Hasta La Creative!

Can you get rich working in advertising? The answer is yes, if you start a company and someday sell it for millions. Of course, there is another answer—ascend to the top of a big time holding company and make millions each and every year.

According to Media Daily News, Michael J. Roth, Interpublic’s chairman of the board and CEO, received $1.1 million in base salary for 2007, only about a 3% raise from 2006. The company reported his total compensation–including stock awards, options and incentives–at $8.9 million, about a 16% increase over 2006. But an Associated Press calculation from the filing determined that Roth actually took in $11.1 million during the year–a 28% increase from 2006.

John J. Dooner Jr.–chairman and CEO of McCann WorldGroup, which includes Universal McCann–had a higher base salary than Roth at $1.3 million, also about a 3% raise from 2006. His total compensation, according to the filing, was $5.9 million–about 9% over 2006.