Half the FUn (maybe more) of watching the Superbowl is seeing the commercials. Remember, the ad agencies try to put their most creative commercials on during the Superbowl. Therefore, the purpose of this discussion thread will be to analyze today's Superbowl commercials: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.
There seems to be a concensus that the best Superbowl commercials were the 1984 Apple commercial introducing the Mac and the original Budweiser frogs commercial.
In the hours leading into tonight's Superbowl, feel free to post your fave (and most hated) Superbowl commercials. Once the game begins, let us have an analysis of this year's Superbowl commercials.
Something to ponder (though I don't always agree with MSNBC's selections):
The 10 best Super Bowl ads of all time
These spots were often more entertaining than the actual game
COMMENTARY
By Peter Hartlaub
MSNBC contributor
Updated: 3:29 p.m. ET Feb 1, 2007
Thirty-four years ago this month, Farrah Fawcett sensuously applied Noxzema to Joe Namath’s manly chin — touching off an escalating arms race of expensive Super Bowl commercials that have frequently been more entertaining than the games.
Last year, advertisers weren’t shy about spending $2.5 million on a 30-second commercial, but only the Budweiser “Magic Fridge” commercial came within striking distance of our Top 10 list.
Below are the best Super Bowl commercials of all time, the keys to their success and the prospects of the company after the spot aired. As you can see, just because people are still talking about an ad more than 20 years later doesn’t mean the product changed the world:
10. Budweiser “Frogs” (1995): Three frogs, perched on a log outside a bar, croaking, “Bud … Weis … Errrrrr.”
What worked: The fact that Budweiser milks every commercial concept to death – does anyone doubt there will be a “Magic Fridge 2” this year? — makes it easy to forget how cool this ad was when you first heard it. The buildup was great, with an oddly infectious catchphrase.
The results: For better or worse, the frog ads and the spin-off lizard commercials made Budweiser — which was starting to become an old-guy drink — cool again for younger partiers.
9. Xerox “Monks” (1977): Faced with a hopelessly mundane copying job, Brother Dominic puts down his quill pen and turns to a Xerox 9200 duplicating system.
What worked: “Monks” seems a bit dated now, like watching NBA video from the early 1950s. But this was the George Mikan of early Super Bowl commercials, with a narrative style and series of punch lines that set the pioneering tone for hundreds of ads that followed.
The results: The promise to reproduce documents “at an incredible two pages per second” may not seem impressive now, but Xerox is now used as both a noun and a verb – the definition of a successful brand.
8. Tabasco “Mosquito” (1998): A mosquito tries to draw blood from a Tabasco-loving yokel — with explosive results.
What worked: The commercial was simple, funny and violent. With no dialogue, no music and only two characters (including the exploding insect), Tabasco memorably promoted its brand.
The results: Tabasco still hasn’t replaced ketchup in the condiment market, and probably never will. With its huge loyal following, does Tabasco even need commercials?
7. Electronic Data Systems “Herding Cats” (2000): A “Bonanza”-like family of cat herders talk about life on the range.
What worked: Kitties and cowboys made this a favorite for both kids and adults, but the near-seamless special effects were the real MVP. Advertiser EDS came back a year later with a similar formula, featuring the “Running of the Squirrels.”
The results: We still don’t know what EDS does, but it has 117,000 employees and just signed a $1.27 billion contract extension with the British Ministry of Defense — so the ad certainly didn’t hurt the company.
6. McDonald’s “The Showdown” (1993): Michael Jordan and Larry Bird engage in a physics-defying hoops-shooting contest for a Big Mac and fries.
What worked: Every basketball fan knows that Bird would win this contest 10 out of 10 times, but it was still a clever idea with a catchphrase that continues to pop up in “Horse” games. (“Over the second rafter, off the floor … nothing but net.”)
The results: This commercial seems to have blessed everyone involved. Jordan won three more championships and Bird transitioned into a solid career as a coach. And while salads and chicken products have been killing off the rest of the menu, the cholesterol-heavy Big Mac value meal remains an untouchable fast-food staple.
5. Monster.com “When I Grow Up …” (1999): A group of kids stare at the camera and declare their desire to “have a brown nose,” “be a yes man” and “claw my way up to middle management.”
What worked: Kids are cute, and even cuter when reciting lines such as, “When I grow up … I want to be forced into early retirement.” It was great brand recognition for the new company.
The results: Monster survived the dot-com implosion and despite a stock controversy in 2006 has become a prosperous company that employs close to 5,000 people worldwide.
4. Reebok “Terry Tate: Office Linebacker” (2003): To boost productivity, a CEO recruits a linebacker from Reebok to slam into a series of “Office Space”-style cubicle drones.
