Necrology

Roger George Pisani '57

Nov. 19, 1935-Sep. 22, 2020

Roger George Pisani ’57 traveled the globe captivated by the concept and practice of selling the private sector on contributing to the public good. “Practically, Hamilton gave me the first presentational and language skills to occasionally make the ‘sale,’” he wrote in a reunion yearbook. “Emotionally, Hamilton gave me the wisdom to grin at myself and move on when I do not.”

In addition to enjoying a long career in advertising, Pisani applied his marketing skills to “un-sell” illegal drugs, first with the Partnership for a Drug-Free America (PDFA) and later by taking on projects for the State Department to organize similar drug prevention education initiatives throughout South America.

Born in New York City on Nov. 19, 1935, he grew up in Manhasset, N.Y., a son of Rocco and Carmie Crisafulli Pisani. At Hamilton, he was active with the Spanish Club, on the staff of The Spectator, and as a member of the lacrosse team, which he co-captained his senior year. A member of Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity, Pisani focused his studies in English.

After graduation and a stint in the U.S. Army, he spent two-and-a-half years hitchhiking around the world. As fate would have it, he encountered a fellow hitchhiker named Julie. The two would begin their six-decade journey together at an immigration queue in Belgium.

Pisani embarked on a career in advertising at Procter & Gamble in Cincinnati upon his return to the U.S. From there it was back to Europe for 17 years rising through the ranks with Ted Bates Advertising with stops in Germany, Spain, France, and the United Kingdom. The family then returned once again to the U.S., settling in Old Greenwich, where Pisani served the firm as a board director responsible for multinational clients.

After Ted Bates was sold to Saatchi & Saatchi, Pisani joined the advertising firm of Foote, Cone & Belding Hispanic. He also began his involvement with PDFA, including service on the board for the nonprofit communications industry initiative to ­create and deliver drug prevention education messages. In his retirement, he spent 12 years taking on occasional projects for the State Department in Puerto Rico, ­Venezuela, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru to establish similar drug prevention programs.

An active supporter of efforts to preserve the Eastern Greenwich Civic Center for community use, he also served as a ­volunteer driver for the Call-A-Ride service, “a job he was particularly well-suited to as he was able to converse with almost everybody about anything. His unerring sense of direction, honed over many years of travel in complicated Old World cities, also didn’t hurt,” a published obituary noted.

He loved flying homemade kites, fishing, rollerblading for as long as it takes to smoke a cigar, yearly trips to Florida and Ireland, and Yankees baseball. An avid sailor, he volunteered with SoundWaters, an environmental organization dedicated to the restoration of Long Island, and was also a member of the South Cork Sailing Club in Ireland.

“Roger will be remembered for his honesty in all matters, and for his eagerness to connect with people across every conceivable spectrum. A prime example was his nephew Richard Onley, whose special needs were never a barrier for shared pints and laughter,” the obituary noted.

For his alma mater, Pisani served a term on the Alumni Council (1987-90) and shared his insights into the world of advertising with young alumni at a GOLD Group event.

Pisani died on Sept. 22, 2020, at the age of 84, at his home in Old Greenwich, Conn. He is survived by his wife, son Mark Pisani ’85, and a daughter.

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