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The Week on AdFreak: Feb. 16-23, 2012 Twitter-born breakfast cereal, every iPhone ad ever, and Kenny Powers' final lap for K-Swiss

The 10 most-read AdFreak posts from the past week:
1. Apple's iPhone TV Ads: The Complete Campaign
2. Kenny Powers Unveils the Fastest Shoe You've Ever Seen
3. Kellogg Creates Totes Amazeballs Cereal in Response to a Tweet
4. Girls' Education Campaign Runs Street Ad Only Women Can See
5. Ad for Whitney Houston's House: Where She Fell From Grace!
6. Ford Sneaks a Fake Swimsuit Model Into 'Sports Illustrated'
7. Liquid-Plumr Double Impact Has Twice the Awkward Innuendo
8. Go Vegan and Knock Your Girlfriend Around a Bit, Says PETA
9. 10 Great Ads That Used to Be Movies
10. Obsessed With Advertising? This Is the Award Show for You

February 25 2012

'Big Fat Gypsy Weddings' Slammed for 'Bigger. Fatter. Gypsier' Ads But U.K. show's campaign escapes censure

Britain's Advertising Standards Authority, which has killed advertisements based on single complaints in the past, gave a pass to Channel 4's "Bigger Fatter Gypsier" campaign for the TV program Big Fat Gypsy Weddings, despite receiving 316 complaints about how racist it is. The ad passed inspection on a technicality, with the ASA saying it "reflected the tone and content" of the show, while conceding that it "might not be to everyone's taste." How noble of them. I'm sure the Traveller and Romany communities will take solace in the fact that the racist ad they hate isn't misrepresenting the racist show they also hate. It's worth noting that Honda, one of the show's sponsors, has already apologized for the ad.

February 24 2012

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VeryFunnyAds.com: Nestea Suggests Dating the Elderly Grandma turns out to be loads of fun

The elderly might not be your first choice when it comes to people you'd want to date. But why close yourself off? They need some lovin', too. This 2011 Nestea spot from Wieden + Kennedy London, among the ads featured this week by our friends at TBS over at VeryFunnyAds.com, starts off like a beer commercial, with dudes on the beach spinning a bottle to determine which hot little number they're going to hit on. Trouble is, the bottle stops on an octogenarian. But she's ready for some action, and it turns out not to be so bad—they enjoy a fun-filled day of sightseeing, riding scooters, snorkeling and diving off cliffs. (Imagine what they'll do after dark.) A fun concept, nicely executed. Check out the spot, and lots of others, at VeryFunnyAds.com.

February 24 2012

JCPenney Rolling Out the Red Carpet for Ellen DeGeneres After standing by her, the retailer preps raft of Oscars spots

Say it loud and proud, JCPenney: Change, it is a-comin'! The retailer won a lot of fans lately by sticking up for its new spokeswoman, Ellen DeGeneres, in the face of a ridiculously misguided protest from the ultra-conservative One Million Moms. Now, the chain is launching its first ads with the talk-show maven (see the teaser below), focusing on its new pricing strategy. This spot will air during the pre-show of Sunday's Oscar telecast on ABC. Four more Ellen-centric commercials will debut during the award show proper. The theme of the campaign, from Brand Advisors, is the transformation taking place in JCPenney's dressing room, as a gladiator magically becomes a be-suited businessman and a cowgirl (Ellen) becomes a be-suited brand ambassador. (No, those pants don't make your butt look fat.) The bigger story is the change in the way people may see this marketer going forward because of the stand-up way it handled a potential PR fiasco. Contemporary instead of musty, forward thinking instead of staid. That's huge. Good on 'em.

February 24 2012

10 Great Ads That Used to Be Movies To celebrate Oscars weekend, grab some popcorn and enjoy these commercial homages to Hollywood films

Everyone loves a good movie reference, and advertising is full of them. Witness the success, most recently, of Honda's tribute to Ferris Bueller's Day Off on the Super Bowl. There are many others, too. To celebrate this Sunday's Academy Awards, check out some of our favorite commercial homages to Hollywood movies below, from The Godfather to Wayne's World.

