TLM, Ka-chew! Evict Mr. and Mrs. Mucus

LOS ANGELES A new TV and print campaign by Interpublic Group's Torre Lazur McCann on behalf of Mucinex brand expectorant medication breaks this week, according to a representative.

A 30-second ad, "Married to Mucus," features nasal-passage nemesis Mr. Mucus, the rep said. The animated character was introduced at the onset of last year's cold and flu season to showcase the product's power over congestion-causing blockage.

In the sequel—again, a joint creative effort between the Parsippany, N.J.-based agency and Hollywood, Calif., production studio ka-chew!—Mr. Mucus and his wedding dress-clad bride arrive in their new congested-lung residence, ready to start a family and live happily ever after. Their "home," however, is inside a live-action man's lungs. In preparing for his own wedding ceremony, he takes a Mucinex pill and sends the formerly blissful mucus tenants packing.

The commercial begins running this week on network TV shows including ABC's Primetime, 20/20 and Desperate Housewives, the rep said. It is also scheduled to play on Fox telecasts of the World Series.

"If the World Series is competitive and goes to a sixth game [on Saturday], Mr. and Mrs. Mucus will be the stars of the show," he said.

A 15-second version of the spot will launch in mid-November. Print executions appear nationally in November publications including People, Time, Newsweek and Real Simple.

Mucinex, produced and distributed by Adam's Respiratory Therapeutics of Chester, N.J., spent $16 million on advertising in 2004, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus. The company spent $20 million from January-August this year. A specific campaign budget was not available.