Top tech ads not necessarily seen on TV in 2007
Here is an end-of-year list of ads that reflect DIY inspiration, a geek sensibility or simply had a sense of humor tuned to the tech world. There’s some irony in this list of somewhat traditional TV ads spots. I saw only one or two of these ads on TV. All of the ads are found on YouTube and I’ve found most of them because someone sent me a link. So I’ll call this a list of:
Top Tech Ads Not Necessarily Seen on TV in 2007.
John Hodgeman’s Apple ads. These ads continue to be great. It’s ironic that Apple’s stand-in standup is the straight man to Hodgeman — the PC as bumbling Lou Costello. The “Don’t Give Up on Vista” ads are funny, especially the one with the presidential podium. Apple.com features an animated version of the ad in the spirit of the old Rudolph the Reindeer Christmas TV shows. Apple Vista Ad 1 Hodgeman at the Podium Ad
I’m a Wii — a clone of the Apple ads but this ad suggests that a game platform can be more fun. It does make me really want to Wii, I mean, want a Wii. The Wii Ad
The JC Penny “Aviator” ad. A nerdy young girl gets a crazy idea — to build a rocket to take her to the North Pole. If you can imagine it, you can make it. JC Penny Aviator Ad
The Dell ad campaign “Yours is Here” in particular, the ad with the “Watch Us Work It” by DEVO soundtrack. Wrenchs and more…makes you wanna make something. Dell’s DEVO ad
Will it Blend iPhone — Kind of an anti-ad. This iPhone carbonizer reminds us soberly that all gadgets turn to dust. iPhone in a blender.
Honda’s The Cog ad — Disassemble a Honda Accord and use all the parts to make up a very clever Rube Goldberg contraption. It’s a symphony of motion that’s watchable over and over. Honda’s Cog ad
HP’s “Eternal Dreamer” ad featuring Michael Gondry — a fluid piece that moves creatively between the physical and virtual world, between ideas and reality. I like this ad much better than HP’s Gwen Stefani campaign. HP’s Eternal Dreamer
Halo 3 “Believe” ad — This ads reminds us how we grew up playing with toy soldiers — green army men and mounds of dirt. The melancholy soundtrack makes you think you’re watching a “Greatest Generation” documentary. Halo 3 Believe
Assassin’s Creed ads – Beautiful, stylish, subversive re-imagining of the time of the Crusades. Hidden daggers and conspiratorial history. I wish this were movie-length. Ad for Assassin’s Creed Behind the Scenes Promo
Coca Cola “What Goes Around Comes Around” ad — a nasty Grand Theft Auto video turns sweet and syrupy. Each one of us can make the world better. Coca Cola Ad
Here are several videos that look into the advertising industry itself (as awful as sausage-making). The first is a British satire on ad agencies called Truth in Advertising. (I want to start using the term “media wankers.”) There’s also “The Breakup,” a Microsoft-produced video featuring an arrogant advertiser as the lover and a fed-up consumer as the beloved.
Finally, if you want a over-the-top spoof of overindulgence, check out “Consumerism: The Musical.”
Old Soviet Christmas cards
Here’s a four page gallery of space age Christmas cards from Soviet Russia. They’re fantastic!.
National Geographic on giant human hoax
Five years ago, “IronKite” submitted this wonderful photo illustration to a Worth1000.com Photoshop contest on the theme of “Archaeological Anomalies.” The powerful picture was transformed into an Internet urban legend about the National Geographic Society’s discovery of the remains of giant humans in India. Several media outlets reported the story as fact. To this day, the National Geographic Society continues to receive international inquiries about this race of giants. National Geographic News reports on the myth:
(One) story went on to say the discovery was made by a “National Geographic Team (India Division) with support from the Indian Army since the area comes under jurisdiction of the Army.”
The account added that the team also found tablets with inscriptions that suggest the giant belonged to a race of superhumans that are mentioned in the Mahabharata, a Hindu epic poem from about 200 B.C…
Variations of the giant photo hoax include alleged discovery of a 60- to 80-foot long (18- to 24-meter) human skeleton in Saudi Arabia. In one popular take, which likewise first surfaced in 2004, an oil-exploration team is said to have made the find.
Here the skeleton is held up as evidence of giants mentioned in Islamic, rather than Hindu, scriptures.
Life Imitates Satire
In the increasingly surreal battle between the RIAA and music listeners, reality and satire can be hard to discern
Four out of Five People Wash Their Hands.
Four out of Five People Wash Their Hands. Don’t be that Fifth Guy. While you’re at it, cover your mouth when you cough and stay home when you’re sick. Really, how many times do we have to tell you? Wash. Your. Hands. Seriously.
Who’s the Fifth Guy? “The Florida Department of Health set out to prepare people for the potential of a flu pandemic, but they faced a tough challenge: No pandemic on the horizon … Then they built the campaign around what does matter to people: Fitting in.”*
Put Wet Towels On The Sensor
How to wash your hands and ride the elevators in the new New York Times Building.
Seven Girlie Things That Men Would Have Fun Doing
An amusing list of activities which are normally associated with women, but that men would enjoy.
