Susan Farb began her PR agency career at A.R. Busse & Associates (1979-1985)
Two years later I met Al Busse through my job as Houston-based program director/community relations for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation-Texas Gulf Coast Chapter. CFF hired A.R. Busse to produce the Dave Williams Cystic Fibrosis Golf Tournament & Banquet; I was handling the publicity in-house (Al edited my news releases and I felt like I was back in college!) In any case, he later offered me a job as an assistant account executive. I attended client meetings with him and tried to absorb everything I could. Ideas flowed, or should I say, erupted from this man. He was immensely creative in his public relations plans and execution.
Al Busse introduced me to the hospitality and retail industries where I thrived on such public relations opportunities as planning and executing grand openings and ongoing media relations and promotions for the likes of The Lancaster Hotel, Adam’s Mark Hotel and Marriott’s Hotel Galvez in Galveston, Charley’s 517 restaurant, the exclusive Boccaccio night club, OPTIKA eyewear boutique and legendary sporting outfitter Abercrombie & Fitch, among others. The opportunities were so incredible — doing Houston media tours with opera star Placido Domingo, international fashion model Christina Ferrari; 30th Anniversary of McDonald’s in the Houston market; Texas Children’s Hospital doctors who treated the famed David, “The Bubble Boy” and British butler to royalty Ivor Spencer, to name a few stand-outs.
Al Busse was the mastermind to bring a “live” celebrity radio talk show back to Houston in a night club setting. Pierre’s at Adam’s Mark became the home of “Maxine at the Mark” starring the illustrious Houston Chronicle columnist Maxine Mesinger. And who would be the producer of the show? Yours truly, at age 25. What a coup for a Houston PR account exec to have regular chats with Maxine several times a week, if not per day, to line up guests. What a tremendous experience!
Houston media relations was a lot different then with two daily newspapers, radio stations that each had their own news directors and a bevy of TV talk shows to pitch, including “Good Morning, Houston,” “Warner Roberts Show”, “This Day with Katherine,” and “Marijane Vandivier.” Working with Al Busse, I learned to dig deep in the client research process and develop story angles that are timely and informative, tools of the trade that are as critical (Al’s favorite word!) today as ever.
Al Busse, the quintessential communicator and PR pro, died last month, just a few days shy of his 83rd birthday. He was quite a force on the Houston public relations scene, serving as a mentor to me, and to many public relations pros who went on to start their own Houston public relations firms. I worked at A.R. Busse & Associates for five years before hanging up my own shingle. I’m forever grateful to him.
