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Thursday, January 28, 2010
Super Bowl Ad Review Live Blog Reminder
Even though CoverItLive.com crashed under the weight of all the live bloggers at the iPad introduction yesterday, I still have enough confidence in this product to give this a go for this year's Super Bowl Ad Review. We will be embedding videos, having polls, it will be like a party. If you like ads, THIS is the place to be on Super Bowl Sunday!
More importantly, this will be a test run for our live blogging of the finals of the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament later in February. Please visit our sister site, The Puzzle Brothers, for more information about that.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Super Bowl XLIV Ad Review Pre Game Show
USA TODAY has the complete list of spots.
It's two weeks before "A Madison Avenue Christmas" hits television screens, so it's high time we checked the broadcast log and see who's got what in Super Bowl XLIV, which hopefully will star the Jets and the Vikings.
Anheuser Busch In-Bev: Anheuser has bought five minutes of ad time, most of any advertiser as has been tradition. The majority of their avails should be going to Bud Light's humorous commercials, with Bud Light's new tagline "Here we go" at the center. According to Advertising Age, this may be an off year for Bud's Clydesdales, but Bud will have two spots, one a :60. Michelob Ultra (with Lance Armstrong) and Budweiser Select 55 (getting a :15) will be featured too. Wonder if Conan O'Brien's going to show up this year? Some of Bud's spots for this year have already been posted to their Facebook page.
Audi: A :30, 4Q for the A3 TDI will feature Cheap Trick.
Boost Mobile: One :30 will reunite many of DA BEARRRSSSSSS who participated in their 1985 "Super Bowl Shuffle" ad. NOTE TO CRAFT SERVICES: I don't see The Fridge among the participants. Bring a quarter of the food you were originally planning.
Bridgestone: Two :30's (1Q and 3Q) and halftime name sponsorship of The Who's performance. This company needs to be watched closely as over the last two years, two of their spots were red-flagged for "Do Not Attempt". To be fair, though, they did do that creative "Mr. Potato Head" ad last year. So they could run either way.
Cars.com: One :60, 1H.
Careerbuilder: One viral :30, 2Q. If you remember, a consumer-created ad for Doritos topped last year's USA Today Ad-Meter and won a million dollars for its creators. One ad up for consideration takes "Casual Friday" to a new and frightening extreme.
Chrysler: One :60 for Dodge that is said to present "a message of irreverence". What? Something FUNNY from a Detroit automaker? Whatever.
Coca-Cola: Two :60's, 1Q and 3Q. One of the spots will feature characters from "The Simpsons"; quite odd that this occurs in a year where the Super Bowl ISN'T on Fox.
Denny's: One spot which will highlight a special promotion at their restaurants. Chickens watching television.
Diamond Foods: Creative for their 4Q :30 has changed - it is now going to be a dual-purpose ad with both Pop Secret and Emerald Nuts, the latter of which has been in the Super Bowl before with its Robert Goulet ad.
Dockers: One 2Q :30 for khaki pants. For all you Khaki Hunters out there. (Dave's really reaching with a "Porky's" reference.) The ad will feature mostly men wearing no pants, singing about wearing no pants.
Dorito's: 3 30's, again consumer-created. That worked so well for them last year.
Dr Pepper: One 2Q :30 with Gene Simmons (the alive rocker, not the now-dead actress) promoting their super-delicious, gotta-drink-em Cherry flavor soft drinks. (You may leave the cases of Diet Cherry Dr Pepper on my doorstep. Directions to follow.)
E-Trade: One :30. Creative has traditionally featured the talking baby.
Electronic Arts: At least one spot. CBS has rejected the creative for their spot for the "Dante's Inferno" game.
Focus on the Family: One spot from the Christian group featuring Tim Tebow. Women's groups are protesting the spot's inclusion as the ad is said to be pro-life.
Godaddy: Two 30's (1Q and 4Q) again with spokesbabe Danica Patrick. As is our custom, we will evaluate their "unrated" (and generally unexciting) online content as well.
HomeAway: One :30 which will feature Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo as the Griswolds from the "Vacation" movies.
Honda: One :30 2H featuring the Accord Crosstour. The ad will feature an animated squirrel and the tune "Funky Stuff".
Hyundai: One 2Q :30 and one 3Q :30. One of their ads will look 10 years into the future, when Brett Favre is still winning football games at the age of 50.
Intel: One 4Q :30 with employees singing that damn annoying jingle.
Kia: One 3Q :30 for the American-made Sorento crossover which will feature a character from "Yo Gabba Gabba". Thanks for telling me, I wouldn't have known.
KGB: One 3Q :30 which will be in the vein of their past ads and featuring two of the Baldwin Brothers - but not Alec, who was pushing Hulu last year.
Mars: Snickers will have one :30 spot. Three years ago, the company aired a spot that featured two men sharing a Snickers bar simultaneously, ending in a kiss to which both men reacted with digust, triggering a backlash in the gay community. For some reason, we didn't review that spot that year. Now, we're so sophist that NOTHING ESCAPES OUR NOTICE. (UPDATE: The spot has Betty White in it. Sold.)