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February 24 2012

Obsessed With Advertising? This Is the Award Show for You Dallas Addys poke fun at the business

Obsessions. We all have them. I'd like to think I'm obsessed with creating great content, but my AdFreak posts prove otherwise. Cue these Addy Awards promos for AAF Dallas by TM Advertising—a series of silly, inspired meditations on the obsessive nature of the agency biz. Highlights include "The Tantrum," with a youthful creative (in jeans and T-shirt, of course) having a full-throated, carpet-kicking freakout over a client's proposed changes to his campaign; and "Baby Casting," an adoption-bureau scenario where an agency staffer invokes industry standards to choose a son or daughter ("This one has broad market appeal, but that outie belly button is just gross"). With more than 130,000 overall YouTube views so far ("Tantrum" has 80,000), the work is eclipsing its original mandate (the show was held on Feb. 9) and gaining broader appeal. Garnering the most attention from ad blogs is "The Mural." The edgiest of the lot, it shows adman daddy savaging his infant son's magic-marker-on-a-wall artistry: "Your kerning is way off—it's too loose, buddy. You ever heard of f*cking ligature? … You keep this up, you're gonna be a copywriter." Hey, it beats account planning any day! More spots after the jump.

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February 24 2012

Apple's iPhone TV Ads: The Complete Campaign The story behind all 84 TBWA spots so far, beginning with the first teaser

Apple's "Get a Mac" campaign for the Macintosh computer, starring Justin Long and John Hodgman, set the bar for creativity in tech advertising. Created by TBWA\Media Arts Lab, it was simply the best TV ad campaign of the last decade, and the best advertising comedy series ever. But in its wake, client and agency have quietly built up a remarkable campaign for the iPhone, now the company's signature product. Without much fanfare, the iPhone campaign has surpassed its predecessor in terms of volume of work—"Get a Mac" lasted for 66 spots over four years (watch them all here), wrapping up its run in October 2009; the iPhone campaign is now entering its sixth year, and is up to 84 spots and counting. "Get a Mac" was beloved for its characters and wry humor. And while the iPhone work may lack that same level of charm—it is, at its heart, merely a series of product demonstrations—it is just as exquisitely produced and in many ways more varied. It's hard to think of a product that's had a greater impact on the culture in the past five years than the iPhone. Thanks to TBWA, it's gotten remarkable advertising to match. Below, check out all 84 spots that have aired so far, beginning with the first teaser up through today.

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February 23 2012

Kenny Powers Unveils the Fastest Shoe You've Ever Seen: K-Swiss Blades Made from cheetahs, missiles and Bruce Lee

Kenny Powers, the MFCEO of K-Swiss, does his best foul-mouthed Steve Jobs impression—complete with the jeans-and-black-turtleneck look—in this hilarious new video from 72andSunny for K-Swiss Blades, the "fastest shoe you've ever seen." The Eastbound & Down star explains that lots of unusual elements went into development of the Blades—including cheetahs, ballistic missiles and Bruce Lee. Kenny throws a couple dozen F-bombs into his presentation, so throw on some headphones if you're at work. See the previous videos from the series after the jump.

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February 23 2012

Kate Upton Sinks Her Teeth Into a Hardee's-Carl's Jr. Commercial A beefy behind-the-scenes look

"My spice I bring to it is lingerie." Thus spake Sports Illustrated swimsuit-issue cover model Kate Upton of her role in a Carl's Jr./Hardee's commercial breaking on Sunday. Truer words were never spoken, albeit in somewhat tortured English. I'd quote Kate some more from the spot's behind-the-scenes teaser clip below, but, well, why bother? As for the ad itself, we just get glimpses. Boobs, burgers, buns (both kinds), classic cars, Kate's lascivious lacquered lips stretched wide as a whale's. In other words, exactly what you'd expect. 72andSunny creative chief Glenn Cole talks about "giving young, hungry guys what they want." You go, Glenn. The commercial touts the chain's Southwest Patty Melt. That would make a great porn-star name. Frisco Thickburger, also on the chain's menu, is even better.

February 23 2012

Liquid-Plumr Double Impact Has Twice the Uncomfortable Innuendo Woman gets 'pipe flushed' by a pair of plumbers

Liquid-Plumr has a product called Double Impact. So, really, what choice did DDB in San Francisco have but to create the innuendo-stuffed spot below with a housewife who daydreams about two plumbers double-teaming her clog by "snaking her drain" and "flushing her pipe." I suppose you have to hand it to the Clorox brand—they just went for it. The view count is climbing toward 1 million, though the brand might be cringing at the comments that are piling up on YouTube. ("It's funny because it's like she was going to get double penetrated," observes one visitor. And that's one of the tamer responses.) But really, what did they expect?

February 22 2012

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AdFreak is your daily digest of the best and worst of creativity in advertising, media, marketing and design. Follow us as we celebrate (and skewer) the latest, greatest, quirkiest and freakiest commercials, promos, trailers, posters, billboards, logos and package designs around. Edited by Adweek's Tim Nudd. Updated every weekday, with a weekly recap on Saturdays.

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