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Hey, It's Not a Gift Shop, It's HBO

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In much the same way they've set out to revolutionize TV, HBO turned a portion of their New York lobby into an uber gift shop of cinematic proportions. With the help of Gensler and Imaginary Forces the aim is not merely for the consumer to buy shit but to immerse the consumer in a magical mystical sitcom universe. Check out the storefront, and a sliver of the Sopranos, Sex and the City and Rome sections.

That stuff's all nice but we'd really like to see a special space for Oz. Come on, HBO. We can have Italian mobsters and neurotic 40-somethings any day. Where's our prison universe?

by Angela Natividad    Feb-14-07    
Topic: Good, Outdoor, Packaging, Specialty



Powerball Campiagn Makes Good on Engagement

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Any campaign with the tagline "it's always big" generally finds us paying a bit more attention to it than others and this new Colle+McVoy-created Minnesota State Lottery television campaign has us very interested. But, not for the sick reasons dancing around in your head right now. No. We like this campaign because it's a game. And it's game, called What's the Difference, that starts on the tube and ends online. In the ads, the viewer is asked to find the six differences between two images in the ad that represent a $20 million jackpot winner and a $200 million winner. Winners of the game are entered into a drawing to win cash and prizes.

With everyone in the industry latching onto the latest and greatest ad babble term of the day, engagement, it's nice to see something real come out of board room blather. We're giving props to Colle+McVoy on this one. See the ads here, here and here.

by Steve Hall    Feb-14-07    
Topic: Campaigns, Games, Good, Online, Television



Pretzel Girl Used to Sell Real Pretzels

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We reported Auntie Anne's V-day viral blast once already but we just noticed She's So Twisted for the first time and thought, how awesome would it be to hang out with someone who was bent out of shape all the time?

Not very. But this chick seems good-natured enough and we like how her little friend drags her around on a little rollie-board. Having a pretzel friend must be way funner than having a puppy or a ferret. We'd try being pretzels for a day but our drunker companions might eat us.

by Angela Natividad    Feb-14-07    
Topic: Good, Human, Online, Video, Viral



Chunky Pam Rejects Diamonds for Doritos

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We all sort of wondered what happened to would-be rap star Chunky Pam, and as if to satisfy our wildest dreams she mysteriously reappears just in time for the heart-shaped holiday.

In a new MTV-produced video celebrating the merits of griddles and grills, Pam says she wants to be pampered in a way only a blinged-out pizza epicure can. Our favourite line involves Swedish fish and Swedish massage.

Unlike other sultry blondes who slinked into skinnier skins, Pam embraces decadent consumption wholeheartedly and makes it her forte. What talent. What art. What size. If only everyone were so easy to please on the 14th of February.

by Angela Natividad    Feb-14-07    
Topic: Online, Spoofs, Television, Video



Traveles Gets Unbrella Back, Digitas Gets Miller

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Borrell Associates reports local online video advertising will hit $5 billion or 35 percent of all local online advertising by 2012. Just in time for Lonelygirl15's baby to take center stage as the first Pampers YouTube video series. Or ill it be LiveVideo by then?

- Travelers Insurance gets its red umbrella logo back from Citigroup after a ten year effort. Huh? Who knew it was missing?

- Miller has chosen Digitas to handle its interactive work after a review during which Digitas beat out Arc Worldwide for the account which was previously held by Agency.com.

- Remo, a new product from fledgling rations company erinMedia plans to rollout a sophisticated second by second television ratings service and has files many patents to insure it's well positioned to unseat ratings king Nielsen.

- Film makers are taking their movies to the really small screen. Well, at least promotions for those movies.

by Steve Hall    Feb-14-07    
Topic: Agencies, Brands, Research



Google Becomes Googe for Valentine's Day

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While artful design is always up for interpretation, some think Google, with its Valentine's Day logo redesign, left the L out of their name christening the site Googe. Likely, as some have mentioned, the stem of the strawberry is intended to be the L but that strawberry chocolate mess looks like one letter to us.

by Steve Hall    Feb-14-07    
Topic: Brands, Online, Strange



Celebrate the 14th with the Travails of One Small Stick

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In our humble quest to find a Valentine's Day campaign that didn't leave us feeling sick or pressured, we came across Don Hertzfeldt's 1995 classic Ah l'Amour.

The video illustrates one small stick figure's attempt to find romance. Thankfully, he has a lot of lives to spare. In the end, there's only one realistic way to win a little stick woman's heart - and no, it's not sex. Weird, right? Because, like, sex gets us every time.

by Angela Natividad    Feb-14-07    
Topic: Good, Online, Video



Durex XXL a Little Too Big for Comfort

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It's our strong feeling that this ad (via Ichlache) is probably not real, but it vibes like the type of thing Durex would do (particularly outside these fine United States) and it gets the point across in a way that makes our own mouths hurt. The copy reading "Really Big..." at bottom left? Totally unnecessary.

Ow.

by Angela Natividad    Feb-14-07    
Topic: Magazine, Poster, Racy, Spoofs



Polaroid Solves Wandering Eye Syndrome, Saves Relationships

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Wistfully playing off the very, very, very...very old, but never tired, joke about sunglasses allowing one's eyes to secretly gaze towards distractingly enticing imagery undetected is a new Brazilian campaign for Polaroid Eyewear. With the proper Polaroid glasses, the guy in this campaign can enjoy the best of both worlds. The real one where he has to act as though his girlfriend is the only woman in the world for him or the fake world in which every piece of jiggling curvaceousness is his to freely explore and conquer in his fantasies. Some of us thank Polaroid for this bestowing this blessing. Others, not so much. See all three ads here. The campaign is the work of Santa Clara.

by Steve Hall    Feb-13-07    
Topic: Campaigns, Good, Racy



Wieden Wants, PSFK Conferences, JC Penny Matters

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- Wieden + Kennedy London is seeking four people from outside the ad world to partake in its WKSide3 program which offers three month work at the agency.

- PSFK is organizing a future of marketing conference at which the likes of George Parker (now that's funny), Peter Rojas, Elizabeth Spiers, Cunning's Floyd Hayes, Anomaly's Mike Byrne and others will chat about where the industry is going.

- JC Penny Says "Every Day Matters."

- XM Radio does the Valentine's Day card generator thing.

- Suzuki does the webisode thing. Calls it The Briefcase.

by Steve Hall    Feb-13-07    
Topic: Agencies, Brands, Industry Events, Online, Video



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