What worked: A series of brutal hits, punctuated by lines such as, “Break was over 15 minutes ago, Mitch!” made this the best Super Bowl ad of the last five years.
The results: Terry Tate got people talking about Reebok for something other than sweatshop controversies. The company provides shoes for all the major sports and hosts clothing lines for rappers Jay-Z and 50 Cent.
3. E*Trade “Monkey” (2000): Two dim-witted guys and a monkey clap to some cha-cha music in a garage, followed by the punch line: “Well we just wasted 2 million bucks. What are you doing with your money?”
What worked: Easily the cheapest ad of the year to produce, it was an instant classic —remaining self-deprecating about dot-com excess while lampooning the well-publicized cost of Super Bowl ad time.
The results: The marketing Gods have a way of punishing tech companies that blow too much money on flashy ads. (See: Pets.com. Or don’t. They haven’t been around since 2000.) E*Trade lost hundreds of millions of dollars in 2001 and 2002, and the company's shares — once trading at more than $60 — dropped below $3 in 2002. The company has since bounced back to profitability.
2. Coke “Mean Joe Greene” (1979): A kid offers his Coca-Cola to a battle-weary “Mean Joe” Greene — who softens up enough to toss his jersey as a reward.
What worked: A cute kid with a soft drink was the perfect foil for the surly Greene. Grown men still burst into tears when thinking about “Mean Joe” throwing that jersey.
The results: The ad became an instant pop culture classic, boosting Greene’s career. Among the offshoots was the inspiring “The Steeler and the Pittsburgh Kid” — perhaps the first hourlong TV movie in history to be based on a one-minute commercial.
1. Apple “1984” (1984): A jogger representing Apple throws a sledgehammer into a giant Big Brother image representing IBM — promising a populist shift in the future of personal computers.
What worked: With “Blade Runner” director Ridley Scott in charge, the ad generated more hype — and post-game water cooler talk — than any television commercial in history. Do you even remember who played in the Super Bowl in 1984? (L.A. Raiders and Washington.) You almost certainly remember the biggest Super Bowl ad of the year.
The results: The most storied Super Bowl ad of all time might have boosted sales of George Orwell books, hot red running shorts and sledgehammers. But it didn’t do much for the Macintosh — Apple continues to be the Reform Party of computer manufacturers. Maybe there was a storage locker filled with iPods behind that huge video screen?
Honorable mentions: Pepsi “Apartment 10G” (1987); Pepsi “Diner” (1995); Pepsi “Sucked in” (1995); Mountain Dew “Bad Cheetah” (2000); Budweiser “Magic Fridge” (2006).
© 2007 MSNBC Interactive
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16691199/
The 10 worst Super Bowl ads of all time
The spots that couldn’t keep their kilts down, and wasted millions
By Peter Hartlaub
MSNBC contributor
Updated: 3:00 p.m. ET Jan 26, 2007
Large companies have found a lot of ways to throw away good money, but it’s hard to imagine a higher-profile failure than a catastrophic Super Bowl ad.
Few people remember a poorly played Super Bowl — but a horrible Super Bowl commercial may become inextricably etched in consumers’ brains until the day they die. Several corporations spending $2.6 million for 30 seconds of air time this year will probably end up hurting their brands.
To get noticed, Super Bowl advertisers have to take risks — and sometimes those risks backfire. Bad commercials have led to consumer backlash, harsh words from critics and at least one legal battle between a corporation and the company that created a much-derided ad.
Below are the 10 worst Super Bowl commercials of all time, followed by the reasons that they crashed and burned, and a summary of any chaos that followed. Budweiser has become reliable at turning out minor controversies, but the Top 4 are in a league of their own.
10. Frito-Lay — Dan Quayle ad (1993): For the national launch of Wavy Lays potato chips, much-ridiculed former Vice-President Quayle makes a cameo, with a joke about his inability to spell “potato.”
What failed: Think back to 1993. Other than Heidi Fleiss and possibly Lorena Bobbitt, was there a worse person to associate with your new product than Dan Quayle?
The fallout: Despite some negative reviews, the Quayle ad was followed by more commercials featuring unsuccessful politicians and other losers, including a Chevy Chase ad for Doritos (right after his talk show disaster), Ann Richards and Mario Cuomo for Lays — and Bob Dole for just about everything.
9. Sierra Mist — Bagpipe kilt ad (2004): On a hot day, a kilt-wearing bagpipe player breaks off from a parade and stands above an air conditioning grate — mimicking Marilyn Monroe’s famous scene in “The Seven Year Itch.”
What failed: How in the world is cold air blowing on an out-of-shape sweaty dude’s genitals supposed to make you feel like drinking a lemon-lime beverage? The ad would have made more tactical sense if he was drinking rival beverage Sprite.
