Does the milkaholic baby named Lindsay in the latest E*TRADE commercial remind you of a certain celebrity? Lindsay Lohan says it’s supposed to be her and is a jab at her own milkaholism, and she’s suing the company for $100 million and seeking an injunction to get it off the air. I agree that the baby playing the milkaholic doesn’t give a very good performance, but I always assumed it was supposed to be Lindsey Buckingham. [More]
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Man Arrested For Hanging Eight-Story Ad, Held On $1-Million Bail
By 3.3.10
Los Angeles has had a problem with illegal billboards for a while, but apparently it’s taking a ban on one type of display advertising seriously. “Supergraphics” are giant outdoor ads that stretch across the sides of buildings and are so big they can be seen from the International Space Station. Last month, the city filed a lawsuit involving several supergraphics already on display. A few days later a businessman hung an eight-story tall one on a building on Hollywood Boulevard, in the line of sight of cameras shooting red carpet coverage for the Oscars. He was arrested and held on a $1,000,000 bail. [More]
Colorado Springs Billboard Company Says "No Puppet Boobs Allowed"
By 2.25.10
Lucy the Slut is one of the puppets in the musical “Avenue Q,” and like the other puppet characters she’s frequently displayed in their advertising. But not in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where a billboard company refused to put up ads showing Lucy’s cleavage. An exec for the billboard company told the local paper, “If I have to explain it to my 4-year-old or my grandmother, we don’t put it up.” Hey four-year-old, it’s a puppet. Hey grandma, those are boobs. Problem solved. [More]
Who Is The Weird-Looking Guy In This Ad?
By 2.20.10
If you’ve spent enough time on the Internet without good ad-blocking software, you’ve probably seen the odd-looking fellow on the left. He’s clearly the product of either a very polluted gene pool or a graphic designer with an odd imagination. But why has he become a mascot for mortgage refinancing and other financial products? MainStreet’s Michael Schreiber decided to find out. [More]
Quick, Someone Develop Adblock For Online TV Commercials
By 2.8.10
The ratings company Nielsen–the company you can blame for bad stunt-casting and stupid plot devices during sweeps week–is going to start rolling in data from online viewings of commercials this fall, which means networks will start using online viewing stats to help sell ads this time next year. What this means: if a network uses the new Nielsen rating system, “shows seen online will have to have the same group of commercials that run on TV,” reports AdAge. [More]
12 Ads That Didn't Make It To The Super Bowl
By 2.3.10
If you can’t actually manage to get an ad placed during the Super Bowl, the next best thing is to get it rejected by the network so you can make a big deal about it online. The Daily Beast has put together a list of 12 ads that were rejected for a variety of reasons. Well, actually in most cases it comes down to gay stuff, cussing, or sex. One thing you’ll notice, though, is that most of the rejected spots aren’t very well-made to begin with–I’d be happy if they were banned just for that. [More]
Pumpkinhead New Raisin Bran Crunch Spokesthing?
By 1.13.10
When I first watched Pumpkinhead–an Alien-style monster who’s rampaged through a few B-level horror movies–go on and on about finding inner peace and online dating, I thought of The Office. Now that I think about it, it’s probably closer in style to Aardman’s Creature Comfort animations. Either way, if you like horror movies, breakfast cereal, British accents, and very silly advertising, you’ll appreciate this clip. [More]
Sex In A Commercial Is The Equivalent Of A Gambler's Tell
By 12.28.09
Over at Ditchwalk today, Mark Barrett points out that sex in mainstream advertising is a tell. There are two things it immediately communicates: that the product is “indistinguishable from its competition,” and that it is generic. You don’t have to stop appreciating libido-stirring images the next time a sexy ad airs (not that you probably could, anyway). But if you keep Barrett’s advice in mind, you may start noticing that some companies are telling you more about their product than they probably mean to. [More]
NYC Anti-Soda Commercial Shows Man Drinking Tall Glass Of Fat
By 12.15.09
No. You do not want to watch this video. Just promise the New York City Department of Health people that you won’t drink sugary soda so much. Then we’ll all be healthier, happier people, and nobody has to watch this video. (Video is embedded below.) [More]
10 Great Commercials Of 2009
By 12.9.09
Time just published its “Top 10 Any Category We Can Think Of” issue, and buried in there is a group of 10 great ads from the past year. Well, maybe not “great”–I would rather shove Norplant in my eyes than watch Evian’s rollerskating babies spot, but some of the other ones are pretty good. There’s also some great music in the list, including “Rapper’s Delight,” a Radiohead track, Bach, and Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf. [More]
Domino's Pulls Ads From 'Jersey Shore' Show
By 12.7.09
MTV’s gross new reality show, Jersey Shore, goes too far into offensive stereotype land as far as Domino’s Pizza is concerned. After seeing the first episode last week, the pizza chain asked MTV to stop airing its ads during the show, apparently before anyone starts complaining. But really, there’s no way you can eat Domino’s and maintain abs so ripped that you call them “The Situation,” so maybe it’s for the best. [More]
AT&T Sends Monster After Verizon Subscribers In Threatening New Ad
By 12.7.09
Happy Halloween from AT&T! The maligned cellular carrier’s latest ad doesn’t seem to be as concerned with getting Verizon to stop picking on it. Instead, a headless Luke Wilson staggers around the screen, roaring silently and searching for someone to kill. Stick to AT&T or who knows what might happen to you. [More]
Robots Play Trick On McDonald's Advertisement
By 11.27.09
This is what happens when you let robots select up-and-coming stories for your banner ad on Digg. Although now that I think about it, I’m not sure I’d ever let a Digg story be assigned to my brand, automatically or otherwise, without looking at it first. (Thanks to Jeff!) [More]
Google Bans Scammy Advertisers From Network
By 11.22.09
At last, someone has taken a stand against the tooth whitener ad menace. It’s no tiny or obscure ad network: it’s Google. The company has decided to live up to its “don’t be evil” motto and ban advertisers who place ads that lead to sites peddling products like scammy free trials, get-rich-quick schemes, and malware. Previously, they would ban individual ads, but not advertisers. This was akin to playing a massive game of whack-a-mole with thousands of identical “local moms” who had identified the secret to weight loss. Or tooth whitening. Or stretch marks. Or…
UPDATED: Sony Was Not Responsible For Chilean Ad With Nazi Imagery
By 9.30.09
Copyranter spotted this insensitive — to put it mildly — Chilean PS3 Ad that shows a gamer giving a blood transfusion to German field marshal Erwin Rommel while laying in beds whose headboards are adorned with swastikas.
