Last Late Night

Tomorrow will be the last time Conan O'Brien does the string dance at 12:30am. After 16 season's years of making the college kid's laugh, he'll now be in charge of bringing comedy to the 11:30 time slot. The funny has been missing from it for 16 years (since Johnny passed it on to Leno).

After a decade and a half of Pimp Bot's and Masturbating Bears, of Insult Comic Dog's and Money Shot Lincoln's, it's time for the Irishman to grow up and leave all his friend's behind. Going to the new time slot is going to change the schematic of the show. The same general outline will still be there; the monologue, 2 talkies and a musical act or comedian. What I'm worried about is the NBC brass making sure that everytime they sign his check, he promises he won't offend anybody in order to keep the long time advertisers happy. If that's the case, Conan may as well stay in New York. It'd be better for his complexion anyway. Us Ginger's can't handle those U.V.'s.

Conan was ahead of his time, just like Letterman was 20 years ago. When he first started, his "strange" sense of humour didn't resonate with many viewers and he was almost cancelled after his 6th show. What I truly respect is he didn't try to change anything, to please the higher ups. Three minutes into his first showed he was stringing a noose around his neck. I don't think I've ever seen Leno try that, though there's certainly times I wouldn't mind...

The man always did whatever he wanted and knew there had to be people out there that shared his sense of humour. I mean, this guy didn't just come out of nowhere. He was the head writer of Saturday Night Live during one of its more successful eras (1989-1992) and also wrote the infamous "Monorail" episode of the Simpsons. It took time, but he became what Letterman was before him, a comedic icon.

Conan O'Brien will say goodnight for the last time at 1:35am on February 21st, 2009. He returns in May one hour earlier and hopefully will make all of our dreams, a little more hilarious.

Stay cool my babies, stay cool.

Economist

I'm sure virtually everyone has seen some of the economist ads, but I just needed to finally include one for this blog. This is proof of what a very smart headline can do. All of the ads have had the same art direction for a decade or more, but it keeps being topical and ingenious. The ads can be fairly intimidating, and they have no intention whatsoever to speak to the masses. Will they dumb down their message to a grade 8 reading level? Of course not, because they wouldn't be doing their readership justice.

Sham indeed.

As my blogging days are coming to an end, I had to write about how much I hate this guy. His moxy and charisma has actually turned some of my loved ones into sham-wow users and abusers. Honestly, how can this product work? A thin piece of cloth magically soaks up 2L of soda? And removes all mildew from carpets? That is just madness. He's laughing at you. Why do you think the word "sham" is in the product name. He may as well called it, "I'm going to spend your money on asian women, while you go out and buy paper towels". When I first saw that informercial, I was convinced it was a joke. It can't be real. Because it isn't. Don't be a fool. Just don't spill anything and save your money.

Love and Taxes

What a beautiful ad H&R Block. I actually felt compassion for the man covered in receipts. It's shot quite wonderfully, and is very simple. None of that boring banking jargon getting in the way. Too many financial institution ads really bombard with the ins and outs of the industry. Personally, I don't even like thinking about additional charges on my phone bill, nevermind all of that RRSP mumbo jumbo.

I must say however, that I was hoping he wasn't a human being. I liked the thought of a living/breathing paper man. Think of all the recycling he must do! Brilliant.

Are Doritos Delicious? Ask again later.

Amazing Doritos ad from this years Superbowl. They always manage to do things a little bit different, which is the same for the product itself. I wish I had a crystal ball so I could see when they are going to bring back the Taco Bell Doritos. The summer of 1996 was the best time of my life.

Shoot and Score

I can't express how badly I want to walk into a washroom and find this piece of Guerrilla advertising. The ad for ESPN above the urinal says "Soccer is good everywhere, but it is much better on ESPN channels". It's great. I don't like soccer at all, but at that particular moment, I'd become the biggest fan. Anything that can make the dispelling of bodily fluids fun and interactive, is ok with me. I just really don't wanna know what they put in the toilet.

Why does Mr. TV lie late at night?

You have no idea how much I want all informercials to be accurate. Through high school I had trouble falling asleep, so the Magic Bullets and "Set it and forget its" of the world got me through the night. I started thinking about what the informercial is. It's basically a 30 minute long commercial, that's separated by 2 minute mini commercials about how to order (and if you act now!). It's quite clear the reason they need 30 minutes of spin doctoring is because the product just isn't very good. There's no way it can make good of all its claims, because if it did, it wouldn't be airing at 3am. I really really wanted to be able to make Strawberry Daiquiri's and Alfredo sauce in my Magic Bullet, but it just wasn't meant to be.

