Ad of the Day: Milano Cookies

The slogan in this new ad for Pepperidge Farm's Milano cookies is "My yummy secret," which is either the title of an article in Ladies Home Journal or a late-night movie on Cinemax. The ad itself, however, is surefooted. It's a good concept executed simply and well: Just before a big dinner party, a husband finds his wife chilling with that most pernicious relaxant, the cookie.

Most of the burden of proof here is on the actors, and they're both excellent, particularly her. The "Still getting ready!" brush-off is just the right balance of cute and smug, and it's the rare comedy spot that appears to be about a functional marriage, or perhaps merely a marriage between two high-functioning chocoholics. (Also, you'll recognize the husband—the actor Pete Grosz—from a million Sonic commercials. It may be in his contract that he has to be eating something on camera in every spot he does.)

And that brings me to a more important point raised by this ad: I know it looks funny on TV, but seriously, folks, if you're struggling with chocoholism, please seek help. You don't want to wake up one morning, your face smeared with brown crust, your hair a mess, next to someone with whom you have nothing in common except the bottomless lust for Hershey's Special Dark. Milano cookies look harmless on television, but do you think this couple will have a good time at the dinner party plowed out of their gourds on baked goods?

I think not.

Your local chapter of Chocoholics Anonymous can provide an array of helpful literature and a group of people with the same struggles who will help you find the root of your problem.

Y&R in New York has done an excellent job of illustrating this poor woman's plight. Her compassion for her husband drives them both to binge. Why does she have such a frantic attachment to the fruit of the cocoa bean? Was her mother, too, a chocoholic?

It's almost too sad to contemplate. But perhaps she, like you, can wean herself and her enabler of a husband on to something less sinister—like gin.

CREDITS

Client: Pepperidge Farm

Brand: Milano

Agency: Y&R, New York

Chief Creative Officer: Jim Elliott

Executive Creative Director: James Caporimo

Creative Directors: Eric Glickman, Stephen Hersh

Art Director: Matilda Kahl

Copywriter: Viktor Angwald

Director: David Shane

Agency Producer: Jennifer Weinberg

Production Company: O Positive

Producer: Ken Licata

Executive Producer: Ralph Laucella

Editing Company: Cosmo Street

Editor: Aaron Langly

Account Management: Carol Ventura

Strategic Planner: Tara Fray

Brand Managers: Suzanne Goodrich, Rayne Pacek