Michael Ovitz may be ancient news, but the talent trade is far from dead on the PR front. Now there's new scoop about where companies like MCIWorldcom, Citibank, Mobil Oil and GM are going for artistic flair. Julia Malakoff, president of the Alexandria, Va., firm Envoy Creative Consultants, describes herself as a matchmaker who pairs stodgy corporations with the creative talent they need to make their communications strategies sing - or dance, or pose for the camera or whatever. Envoy manages a network of award-winning artists, including producers, photographers and the like, offering one-stop shopping for busy inhouse creative departments that need to outsource creative services. While creative brokerages are on every block in art meccas like New York, it's a relatively new concept in the Washington, D.C. area (the market Envoy serves).
(703/706-5729; http://www.envoycc.com)