The next generation of litigation has arrived — and one of New York City’s most iconic marketing strategies has a fresh face.
Three years after the shocking breakup of personal injury law firm Cellino & Barnes, famous for its “Don’t wait! Call 8!” jingle, its ubiquitous billboard campaign has undergone a major rebrand: personal injury attorney Timothy Cellino, the son of Ross Cellino, will now help advertise the family firm Cellino Law on billboards across the boroughs.
The since-split Buffalo-born business and its lawyers became local New York City celebrities after opening a city office in 2010 and investing millions into advertising — including omnipresent signage, painfully catchy TV and radio commercials, and the 1-800-888-8888 phone number. The extremely profitable firm then gained more fame when its attorneys began epically feuding, leading to an extensively covered divorce that led to dueling jingles being acquired by the new, competing firms — and even an off-Broadway play. Then, later in 2020, soon after the split, Steve Barnes was killed in an upstate plane crash.
Separate billboards soon began appearing for Cellino Law — featuring a solo Ross Cellino — and the Barnes Firm, featuring the face of Rich Barnes, the late Steve’s brother.
Now, Cellino Law’s billboards will once again show not one, but two smiling legal representatives adjacent to the ominous, all-caps question “Car crash?” and the new number, 800-555-5555. Ross Cellino appears on the left and, on the right, the 34-year-old son.
“Now that he wants me on these billboards, he’s like ‘time to get back in shape,’ so, I’m trying to lose a good 20-30 pounds so he’ll stop yelling at me,” Timothy told The Post of the pressures of being a billboard star alongside his…