Learn to Distinguish Between Storks. One of Them Isn't Carrying Children

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Some storks bring you babies. But watch out for the one with the glasses; he's got nothing but pickles.

Publicis & Hal Riney/SF is helping to reposition reinvigorate pickle company Vlasic and its 34-year-old stork icon. The stork's personality was modeled off Groucho Marx and appears in current TV ads* as a quirky friend of the family. Vlasic's tagline was also changed to "That's the tastiest crunch I ever heard."

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by Angela Natividad    Jun-13-08    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Online, Radio, Strange, Television



Dude, Children Are Serious Athletes!

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Playing against the somewhat limiting squeaky clean image the International Children's Games has, Grey SF came up with a campiagn that makes kids look at bit more...hmm...Dennis Rodman. Cuz, well, who wants to see a perfect Limited Too kid with Hannah Montana sneakers when you can see kids with tattoos, soccer ball heads and ears pierced with golf clubs?

Grey Creative Director said, "Once people heard about the idea, help came from all over. World-renowned photographer Jill Greenberg joined the team. Then the free media poured in with billboards, wildpostings, bus shelters, and posters. But best of all, the kids ate it up. So much so, we offered free haircuts and henna tattoos to any kid who wanted one, turning hundreds of kids into walking billboards."

Nothing wrong with a bit of kid-powered viral marketing. See the other two ads here and here.

by Steve Hall    Jun-13-08    
Topic: Campaigns, Cause, Good



Comcast Retires Slowskys In Favor of Turbine Rabbit Thingy

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Created by Goodby, Silverstein & Partners and directed by Biscuit's Noam Murro, Comcast has ditched the Slowsky turrtles in favor of some hyped up, freaked out, genetically fucked with rabbit with jet turbines strapped on its back driven by an over-caffeinated kook all to,...ya know...illustrate how fast Comcast internet is. I like.

by Steve Hall    Jun-13-08    
Topic: Commercials, Good, Strange



MySpace to Redesign. See Mock-Ups Here

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MySpace is redesigning its site, partly to make it more ad-friendly.

It also plans to improve nav, music and internal search, MySpaceTV (expect better embed/sharing options) and profile editing (kinda nifty).

Phase I of the redesign goes live June 18th. One advertiser bought all MySpace's ad real estate for that day. No word on who it is, but expect a major brand or an overhyped movie. (Film promotions for The Incredible Hulk are currently wreaking havoc on the homepage.)

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Modernista Hummered, Webbys Happened, Dinosaur Toured

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- Facing the potential demise of GM's Hummer brand, Modernista may be facing layoffs. One creative director has already left.

- AgencySpy reminds us the Webby Awards were yesterday and points to a video of the event.

- The Samsung illusion dinosaur goes on tour.

- That 72andSunny-created "I Love the World" spot got all kinds of spoofage. Here's one.

by Steve Hall    Jun-13-08    
Topic: Agencies, Industry Events



Air One Treats Boston Bloggers to Italian Goodness

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Last night at Lucca's in Boston's North End, Lufthansa's Air One, with help from Edelman, gathered together a collection of Boston-based bloggers to introduce the airline's new, non-stop flights from Milan to Boston and Chicago. With awesome Italian goodness, wine and food was served while Air One Head of Network and Marketing Giorgio De Roni talked a bit about the airline and the new routes.

The group was also treated a short lesson in speaking Italian and Italian culture so s to prevent one from appearing an idiot while traveling to Italy.

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by Steve Hall    Jun-13-08    
Topic: Events, Weblogs



Author Attacks Gawker With Britney Spears Stickers For Book Promotion

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To promote his new book, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, author Tao Lin has placed stickers around New York which say, simply, Britney Spears. Apparently, his intended hipster audience will make the connection.

Last June, Gawker pretty much trashed Lin's similarly strange promotional tactics for some earlier books by posting some of his creepy emails.

Flash back to this year and Gawker recently found the door to its offices plastered with Britney Spears stickers in an apparent retaliation for Gawker's less than kind (though totally warranted) words.

Hmm...so is Tao Lin an impetuous child or brilliant marketer?

by Steve Hall    Jun-13-08    
Topic: Guerilla, Promotions, Publishing, Strange, Weblogs



Girl Does Battle With Mangy Mane. Bikini Zone Saves Day

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So it's Friday which means thoughts begin to turn away from work to some of the more pleasurably social aspects of life like...oh...watching a hot girl in a blue bikini fight with her bush until she's able to tame it with Bikini Zone. Yes, it's sunny. It's time to go to the beach so that means it's time to get looking good down there.

Helping in that area is Studio 8 which just created a parody-style Japanese commercial for the product line which takes us through various battles the girl wages against her untamed mane.

Hmm. Suddenly, I have an urge to go to the beach.

by Steve Hall    Jun-13-08    
Topic: Good, Racy, Strange, Video



Yahoo Castrates Microsoft Talks, Forms Search Relationship with Google

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Yahoo to Microsoft: no, you can't have the company, and no, you can't buy our search, either. This follows FOUR MONTHS of hardcore media drama between the two of them. Here's a word from stock market angryman Carl Icahn (who, btw, is trying to oust Y!'s board):

In my opinion it will be extremely difficult for Microsoft or any other companies to trust, work with and negotiate with a company that would go to these lengths [to scuffle a deal].

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by Angela Natividad    Jun-13-08    
Topic: Bad, Brands, Online