Dunk Slam That High Five Shake!

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Awkward. You've experienced the moments. When a friend or an almost friend or a business associate made a sports-related quip and, well, got it entirely wrong. In this DDB Vancouver-created commercial for KidSport BC, a community based sports-funding program that provides grants for children to participate in a sport, the importance of sports in a child's life are highlighted. Sadly, the poor "kid" in this spot definitely missed out on some of the basics.

The campaign includes two commercials and eight radio spots which will begin airing July 27.

by Steve Hall    Jul-26-09    
Topic: Cause, Commercials, Good



Speed Nailed, Hamster Milked, CAPTCHA Monetized

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- If you drink and drive, speed or don't wear your seat belt in Tennessee, you will get nailed.

- And now we have hamster milking from KGB.

- It's like Annette Funicello. Except with lots of trash.

- MIT Advertising Lab wonders if the verification system CAPTCHA couldn't be used as an ad medium by showing paid brand names instead of made up words. Hey, why not?

by Steve Hall    Jul-23-09    
Topic: Cause



If Paris Hilton Could Read She'd Buy One

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To promote a line of Connie Carman- created Couture Planet handbags and accessories made from recycled newspapers, a group of creatives, Keith Lane, Deborah Hines and Frank Rapp put together a series of posters that celebrate the demise of the newspaper poke fun at Prada and call attention to Paris Hilton's apparent lack of readings skills.

by Steve Hall    Jul-22-09    
Topic: Campaigns, Cause, Celebrity, Poster



Jayde Nicole Dons Lettuce Bikini For PETA

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PETA grabbed Playmate of the Year Jayde Nicole for their latest Go Veg effort. In celebration of National Veggie Dog Day (only PETA can come up with this stuff), Nicole, along with another lettuce-clad hottie, gave out free veggie dogs outside Capitol Hill yesterday.

Hmm. We've seen this lettuce bikini thing before. Wonder who created the idea first. Oh and before you all go slinging agency names around like a sandbox full of kids fighting over a plastic shovel and screaming, "mine! mine! mine!", we're quite sure old-school cavewomen - or maybe even Eve, herself - can lay claim to the invention before anyone had an inkling of the word "advertising".

Sadly, Obama Girl didn't make an appearance with the Giuliani Girls for an all out catfight.

by Steve Hall    Jul-16-09    
Topic: Cause, Guerilla, Racy



Arquette Bars Hunger, Folly in Fayetteville, Kid Eats Dog Crap

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- David Arquette and Snickers have teamed up to help Feeding America with "Bar Hunger."

- Yea so there's this whole thing going on about some spots Republik created for Fayetteville. Apparently some feel they are unpatriotic. You deciede. Watch them here and here.

- Oh please. BingTweets. Oh wait. That's not half bad.

- Airing 15 years ago for Staples, The Most Wonderful Time of the Year commercial will launch the 2009 Back to School season tomorrow, July 15.

more »

by Steve Hall    Jul-15-09    
Topic: Cause, Commercials, Strange



Cause Group Launches Twitter For Sh-tters

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Why anyone hasn't thought of this witty little word play is beyond us but non-profit Wherever the Need, with help from Skadaddle Media, is having fun with it. The effort aims to call attention to the importance of sanitation and to raise money to build eco-sanitation toilets for third world countries.

more »

by Steve Hall    Jul-15-09    
Topic: Cause, Good, Social, Strange



Celebrities Hold Hands Up For Nelson Mandela Day

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OK, fine. A Nelson Mandela Day in New York on July 18th can't really be a bad thing, right? After all, the dude did a lot in his lifetime to help a lot of people. Why not celebrate him? But why do we need a video with celebrities holding their hands up for two minutes as some almost Simon and Garfunkel-sounding dude whines about how wonderful the world would be if people just helped make peace on earth with their own two hands.

Oh wait, this is all a good thing, right? Sorry, let's start over.

more »

by Steve Hall    Jul-14-09    
Topic: Cause, Celebrity, Video



Marijuana users Offer to Pay Taxes. Stations Refuse to Air Ad

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There is a valid argument for not legalizing marijuana. There's also a valid argument for doing so and it's being made in a new commercial from California's Marijuana Policy Project Foundation featuring a marijuana user.

In the commercial, the woman says, "...the governor and legislators are ignoring millions of Californians who want to pay taxes. We're marijuana consumers. Instead of being treated like criminals for using a substance safer than alcohol, we want to pay our fair share."

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by Steve Hall    Jul- 8-09    
Topic: Cause, Commercials



Acronyms and 'Bust-Accentuating Top' Make For Bad Truth Ad

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Arnold is out with another mock interview ad for the Truth campaign. In this entry, a seemingly immovable woman is subjected to the interviewers over-excited explanation of yet another business acronym. This one's AMPED or Articulate Motivated Passionate Energetic, which, clearly this woman is not.

The interviewer is amusingly animated. The woman is a dead fish. Perhaps due to years of suffering under the weight of her...oh that would be so rudely sexist to say! How dare we? Oh but wait. AdFreak got all sexist by suggesting just because the woman is wearing a "bust-accentuating" top, the ad is a bit NSFW. Huh?

more »

by Steve Hall    Jul- 8-09    
Topic: Bad, Cause, Commercials, Creative Commentary, Opinion



Brands Go Green For Rain Forest

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Last week in London's Piccadilly Circus, St Trinian star Talulah Riley posed in front of new Princess Rainforest Project billboards which feature an animated frog. Riley virtually kissed the frog from afar optical allusion-style.

McDonald's and Coke are supporters of the effort. The Coke sign tuns green and shows the faces of Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford and Kermit the Frog.

Other campiagn elements include MySpace (???), Facebook and Twitter.

London's Cake Group created the campaign. See images here, here and here.

by Steve Hall    Jul- 7-09    
Topic: Cause, Celebrity, Outdoor