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TIME: Almanac 1993
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TIME Almanac 1993.iso
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010692
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01069912.000
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1992-08-28
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114 lines
ADVERTISING, Page 69BEST OF 1991
1. DIET PEPSI
When Ray Charles cut loose with "You've got the right one,
baby -- uh-huh," his sizzling jingle became a catchphrase, a T
shirt, an attitude and even a line on The Cosby Show. By
portraying Diet Pepsi as the real thing, the ad may send Diet
Coke ("Just for the taste of it") marketers back to the drawing
board. Perhaps the highest compliment: word is that down in
Atlanta, employees of Coca-Cola are forbidden to say "Uh-huh."
2. WENDY'S
Putting a campy spin on xenophobia, company founder Dave
Thomas travels the world searching for new dishes to put on the
Wendy's menu. Skeptically regarding a plate of sushi, he asks,
"Got any catsup?" As he samples weird-looking cuisines,
homesick Dave longs to tuck into a nice juicy hamburger. So do
viewers.
3. EGOISTE
Chanel's tableau of jilted women shouting this epithet at
an unseen cad was directed in the abrupt European style.
Slamming hotel portals and Prokofiev blasting in the background
blow the melodrama meter off the scale. But the campaign draws
on an ancient Madison Avenue credo: make an irritating ad, and
the product will walk off the shelf. Named for the guy who done
them wrong, Egoiste quickly emerged in a crowded field as one of
1991's top new men's fragrances.
4. JOHN HANCOCK
A young girl mortified by a speech impediment finds her
voice on a computer keyboard. "Nobody laughs when I write. I
love words when I write!" she exults. This quiet ad for
Hancock's college-funding program makes a powerful argument for
dignity and the capacity to grow.
5. NISSAN
What a car! Everything goes right for Bob when he drives
his Sentra, brilliantly marketed in the ad as the Everyman's
dream car. Forget gridlock: he takes "Bob's Expressway" and
encounters traffic signs reading YIELD TO BOB and NO PARKING
EXCEPT FOR BOB. Says a traffic cop as he puts away his ticket
book: "Oh, it's you, Bob."
6. TIMEX
Uh-oh. Why is that sumo wrestler battling it out with a
Timex watch taped to his belly? Splat! What do you know? It
really does take a licking and keep on ticking. Timex gives new
life to the old slogan in a slapstick series of tales. Second
best: everything made of glass -- even the Timex crystal --
shatters when the ugly woman walks into the room. But listen:
tick, tick, tick. . .
7. SMIRNOFF
Just because you're down-scaling doesn't mean you can't
enjoy yourself. Smirnoff vodka switched from 1980s glitz to
1990s schmaltz with a casual and cozy series of ads portraying
a young couple at home in a tiny city apartment, a spontaneous
party, a Dalmatian surrounded by Dalmatian-spotted cats. The
slogan: "Home Is Where You Find It."
. . . AND THE WORST
1. CALVIN KLEIN JEANS
The characters in Klein's ads live in a world of erotic
obsession and pathetic illusion. Calvin's idea of a rock
musician is a mincing model on a Harley-Davidson; sensuality is
a statuesque nude male in the shower with a pair of jeans draped
over his crotch. In the October Vanity Fair, Klein took a step
over the line with a sleazily erotic 116-page magazine insert
for his jeans. What difference does it make which brand they are
if you never have them on?
2. OLD MILWAUKEE BEER
The Stroh brewing company portrayed guys engaging in heavy
male-bonding activities like camping and canoeing with the tag
line, "It just doesn't get any better than this." Then the
voluptuous Swedish Bikini Team descends upon them bearing
ice-cold beer. Get it? Playboy did, and featured the team on its
January cover. Stroh's disingenuously explained that the
commercial parodies tasteless beer ads. Talk about trying to
have it both ways.
3. THE AMERICAN EGG BOARD
An ad aimed at children boasts that "eggs have as much
protein as hot dogs." So what? An egg also has nine times as
much cholesterol as a hot dog. And nutrition experts say most
American children get more protein than they need.