'Yes Man' Locher nixes filmmaker Smith

Chris Smith was in the midst of incorporating his new company as Yes Men Films Inc. when he got a phone call from the lawyer of Joe Locher, president of Milwaukee ad agency The Yes Men Corp., instructing him to cease and desist.

Locher was not pleased that Smith, a filmmaker and the founder of Milwaukee's Bluemark Productions and ZeroTV.com, was going to use Yes Men as the name of his new company.

Three of Smith's films have been showcased at the Sundance Film Festival. "American Movie," a feature-length documentary produced by Smith, won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance in 2001. Sony Pictures Classics selected it for national distribution in more than 50 cities.

Locher incorporated The Yes Men as a one-man ad agency in 1995. Two years later, he received a U.S. trademark for The Yes Men.

"There's no way we can peacefully co-exist," said Locher, a former creative director for the McDonald Davis ad agency that was acquired in 1995 by BVK, Glendale.

As far as Locher knows, Smith is abandoning plans to name his new company Yes Men Films.

Smith was unavailable for comment.

-- Pete Millard

Frank Russell Co. rebrands sans 'Frank'

Northwestern Mutual subsidiary The Frank Russell Co., Tacoma, Wash., has changed its name to Russell Investment Group in an attempt to improve its brand awareness across a range of products and services, according to recent reports.

Russell, founded in 1936, researches capital markets, provides institutional investment and consulting services and stock indexes. The Russell 2000, which follows growth of 2,000 small companies nationwide, is based on Russell company research.

Northwestern Mutual, Milwaukee, purchased Russell in January 1999 for an undisclosed amount.

The name change began in 2000, when it was used internally by the company's U.S. investment management sales force. Russell Investment Group became the legal name for the company's entire operation in September.