The following blog is rated G

Movie posters are rarely considered a part of advertising for some reason, at least when I hear discussions about different media. How a movie poster differs from a transit shelter or a billboard is beyond me. They are an excellent way to build awareness about a film, and also offer a great addition to the creativity of a flick. It does much more than just state the release date. It can build suspense, or perhaps offer a lasting image in someone's mind that the movie trailer can't provide.

From what I understand, movie posters are created in-house by the production studio, much like the movie trailers. This is smart, because if I made a film, I wouldn't want a person with a different vision trying to sum it up in 2 minutes. Fact of the matter is, in the near future I can see trailers and posters becoming another skill set of advertising agencies. With factual research, they'll be able to decipher just what it is about a movie that makes people want to see it. It goes beyond impressive visual effects. There's a single hook. Who better to find it then an advertiser?

Keep whites their whitest (Racism?).

A fairly excellent advertisement for laundry detergent. I always enjoy the simplicity of ads. Ones that don't require any explanation or 'hit you over the head' images that gets the message across. They say that all advertising is designed for a grade 8 student to be able to understand it. Is that because you want the largest amount of people possible to view/understand your ad? You want 14 year olds to spend their allowance on your product? Or is it because society as a whole just isn't that intelligent. Separately, we are all great smart people. In groups, I feel pity for the human race. There's a reason we are called sheep. You want us to go over here? Ok. You want us to chew 24 times before swallowing? Ok.

Overall, this is a great ad that proves this detergent keeps your colours as bold as they can be. My only worry is that this may send everyone into mass hysteria, worrying that we've all become colour blind. The Terrorists have won. They took away our tints and hues.

Big City Dreamin'

I suppose I'm going to have to grow up rather soon and prepare to wear uncomfortable shoes for the rest of my life. Look out homeless people. Here I come.

Abnormal Size Matters

If you really don't understand this print ad for Durex, I feel sorry for your girlfriend.

Graphic Geurrilla

I'm a big fan of Geurrilla advertising. It's the only medium that can break through the clutter whether it's a good idea or bad idea. The unexpected always attracts attention, especially this ad for Kill Bill's syndicated release. I just really hope this photo isn't taken in a women's bathroom, or it has a whole new meaning altogether.

Stretch Marks

I can't believe this one. I mean, it's a great ad that makes a lot of sense. It's on strategy and it's catches attention. But am I again the only one still stuck on the playground? I really have to grow up.

Sour Apple

I recently watched the new Kevin Smith film, "Zack and Miri Make A Porno" and I had to ask, "I wonder what Apple thinks about Justin Long's career choices."

Justin Long came into the enormously famous Mac vs. PC campaign just as his career started to take off. It can be argued that the commercials are a success partly because of Justin Long, or Long's only successful because of the commercials. Chicken or the Egg? It doesn't really matter.

Lately, Long has been making more adult choices regarding what movies he'll make. It started off with awful family comedies like "Herbie: Fully Loaded" and "Alvin and the Chipmunks". Lately however, that boy has been hanging around with a tough crowd (which includes people like Seth Rogen & Bruce Willis). In "Zack and Miri Make A Porno", Justin Long plays a character by the name of Brandon St. Randy, a gay porn star who introduces Zack to the idea of making money by bumping downstairs ugglies on camera for money. Now, my issue isn't that he's gay. It's that he's a pornstar. The porn industry has been getting a lot of attention these days, but I wouldn't say it's at all mainstream. The things Brandon St. Randy describes doing to people isn't something the casual porn viewer has probably ever witnessed, or would at least honestly claim to others.

Does a separate character which isn't at all related with the Mac brand have a negative influence in Apple? Or is it simply creative expression? I suppose it's also a form of synergy. Amateur porn is on the internet. Mac computers access the internet. Mac is porn. Wow, Algebra is easier than I thought...

All I can say is if Justin Long were a PC and not a Mac I bet his career would be very different.

Now let's see what this Mac can find...

Spontex Sensitive Dish Gloves

I had no idea the blind were so germ conscious. Though, they do say that 99.9% of germs aren't visible to the naked eye. Maybe they can hear them? That would be awful. You'd never get any peace and quiet. You'd start wishing you were deaf. But that might hurt Spontex sales. It really is a cruel cruel world.

Fries + Mayo = Blasphemy

I always love the ads that need a few seconds to understand. This is great use of a simple idea meeting even simpler art direction.
I was almost tempted to purchase some Miracle Whip to put on my french fries, until I realized I'm no monster. Ketchup. Gravy? or course! Vinegar? maybe so. Mayo? A BIG NO NO.

More proof that advertising has the power to change.