Monster: Last year's spot was a contest for Director of Fandemonium, sort of a do-nothing position with the NFL. Much like what Roger Goodell does. This year's spot will be different because Harry Kalas is not available to do the narration this year. We'll miss you, Harry. (UPDATE: Get ready for the violin-playing beaver.)
Motorola: One ad, possibly for the Verizon Wireless "Droid".
NFL: Two in house ads. We usually do not rate these.
Papa John's Pizza: The company is using a quarterback sneak to get into the Bowl by buying the ad time from the NFL rather than CBS. It will be a :30 for their present "Papa's In The House" campaign. The ad will feature PJ's founder John Schnatter delivering pizzas at a football game. The spot will be filmed at the Pro Bowl on February 1.
Pepsi: For the first time in 23 years, Pepsi is not advertising in The Bowl.
Qualcomm's FloTV: I think it's a TV channel that shows nothing but Polly Holliday saying "Kiss My Grits!" Wait, what? It's "personal television". (Sort of like MyNetwork TV.) Two :30's, one 1Q and other TBA. One has Jim Nantz and the other has will.i.am redoing "My Generation".
Teleflora: Will be back for its second Supes appearance. This year the nasty talking weeds will be voiced by Mr. Warmth himself, Don Rickles.
TRU TV: One 2Q :30 promoting its "Full Contact" reality show, behind the scenes of the NFL.
US Census Bureau: One spot. This is 2010, after all. Be counted! (The spot is based on a concept by Christopher Guest.)
Unilever: One ad introducing Dove for Men. NOTE: It's soap. Plain and simple. Dove Soap. If you want men to be comfortable in their own skin, as your ad will say, at least speak their language. "Honey, where's the soap?" "On the shower floor, Bubba."
Universal: One spot. "Wolfman"? "Robin Hood"? "Despicable Me"? (And remember, movie ads are never rated.)
Viacom/Paramount: Three 1H ads for ""Shutter Island", "Iron Man 2" and "The Last Airbender".
Volkswagen: Not seen since Super Bowl XXXVI or so, VW is back a 3Q :30 that will star Tracy Morgan.
Walt Disney Pictures: One ad, possibly for the "Alice in Wonderland" remake. Eat me.
Yum/Taco Bell: One spot. I don't expect the creative to be anything more than what they're usually capable of.
As we march toward February 7, keep watching this post for more updates.
It's two weeks before "A Madison Avenue Christmas" hits television screens, so it's high time we checked the broadcast log and see who's got what in Super Bowl XLIV, which hopefully will star the Jets and the Vikings.
Anheuser Busch In-Bev: Anheuser has bought five minutes of ad time, most of any advertiser as has been tradition. The majority of their avails should be going to Bud Light's humorous commercials, with Bud Light's new tagline "Here we go" at the center. According to Advertising Age, this may be an off year for Bud's Clydesdales, but Bud will have two spots, one a :60. Michelob Ultra (with Lance Armstrong) and Budweiser Select 55 (getting a :15) will be featured too. Wonder if Conan O'Brien's going to show up this year? Some of Bud's spots for this year have already been posted to their Facebook page.
Audi: A :30, 4Q for the A3 TDI will feature Cheap Trick.
Boost Mobile: One :30 will reunite many of DA BEARRRSSSSSS who participated in their 1985 "Super Bowl Shuffle" ad. NOTE TO CRAFT SERVICES: I don't see The Fridge among the participants. Bring a quarter of the food you were originally planning.
Bridgestone: Two :30's (1Q and 3Q) and halftime name sponsorship of The Who's performance. This company needs to be watched closely as over the last two years, two of their spots were red-flagged for "Do Not Attempt". To be fair, though, they did do that creative "Mr. Potato Head" ad last year. So they could run either way.
Cars.com: One :60, 1H.
Careerbuilder: One viral :30, 2Q. If you remember, a consumer-created ad for Doritos topped last year's USA Today Ad-Meter and won a million dollars for its creators. One ad up for consideration takes "Casual Friday" to a new and frightening extreme.
Chrysler: One :60 for Dodge that is said to present "a message of irreverence". What? Something FUNNY from a Detroit automaker? Whatever.
Coca-Cola: Two :60's, 1Q and 3Q. One of the spots will feature characters from "The Simpsons"; quite odd that this occurs in a year where the Super Bowl ISN'T on Fox.
Denny's: One spot which will highlight a special promotion at their restaurants. Chickens watching television.
Diamond Foods: Creative for their 4Q :30 has changed - it is now going to be a dual-purpose ad with both Pop Secret and Emerald Nuts, the latter of which has been in the Super Bowl before with its Robert Goulet ad.
Dockers: One 2Q :30 for khaki pants. For all you Khaki Hunters out there. (Dave's really reaching with a "Porky's" reference.) The ad will feature mostly men wearing no pants, singing about wearing no pants.
