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The Strangest Pen Ads You Will Ever See

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Prison. War. Switched at birth. These are the topics central to a new and strange TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris campaign for Uniball pen. Each of three spots takes place in a setting (prison, war, in a girl's bedroom) where the subject receives a letter that is then read in one of three fonts (Edwardian Script, Comic Sans and Broadway). Oddness pursues.

We think it's the poor girl who gets the worst news in the campaign but each version is a bit weird in its own right. It's a decidedly different way to sell pens that, let's be honest, no one even uses anymore but we can't fault the brand for trying.

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by Steve Hall    May-13-13    
Topic: Strange



Why Every Creative Director Should See 'The Great Gatsby' in 3D

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"Was all this made from your imagination?"

- A line among lines from The Great Gatsby

3D is dead.

I know, I know that's a big statement for a 3D director to make. What I mean to say is 3D as a movie gimmick is dead.

That's the impression I got walking away from an opening night showing of The Great Gatsby in 3D. Director Baz Luhrmann's re-imagination of Fitzgerald's well-known novel is out this weekend and it holds some really interesting secrets for creative directors. I won't get into a flat out review of the film itself, except to say it sparked a whole lot of discussion from urban theatregoers as they exited the multiplex.

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by Steve Hall    May-11-13    
Topic: Opinion



Man Wishes His Son Had Cancer

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In an effort to call attention to little known Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy which is slowly and painfully killing his 6 year old son, Harrison, Alex Smith can be seen along with his son in a AIS London-created PSA for the desease which carries the headline, "I Wish My Son Had Cancer."

The strategy behind the ad, of course, is that cancer is widely known -- and well funded -- as compared to Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy so, in a sense, Harrison might have a fighting chance had he suffered from cancer instead.

The ad copy gets straight to the point, "Harrison, my 6 year old, has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. He is one of 2,500 sufferers in the UK who'll die from it, most before they're 20. Unlike cancer, there's no treatment and no cure. And because you've never heard of it, very little funding either. My only hope is to raise as much money as possible for the research scientists. They're close to a major breakthrough. Your 5 pounds can get them even closer."

The ad is receiving a lot of press in the UK and Alex was invited by ITV for an interview which you can watch below.

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by Steve Hall    May-10-13    
Topic: Cause



Twitter Says Stop Tweeting And Call Your Mom

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In a humorous ad that both lauds the benefits of Twitter and lambastes the public for relying on it too much, the company is urging people to stop tweeting and make sure you call your mother for Mother's Day.

As the ad's narrator notices the man in the ad beginning to send his mother a tweet for Mother's Day, he exclaims, "What the f*ck are you doing?" Give your mom a call!"

So yes, people, that mobile device you carry around can still make phone calls and Mother's Day is the perfect day to dust off that's app's cobwebs and make the call.

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by Steve Hall    May-10-13    
Topic: Commercials



Buzzfeed to Offer Native Advertising Training to Agencies

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Buzzfeed has launched a Social Storytelling Creator Program which aims to train agencies on the art of creating native advertising. Agencies that participate will receive official accreditation from Buzzfeed along with a badge they can place on their website and the ability to post stories to Buzzfeed. The program will be free to agencies that agree to spend a set minimum with Buzzfeed.

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by Steve Hall    May-10-13    
Topic: Weblogs



This Guy's Gonna Need A Really Big Condom!

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You've got to love condom commercials. It just gives creatives free reign to pull out every sexual innuendo in the tool box. And there are plenty in this Trojan Pure Ecstacy commercial in which a couple prances around the streets naked while their "parts" are covered by melons, balloons, phallic posts and a gigantic balloon erection.

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by Steve Hall    May-10-13    
Topic: Racy



Katie Couric And Daughters Front New 'Got Milk' Campaign

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Debuting today during her talk show, Katie Couric along with her two daughters, Elle 21 and Carrie 17, will appear in a new Got Milk commercial. Couric was asked to be part of the campaign when her daughters were younger but felt the timing wasn't right and she didn't want them in the spotlight at an early age.

Of her and her daughter's participation in the campaign now, Couric said, "They're older. I'm really proud of them. I think they've turned into exemplary young women. I thought it would be something fun."

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by Steve Hall    May-10-13    
Topic: Celebrity



AT&T Says Mother's Day is Not Complicated

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To celebrate Mother's Day, AT&T is launching a special Mother's Day version of its ongoing It's Not Complicated campaign. The spot, entitled Big Hug," will air Friday through Mother's Day and features kids exclaiming that big hugs are better than small ones and that the best hugs come from Mom. It also invites viewers to create their own customized version of the spot by visiting www.ATTmothersday.com where they can send it as an e-card to their moms.

Get on it, people! There are only a few days left.

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by Steve Hall    May- 9-13    
Topic: Commercials



Million Dollar Homepage Hits the Subway!

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Remember theMillion Dollar Homepage? Created by Alex Tew, it was a simple webpage on which hundreds of logos were sold totaling, well, close to $1 million.

Now, a company called Adivide is going old school with the same idea and intends to create a subdivided ad that will appear on New York subways for four weeks in July.

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by Steve Hall    May- 9-13    
Topic: Outdoor



Infographic Explains How Social Media Lost Its Way

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On the heels of its Social Inbox announcement, HubSpot has published an infographic that takes a look at how social media has changed in the short time it's been with us. It's all part of the inbound marketing company's push to make social personal again and, of course, that's exactly what its Social Inbox offering aims to do.

Filled with facts and figures, the infographic details the changes (and changing stats) of social media over the years from the early days when it was just a bunch of friends interacting online to businness' adoption to business' misuse and, ideally, back again.

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by Steve Hall    May- 9-13    
Topic: Social



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