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Cherish Christmas 'Blue Velvet'-Style With Elf Ears

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Looking for that perfect Christmas gift for someone special? Something they will treasure for the rest of their life? A gift so special it will just ooze with love and adoration? This isn't it.

This is the sort of gift you'd give your co-worker to get a "Dude, that's disgusting!" Or make the cute intern scream like she's watching a Saw movie.

Yes, thanks to Nail, this little piece of Christmas will keep you in the spirit year round. That or a cause group will label you disrespectful of "little people" with deformities.

by Steve Hall    Dec-21-09    
Topic: Agencies, Specialty, Strange



Mammoth Mountain Takes (OK, Gets) 14 Inch Dump

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Ski areas love to tout their snowfall. So why not employ some bathroom humor double entendre rather than the usual "we get tons of snow" boredom that usually passes for ski area advertising. From LA-based David&Goliath comes this outdoor campaign for Mammoth Mountain.

Using digital billboards and weather widget on the mountain's website, snowfall amounts are posted to the billboard in real-ish time. The euphemism for these updates are Dump Alerts.

by Steve Hall    Dec-18-09    
Topic: Outdoor



Church Challenges Mary's Virginity With Billboard

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"Is it about a spiritual male God sending down sperm so a child would be born, or is it about the power of love in our midst as seen in Jesus?" That's what Auckland's St Matthew-in-the-City Church Vicar Archdeacon Glynn Cardy told the New Zealand Press Association in response to complaints about a billboard the church erected.

The board, which shows Joseph laying in bed with Mary along with the caption, "Poor Joseph. God was a hard act to follow," has been labeled "inappropriate" and "disrespectful" by the Catholic Church and others.

Supporting the rationale behind the board, Cardy said, "What we're trying to do is to get people to think more about what Christmas is all about." While he claims there were supporters of the creative direction, the board was defaced by detractors shortly after it went up.

Speaking for the opposition, Auckland Catholic Diocese Spokeswoman Lyndsay Freer said, "Our Christian tradition of 2,000 years is that Mary remains a virgin and that Jesus is the son of God, not Joseph. Such a poster is inappropriate and disrespectful."

Blasphemy or call to challenge stereotype?

by Steve Hall    Dec-18-09    
Topic: Cause, Outdoor



Death and Dismemberment Not the Only Way Promote Sober Driving

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Far from the blood, guts and wrenching emotion of overseas drive/safe/sober commercials come this staid, measured Buzzed Driving ad from Mullen for the Ad Council and NHTSA featuring the Pope, the Dalai Lama and...uh...Rachael. Yes, Rachael who appears to have been inserted Forrest Gump-style into several newsworthy events is the poster child for sober driving.

Rather than focus on the horrific results of drunk driving, this commercial focuses on the lives saved becasue a person chose not to drink before she drove. A novel creative approach. Though it lacks the intensity of the aim and maim approach and goes for the positive, uplifting aspect of the subject, we have to wonder if it will be as affective as the more common scare tactic approach used by most.

by Steve Hall    Dec-18-09    
Topic: Cause



Social Media is Not Broadcast Media

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Oh how persnickety people can get online. Once again it's a cause group and once again it's "mommy bloggers." Today PETA mass-tweeted "Never-b4-seen photos that will convince parents never 2 take their kids 2 the circus: http://bit.ly/7ha9NL" to over 150 Twitter users according to Allie Sullivan who watched the drama unfold this morning. The tweet linked to a site on which photos depicted the training of baby elephants for Ringling Bros. Circus

Without surprise, the mass tweet was met with a bit of vitriol such as "@officialpeta fuck you I hate PETA and always have" from @JessicaGottlieb. But it was also met with what, in the first place, PETA should have, if you're a social media believer, been going for: a conversation. Luckily, one did start between the cause group and Lucretia Pruitt. And by all accounts it ended pleasantly.

more »

by Steve Hall    Dec-16-09    
Topic: Bad, Opinion, Social



Jack Link's Beef Jerky Says 'Merry Squatch-Mas'

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Yes there is a fart in this Merry Squatch-mas card from the folks over at Jack Link's Beef Jerky. See? Jeff Goodby is right. Hardly an ad goes by today without a fart joke in it. It's still kinda funny though. And if you are the type that simply can't get enough fart jokes, just keep clicking on number 6 until you have no gas left.

by Steve Hall    Dec-16-09    
Topic: Brands



Creating A Holiday Card is a Pain in the Ass

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Each year advertising agencies unleash their creative resources to create the annual holiday card. or some, it's a chance to spread one's creative wings. For others, it's a quagmire of over-engineering, political correctness gone mad, analysis paralysis and a waste of time. Boston's Duffy & Shanley, instead of creating a card, has chosen to share their holiday card creative process with us. We're sure you'll all agree their process is quite similar to your own.

by Steve Hall    Dec-16-09    
Topic: Agencies



Sexual Fantasy Nets New Domain Name

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When you're sitting in the weekly agency bore-fest otherwise known as the traffic meeting, your mind tends to wander a bit doesn't it? You think of the bills you have to pay. The grass that needs mowing. The house that needs to be cleaned. The Christmas presents that need to be shopped for. The oil change appointment you need to make for your car. The new business presentation you need to prepare for. The groceries you need for dinner tonight...and girl on girl action between the traffic manager and her assistant.

Say what? OK, so maybe that last one only happens in a CrazyDomains commercial with Pamela Anderson and her attractive assistant who are looking for a new domain name for their business. With the help of one employee who finds himself in the middle of a full on fantasy, the ladies get what they need and the man ends up the star employee of the day.

Hey Bob Parsons, your commercials use to be fun like this. What happened?

by Steve Hall    Dec-16-09    
Topic: Commercials, Racy



In Old Versus New, Jeff Goodby Raps

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In a Goodby, Silverstein & Partners holiday video, Jeff Goodby goes up against a young employee in a battle of old versus new.

Some choice phrases:

Goodby: "Every joke you write ends in a fart."

Young: "Your pony tail belongs back in Woodstock."

Love the ending.

more »

by Steve Hall    Dec-16-09    
Topic: Agencies



Publicis London Says Tonight's Gonna Be A Good Night

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AdFreak says this holiday greeting video from Publicis London in which staffers lip synch I Gotta Feeling by the Black Eyed Peas is cringe-worthy. We'd agree. But hey, it's the song du jour and at least it's not as bad as that video from that agency in India (or was it Span?) we can't seem to locate right now

by Steve Hall    Dec-15-09    
Topic: Agencies



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