Meet Bill Perkins!

I’m with a friend at Chipotle, when a man that knows her introduces himself. Nice to meet you, Anthony; we trade cards. Naturally, I go to his website and I like his paintings. I decide to drop him an e-mail. This would actually become the wrong thing to do.

Hi Anthony, My name is John. I met you during lunch today at Chipotle with my friend Candice. I wanted to drop you a line to let you know that you really had some amazing work. Your identity is well done, although the execution of your website is painful. I’d really like to come see your work in person one day, maybe this weekend. For your reference, Candice’s website is being developed at *****.com. Talk to you later, John

That message, without my knowledge, goes to his “website designer,” who then responds!

On Nov 9, 2005, at 5:34 PM, William B Perkins wrote:

Get a life

Bill Perkins
Perkins · Bell
Brand Development · Corporate Imaging · Strategic Design

http://www.perkinsbell.com

wbp@perkinsbell.com
415.317.****

Excuse me?

On Nov 9, 2005, at 5:41 PM, j.verhine. wrote:

Does he know that you monitor his e-mail?
And what are you upset about? That the website
you made for him is a piece of shit? Get over yourself.
I don’t need to steal your client, jackass.
jv

I’ve seen worse websites. In fact, I thought the logo was well-done, in terms of the design elements.. just that the execution of the website was painful, usability wise. I would have liked to see every painting of his, but I gave up because it took too much time.

Apparently, Bill didn’t like the criticism, and has left me hostile voicemails from 3am until noon 2pm 3:03 today.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Email #1 Email #2

I did try to file a police report, but I can understand why I wouldn’t be taken seriously.

“Officer, I’m receiving death threats in my voicemail from a stranger because I said his website sucks.” I was assured that my life was NOT in danger.

This is racism at it’s finest.
I’m not even black.
But your client, Anthony, is.
Mr. Perkins, are you done yet?

16 Responses to “Meet Bill Perkins!”

Pete G. Says:
November 10th, 2005 at 2:49 pm
Holy shit John that’s crazy,.
mcn Says:
November 10th, 2005 at 3:05 pm
Could that site be any slower? The navigation is super lame, and takes away from the actual art. If i wasnt at work Id listen to the voicemails.

ps. Hampton Va rules.
Nic Says:
November 10th, 2005 at 3:14 pm
Wow. I am speechless. How does this ‘man’ have a business…I can’t believe he would take something so far. Have you thought of taking those mp3′s to the cops and having him arrested for the threats to kill you?
hey Says:
November 10th, 2005 at 3:16 pm
wow, this just made my week. Fucking great! thanks!
Joe Says:
November 10th, 2005 at 5:25 pm
I think you have enough ammunition for a lawsuit, but it might be more fun to just keep it going a little while longer.

at least for all of us tuning into this.

awesome.
SPMiller Says:
November 10th, 2005 at 5:31 pm
Wow, he sure seems to want to fuck you in the ass. And he’s very vocal about it, too. His insults are so unimaginative and repetetive that I almost wonder if you’re the victim of a dialer.
Kyle Says:
November 10th, 2005 at 5:47 pm
Wow, I cant imagine how his critiques went in art school if he did in-fact ever get any training in web design.
Jesse Says:
November 10th, 2005 at 7:48 pm
First. Sorry that this guy is a nut-job and is harrassing you. Second, his design skills are TERRIBLE. I’m a professional art director who works for a major design firm and his work is very amateur. It’s too bad that in addition to being a horrible designer, he’s crazy as well. Thanks for the laugh. Good luck.
Gareth Says:
November 10th, 2005 at 9:15 pm
That is hilarious.
That guy is suck a god damn baby.
We should all email him asking if there is something wrong with his site as it is hard to navagate & rather pointless decoration. Surely he can’t take on all us niggas.
Steve Says:
November 10th, 2005 at 10:47 pm
Ahhhahahahahaha that guys website really does smoke balls!

AND his corporate website is even worse aha haha ha rad dude, people who comit travesties of design need a good slating from time to time!
okaysamurai Says:
November 11th, 2005 at 10:57 am
Holy crap man.
xwithhonorx Says:
November 11th, 2005 at 12:57 pm
Wow dude.
Jimbo Says:
November 11th, 2005 at 3:38 pm
Dude that site fucking sucks huge monkey balls. Sry there Billy but J is right. That isn’t the worst site ever.. but it’s pretty darn close. Hello flash 5. Just another quick comment. Tell Wild Bill to take miles Davis quotes of his site… if you are going to be a fucking racist pig.
kraltran Says:
November 11th, 2005 at 6:11 pm
man that webpage IS excruciating, (nobody wants to wait for animations, thats why we have broadband)
cap'n crunch Says:
November 11th, 2005 at 9:23 pm
I dunno. The guy sounds like he’s drunk or high or something. I’m not kidding or trying to insult him, just stating a my opinion. I can’t make a logical connection between the shitty flash, the inane threats and the man described on his corporate site. He was the Executive Vice President of BBDO? I don’t know what to think.
Ted Bell Says:
November 12th, 2005 at 1:47 am
An open letter to the group:

I can’t begin to express my feelings at the turn of events over the previous 24 hours. It’s come as quite a shock to say the least.

Let’s start at the top shall we?
I make no apologies or excuses for my quality of web design. I’m learning a new technology and medium. Do I claim to know it all? Nope. Is this my first foray into learning and experimenting with flash? Yup. Does it show? Evidently, judging from the harsh criticisms I’m getting from my peers in this group. But is this really about the quality of my work? No. This is about integrity, and the actions of my former partner. You can be the best designer in the world, but at the end of they day you have to know how to treat your clients with respect, and even your peers – even if you disagree with them. I admit it. I designed these sites you are ripping apart . Yup. All mine.

Do I think the perkinsbell site and demo could be improved -and revamped – or the navigation system on anthony liggins.com could be improved. Of course, and actually they *were* in the process of undergoing a major overhaul until all this hit the fan. Too much gitch and glam. Too lean on functionality and usability. What can I say, after doing a bizillion sites of “CLICK HERE” you ache to push the envelope and do something different – right or wrong. I do appreciate the constructive criticism however. This is really more about forging good client/designer relationships, and your standing in the community at large. This is tough business, and your reputation as a business person is equally – if not more important – than your skills as an artist. That’s why I’m here to say I’m sorry my firm was involved and implicated in this fiasco. For what it’s worth, Bill and I have parted company as a result of this and I’ll be doing business under my old site. In time, I may earn your respect as a designer … but in the meantime, I hope you can at least earn my respect first as a person. So let’s set the record straight. I was the designer at perkinsbell, not Bill. If you have any *helpful* critiqes that will impove my skills, or recommend any resources that would better my understanding – please share them. Otherwise, ripping me a new one isn’t really going to help. Please don’t email me about Bill and this whole situation – it’s difficult enough as it is trying to get my bearings now that my dream of building a busness doing what I love has been obliterated overnight.

The best thing any of you can do, is let this situation cool down so I can do damage control with my clients. I fear, Bill’s path will eventually lead him to a place none of us really want to follow, and the best thing you could do is encourage him to get help as I have done.

Peace to you, and thanks for your time.
Ted Bell