The fallout: Three years later, Sierra Mist still plays John Stamos to Sprite’s George Clooney in the beverage market.
8. Budweiser — “Upside Down Clown” (2003): A clown with an upside-down suit walks into a bar, orders a Bud Light, and pours the drink into his mouth through an opening between the suit’s legs.
What failed: The only thing that works up less of a thirst less than thinking about a bagpiper’s naughty parts is watching a commercial where a clown appears to drink beer through his buttocks.
The fallout: Budweiser received just enough positive reinforcement from this commercial to come back the following year with something even more disgusting. (See number 5.)
7. Budweiser — “Bud Bowl VI” (1994): The fake football game between anthropomorphic bottles of Bud and Bud Light returns (again) with more predictable goofiness.
What failed: The Bud Bowl had few good ideas from the start. By Bud Bowl VI the commercials were physically painful to watch – with Marv Albert bleating about the antics of a profanity-spewing, break-dancing giant can. Coaches Mike Ditka and Bum Phillips showed up, looking visibly pained to be involved.
The fallout: After two more Bud Bowls, Budweiser canned the series, concentrating on their frog and lizard-themed ads.
6. Dirt Devil — “Fred Astaire” (1997): Special effects allow legendary hoofer Fred Astaire to revisit some old dance moves – except this time his partner is a red vacuum cleaner.
What failed: A dead guy dancing with a vacuum? What’s next? Digging up Steve McQueen’s corpse so he can sell the new Ford Mustang?
The fallout: The public was split, with some people enjoying the ad while others found it creepy and disrespectful. Undeterred by the polarized criticism, Dirt Devil kept dead Fred on the air for much of the rest of the year.
5. Budweiser – Flatulent horse ad (2004): A romantic evening in a hansom cab is ruined by a farting horse, whose flatulence hits a candle and torches a woman’s hair.
What failed: This ad was criticized for being a disgusting example of sullying a brand, and was lumped in the declining morals discussion kicked off by Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction. But mostly we hate it because it rips off an episode of “Seinfeld.”
The fallout: The public flogging that Budweiser took had one positive result – their ads got better, including last year’s clever “Magic Fridge” commercial.
4. Holiday Inn – Sex change ad (1997): A woman at a high school is revealed to be a man, followed by a poor segue that equates her sex change with Holiday Inn’s recent renovations at its hotels.
What failed: On top of being tasteless and insensitive, the ad made almost no mention of Holiday Inn — which in retrospect might have been a blessing.
The fallout: Gay, lesbian and transgender activist groups, already upset about stereotypes on television, were outraged by the commercial — threatening boycotts and other protests. Media critics hated it too, and Holiday Inn quickly pulled the ad.
3. Just for Feet — Kenyan runner ad (1999): A group of mercenaries in a Humvee chase down a barefoot Kenyan running in Africa, drug him unconscious and force a pair of running shoes on his feet.
What failed: The question is: what about this ad didn’t fail? Critics hated the advertisement, calling it racist and imperialist. Just for Feet later acknowledged it was a horrible mistake.
The fallout: Just for Feet sued the advertising firm that created the ads for $10 million and filed for bankruptcy later the same year. Eventually, the lawsuit was dropped and Just for Feet sold its stores. The last one closed in 2004.
2. Burger King — “Find Herb the Nerd” (1986): Burger King urged customers to find Herb, who was supposedly the only person in America who had never tasted the fast food chain’s hamburgers.
What failed: Audience members hated the annoying actor who played Herb (he looked like a balder Rick Moranis), and showed little interest in searching for him at their neighborhood Burger King – even with money involved. While no statistics could be found to back the claim up, we suspect the commercials inspired a new wave of vegans.
The fallout: Burger King spent tens of millions of dollars on the “Herb” series, which was highly ridiculed at the time and is considered one of the worst ad campaigns in history.
1. Apple — “Lemmings” (1985): One year after the Macintosh is introduced with one of the best commercials ever, Apple introduces Macintosh Office with an abstract film that included a spooky version of the tune “Heigh-Ho” and office workers jumping off a cliff.
What failed: The advertisement — paired with a one-sided Super Bowl that had the 49ers beating the Dolphins 38-16 — was dark, depressing and more than a bit morbid.
The fallout: This was the “Speed 2: Cruise Control” of Super Bowl ads. It was widely panned by critics who had loved Apple’s “1984” ad, and even the company’s loyal fan base had a hard time defending it. Apple didn’t advertise during the Super Bowl again until 1999.
Peter Hartlaub writes about pop culture for the San Francisco Chronicle
© 2007 MSNBC Interactive
URL:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16790823/.