New Campaigns

Eastern Client: Smith Corona Corp., Cortland, N.Y. Agency: Partners & Shevack, New York Copywriter: Eric Weisberg Art Director: Scott Thomas Producer: Alyson Kurnit Director: Robert Lieberman Photographer: David Leach Smith Corona, best known for making typewriters, emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February, hired Partners & Shevack in April (after a review), and now has an $8-10 million corporate image campaign from that shop. A TV spot targeting the small/home office market shows a man cleaning out his desk and leaving his company to enjoy a fuller life (with SC's line of fax machines, telephone headsets, etc.) working from home. "You get two personal days, six holidays, 10 vacation days, but only one life," the voiceover says. The tag: "The way you want to work." The spot broke last week on cable channels. Four print ads, which broke in Forbes, Fortune and Newsweek, highlight other joys of working from home, such as closeness to family. SC once used the theme, "Tools for thought." The client's previous shop, Rosenfeld, Sirowitz, Humphrey & Strauss, New York, disbanded in 1995. SC's competitors include Panasonic and Brother Office Equipment. --Rob Lenihan Client: Peco Energy Co., Philadelphia Agency: Tierney & Partners, Philadelphia Chief Creative Officer/Copywriter: Rich Russo Art Director: Sig Gross Director: Ron Travisano David Leisure, the actor who portrayed the lying Joe Isuzu in a campaign for Isuzu Motors in the 1980s, is back in three ads from Tierney & Partners. This time, Leisure takes a hand in a dispute between Pennsylvania utility Peco Energy and Houston-based Enron Corp., which wants to enter the Pennsylvania market. In three anti-Enron spots, Leisure becomes the spokesman for an unnamed out-of-state energy company. "So you've done commercials before?" one of two stereotypical Texas good ol' boys asks Leisure in the first spot. "A few," he replies, smiling into the camera. After a brief audition, the Texans hire him and whoop it up. Says one: "That dog can hunt!" The tag: "Support the electric competition plan that was designed by Pennsylvanians for the good of Pennsylvanians." Chief creative officer Rich Russo, who worked on the Isuzu campaign for the former Della Femina McNamee in Los Angeles, explained: "Why not bring back the most famous liar in ad history, but make him a retired liar trying out for a different job?" The campaign is backed by $1-2 million. --Michael McCarthy Client: Cosmair, New York Agency: Publicis/Bloom, New York Creative Director: Tony DeGregorio Art Director: Josiane Ohana Copywriter: Jane Gallagher Producer: Barbara Gans Russo Director: Mathew Rolston Claudia Schiffer is helping L'Orƒal Plƒnitude reach women in their 20s with the launch of Futur-e, a new skin care product. The 27-year-old model tells viewers in a 30-second TV spot that it is "your skin's future take control" by using the vitamin E-enhanced moisturizer. The ad is shot in tones of amber (the color of vitamin E) and animation demonstrates that the product is made from pure vitamin E, not derivatives. The commercial retains the existing L'Orƒal tag, "Because you're worth it." The spot talks "simply and intelligently to younger women about how to take care of their skin," said a client representative. Schiffer has also touted BodyVive, a L'Orƒal shampoo and conditioner line in ads by McCann-Erickson. The next ad in the Futur-e campaign will star Vanessa Williams. L'Orƒal, the No. 2 skin care product marketer, behind Oil of Olay, backed the Plƒnitude line with $22 million in ad spending in 1996, according to Competitive Media Reporting. --Teresa Andreoli

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