David Himmel is a creative force who turns ideas into experiences, stories into brands, and audiences into believers. Equal parts writer, creative director, and strategist, he’s spent more than two decades helping organizations, publishers, and global brands connect with people through memorable storytelling.
His career has taken some fun turns—as an oldies radio DJ, Second City-trained actor, stand-up comic, team mascot, and editor-in-chief of a healthcare magazine—but every stop sharpened the same skill: finding compelling ways to engage an audience. Today, he applies that blend of creativity and strategy to live events, brand campaigns, editorial content, film, podcasts, and experiential marketing.
As a creative director, Himmel has led audience-centered experiences for organizations including DocuSign, Takeda, AbbVie, Yale University and more, transforming complex ideas into memorable moments. Whether developing keynote presentations, executive messaging, immersive experiences, or brand campaigns, he thrives at the intersection of strategy and imagination.
Himmel is the author of Hope Idiotic, The Last DJ: The Life and Times of a 20-Something Oldies Disc Jockey, and A Camp Story. He has written award-winning journalism, acclaimed stage plays and screenplays, branded content, and the long-running “Reasonable Hypochondria” column for Chicago Health magazine. His work has appeared in publications ranging from The Atlantic to POLITICO. He also co-created and starred in the Amazon Prime short film Enter the Mollusk and served as head writer for an award-winning comedy web series. He's moderated and been a guest speaker at healthcare industry conferences, interviewed public figures from politicians to celebrities, and once correctly predicted the Kardashian era in a 2007 magazine profile—a distinction he's still willing to apologize for. He is also co-editor of the literary magazine Literate Ape, co-host of the Literate ApeCast podcast, and an experienced book coach who has helped authors shape manuscripts from first draft to publication.
If there’s a common thread through Himmel’s career, it’s this: he helps people see familiar things in unexpected ways—and creates memorable moments that stay with them.
This is pretty much what David Himmel looks like.