Sig Rogich

Early life

Born in Iceland, his family moved outside of Las Vegas in 1954 while his father worked in a titanium metals factory. His father went on to be a foreman at a company that made neon casino signs and his sister was a dancer in Folies Bergere, a review that toured with Sammy Davis Jr. Rogich worked odd jobs from the time he was small, and as he got older toiled as a busboy at casinos in Las Vegas, and as a bellman at The Lake Tahoe Hotel. He graduated from Las Vegas High School and studied journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno.

Politics

Rogich is a longtime close friend and adviser to Paul Laxalt, former governor and United States Senator from Nevada. In 1984, Rogich was co-director of the "Tuesday Team," an advertising agency created specifically to produce campaign ads for the re-election campaign of President Reagan (a.k.a. Reagan-Bush '84).

In 1987 and 1988, Rogich worked as the Director of Advertising with Roger Ailes, Chief Media Advisor for the George H.W. Bush campaign. He directed, produced and scripted numerous television ads for the campaign (Bush-Quayle '88), as well as others for the Republican National Committee.

Other ads include the famous "Revolving Door" spot for Bush-Quayle '88 (shot at a Utah penitentiary), which highlighted the crime record of Democratic nominee, Gov. Michael Dukakis. Rogich is also credited with devising the Bush ads that prominently featured Michael Dukakis cruising in a tank at a General Dynamics plant in Michigan. George H. W. Bush said, "Roger Ailes and Sig Rogich get credit for that ad - it was the best of all."

Another Rogich spot, "I Remember You," aired by the RNC in July and August 1988, used the 1940s song of the same name as background to a video collage of the Carter years, depicting oil sheiks, gas lines and malaise. Dukakis' lead over Bush—17 points at the end of the Democratic Convention in July—evaporated by the end of the GOP Convention in August. The Wall Street Journal and New York Times gave credit in good part to the unanswered "I Remember You" commercial for eliminating much of that deficit.

Although he supervised the making of many of Mr. Bush's comparative commercials, Rogich insisted he preferred the softer advertisements, like the one of Mr. Bush's granddaughter running into his arms.

From 1989-1992, he worked in the West Wing of the White House as Assistant to the President for activities and initiatives for President George H.W. Bush. In 1991, at the request of the President, Rogich accompanied former Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev on his nationwide tour of the U.S.

In 1992, Rogich was named United States Ambassador to his native country of Iceland by President Bush, Sr. Within months, he gave up his appointive post to run the advertising campaign efforts in the latter months of Bush Sr.'s re-election campaign (Bush-Quayle '92) at the request of the President and his Chief of Staff, Jim Baker.

Rogich was National Finance Co-Chairman for The Republican Governors Association and has served in the same capacity in Nevada for President George W. Bush. He was a Bush Pioneer and an early supporter and senior advisor of longtime friend John McCain in the 2008 presidential contest.

Communications

Before his time in Washington, Rogich founded R&R Advertising in 1973 and built it into the largest advertising agency in Nevada. Through his creative endeavors with R&R, he has been integrally involved in the reinvention of Las Vegas' image for more than 25 years.

Following his time in Washington, Rogich returned to his native Nevada and founded The Rogich Communications Group in 1995. His company has worked with clients both nationally and globally and has been involved with most of the major gaming companies in Las Vegas. Ex-heavyweight champ Mike Tyson hired Rogich to burnish his image after biting Evander Holyfield’s ear in their infamous 1997 match. Rogich is a former Nevada Athletic Commission chairman and state boxing commissioner as well as the former CEO of World Series of Fighting (WSOF).

Community

In 2002, Sig Rogich Middle School was named after him to honor his contribution to education in Nevada and was built in Summerlin, Nevada. Additionally, Rogich has served as Chairman of the Board for the Public Education Foundation in Clark County since 1997.

Other involvements include: the Board of Directors for Opportunity Village, a non-profit organization in Las Vegas that serves people with intellectual disabilities; Keep Memory Alive, a philanthropy organization which raises awareness about brain disorders and Alzheimer's; Board of Trustees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum; Board of Governors for the Valley Health System in Las Vegas; Advisory board member for the Donald W. Reynolds School of Journalism, the Las Vegas Valley Water District and the Nevada Athletic Commission’s Committee on Boxer Health and Safety.

Personal

Rogich is a collector of first-edition books, papers and photographs involving his two heroes, Winston Churchill and Theodore Roosevelt. He plays guitar, golf, tennis and fly fishes.