty gulping wine"

The story line in which this particular verse occurs is as follows: a youngish captain of industry is preparing to host an informal late supper for his colleagues at his swank Manhattan digs. Seeking to insure a pleasurable evening for all concerned, he proposes that refreshments be ordered in from the best vendor in the area - namely, your fine establishment, Dean and Deluca. The song goes on to describe the successful encounter and its productive aftermath.

We believe that this particular tune will very likely be the most popular and most requested cut on this bust-out album. Because your firm is cited as an exemplar of gracious New York living in this soon-to-be megahit song, we would like to propose a joint promotion which would take advantage of the publicity surrounding the release of the album and the subsequent tour and also give our clients Mssrs. Becker and Fagen a chance to celebrate once again the excellent products and services you provide to the discerning public here in New York City. The idea goes something like this: our two composers would each be accompanied by an attractive young runway model not unlike the young lady who visits the protagonist in the song. These girls would be selected by Becker and Fagen from a field of candidates to be chosen by you and/or your representative. Suitably attired and with some considerable PR fanfare, my clients would proceed to your Soho location along with models pushing shopping carts - they would then shop for free for a short period of time, say forty-five minutes, with the understanding that whatever they can get into the shopping carts would be theirs for the keeping. The songwriters and their girls would then repair to a suitably stylish and intimate location for a deluxe "urban picnic" featuring your provisions and accompanied by music from the new SD album and/or other similar material (incidentally, another one of our clients specializes in recycling Loungecore material for one of the hipper clubs on the Lower East Side - if we use his stuff too we might have another mutually beneficial tie-in to exploit) . This event would also be exploited for PR purposes, for a while. At some point the cameras and reporters would withdraw and allow the revelers to enjoy a delightful postprandial siesta, thus rounding out the perfect Dean and Deluca gourmet experience.

We believe that we have in place the elements of a thoroughly satisfying and uniquely successful promotional event for all concerned. The release date for the album is less than ninety days away, and the holiday season will no doubt divert your client's attentions for most of the next several weeks. In the interest of timeliness it may be best to move forward with the selection of the models now, while my clients are available for this purpose and focused on the task at hand. Once the right girls have been selected the rest will be easy. Perhaps you could send over the pictures of the girls immediately, along with their telephone numbers, so that we can get the ball rolling on our end.

Thanks for your consideration

Cyd Keestler
MSA



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