Dorito's: 3 30's, again consumer-created. That worked so well for them last year.
Dr Pepper: One 2Q :30 with Gene Simmons (the alive rocker, not the now-dead actress) promoting their super-delicious, gotta-drink-em Cherry flavor soft drinks. (You may leave the cases of Diet Cherry Dr Pepper on my doorstep. Directions to follow.)
E-Trade: One :30. Creative has traditionally featured the talking baby.
Electronic Arts: At least one spot. CBS has rejected the creative for their spot for the "Dante's Inferno" game.
Focus on the Family: One spot from the Christian group featuring Tim Tebow. Women's groups are protesting the spot's inclusion as the ad is said to be pro-life.
Godaddy: Two 30's (1Q and 4Q) again with spokesbabe Danica Patrick. As is our custom, we will evaluate their "unrated" (and generally unexciting) online content as well.
HomeAway: One :30 which will feature Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo as the Griswolds from the "Vacation" movies.
Honda: One :30 2H featuring the Accord Crosstour. The ad will feature an animated squirrel and the tune "Funky Stuff".
Hyundai: One 2Q :30 and one 3Q :30. One of their ads will look 10 years into the future, when Brett Favre is still winning football games at the age of 50.
Intel: One 4Q :30 with employees singing that damn annoying jingle.
Kia: One 3Q :30 for the American-made Sorento crossover which will feature a character from "Yo Gabba Gabba". Thanks for telling me, I wouldn't have known.
KGB: One 3Q :30 which will be in the vein of their past ads and featuring two of the Baldwin Brothers - but not Alec, who was pushing Hulu last year.
Mars: Snickers will have one :30 spot. Three years ago, the company aired a spot that featured two men sharing a Snickers bar simultaneously, ending in a kiss to which both men reacted with digust, triggering a backlash in the gay community. For some reason, we didn't review that spot that year. Now, we're so sophist that NOTHING ESCAPES OUR NOTICE. (UPDATE: The spot has Betty White in it. Sold.)
Monster: Last year's spot was a contest for Director of Fandemonium, sort of a do-nothing position with the NFL. Much like what Roger Goodell does. This year's spot will be different because Harry Kalas is not available to do the narration this year. We'll miss you, Harry. (UPDATE: Get ready for the violin-playing beaver.)
Motorola: One ad, possibly for the Verizon Wireless "Droid".
NFL: Two in house ads. We usually do not rate these.
Papa John's Pizza: The company is using a quarterback sneak to get into the Bowl by buying the ad time from the NFL rather than CBS. It will be a :30 for their present "Papa's In The House" campaign. The ad will feature PJ's founder John Schnatter delivering pizzas at a football game. The spot will be filmed at the Pro Bowl on February 1.
Pepsi: For the first time in 23 years, Pepsi is not advertising in The Bowl.
Qualcomm's FloTV: I think it's a TV channel that shows nothing but Polly Holliday saying "Kiss My Grits!" Wait, what? It's "personal television". (Sort of like MyNetwork TV.) Two :30's, one 1Q and other TBA. One has Jim Nantz and the other has will.i.am redoing "My Generation".
Teleflora: Will be back for its second Supes appearance. This year the nasty talking weeds will be voiced by Mr. Warmth himself, Don Rickles.
TRU TV: One 2Q :30 promoting its "Full Contact" reality show, behind the scenes of the NFL.
US Census Bureau: One spot. This is 2010, after all. Be counted! (The spot is based on a concept by Christopher Guest.)
Unilever: One ad introducing Dove for Men. NOTE: It's soap. Plain and simple. Dove Soap. If you want men to be comfortable in their own skin, as your ad will say, at least speak their language. "Honey, where's the soap?" "On the shower floor, Bubba."
Universal: One spot. "Wolfman"? "Robin Hood"? "Despicable Me"? (And remember, movie ads are never rated.)
Viacom/Paramount: Three 1H ads for ""Shutter Island", "Iron Man 2" and "The Last Airbender".
Volkswagen: Not seen since Super Bowl XXXVI or so, VW is back a 3Q :30 that will star Tracy Morgan.
Walt Disney Pictures: One ad, possibly for the "Alice in Wonderland" remake. Eat me.
Yum/Taco Bell: One spot. I don't expect the creative to be anything more than what they're usually capable of.
As we march toward February 7, keep watching this post for more updates.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Gus Arnheim Time!
I like the young lady singing with the Gus Arnheim orchestra in this 1937 Max Fleischer "Screen Song" cartoon, "Whispers in the Dark". Whatever happened to June Robbins, apart from singing with Eddy Duchin?
It's been pointed out that Stan Kenton is playing piano.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Yum! Peanut Butter
How about some peanut butter for a bedtime snack tonight? That was the conceit of this live commercial from a broadcast of the NBC game show "Say When!", hosted by Art James. However, that last little bit of the peanut butter at the bottom of the jar can come out a whole lot easier IF YOU BREAK THE JAR.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
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