Coca-Cola spent hundreds of millions of dollars sponsoring Euro 2020. It spent years preparing for one of the world’s most watched soccer tournaments after the Summer Olympics and FIFA World Cup. Coke’s iconic logo sat among European soccer’s brightest stars; it even had bottles of its flagship cola on the postgame podium. Then, the unexpected…
For those of us who’ve spent too many hours digging through YouTube trying to find good-looking versions of classic ads, this is quite a treat: As part of its 50th birthday celebrations, Gatorade has digitally remastered its classic “Be Like Mike” commercial with Michael Jordan after almost a quarter century.
And it really looks good. The old Bayer Bess Vanderwarker spot is completely cleaned up, so you can enjoy seeing Mike play cute pickup games with kids and laugh ridiculously with his actor-teammates like it’s 1992 all over again. (Except for that hashtag at the end!)
Gatorade is doing a whole bunch of “Be Like Mike” stuff around the NBA All-Star weekend, including a “live event experience” in New York featuring Dominque Wilkins and Horace Grant, who will “help visitors do their best impressions of Jordan by ‘Shooting like Mike,’ ‘Dunking like Mike’ and ‘Striking iconic poses like Mike.’ “
The sports drink will also be selling special bottles of Citrus Cooler (Mike’s favorite) with a retro label starting at the end of March.
In fact, the only thing missing from return of “Be Like Mike,” it seems, is present-day Mike.
The remastered ad is cool, though—almost as good as the 1979 Pabst Blue Ribbon spot with Patrick Swayze that was likewise cleaned up a few years ago. Can we do this will all the great spots from the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s, please?
Michael Jordan is back (this time, thankfully, sans Hitler mustache) for Hanes in a new spot by The Martin Agency.
The 30-second spot is Jordan’s first appearance in a Hanes television commercial since 2010, and also marks his 25th year as Hanes spokesperson. In the spot, entitled, “Golf Test,” Jordan mocks his partner’s truly awful golf game. “Golf Test” promotes Hanes’ X-Temp t-shirts and briefs, which “speeds evaporation to help keep you cool and dry,” preventing such conditions as swamp ass, marsh balls, raw taint and pit stains. The spot handles the “bad golf” approach well enough, although by now it’s become a routine schtick in ads and feels a bit tired. Still, all anyone will talk about is the return of Jordan, and it’s good to see him back.
The campaign also features a digital video series with Vine-sensation Logan Paul traveling around the country attempting dares (supposedly) proposed by fans. We’ve included the teaser for that initiative, along with credits, after the jump. (more…)
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On October 1, Zambezi released the first installment of an uncensored interview with Michael Jordan to coincide with the release of NBA 2K14. We’re pleased to cover the release of the second part as MJ, known to be private over the years, opens up a bit about his career, life, and family. When MJ talks about on-court incidents, the viewer can see brief reenactments of his most famous moments using the game’s graphics. The game has been out for awhile, but now that the NBA season is hitting its stride, 2K is looking for another marketing jolt to go with the PS4 and Xbox One releases in the next 10 days.
The best part is when MJ muses on his favorite Jordan shoe of all time, comparing it to choosing a favorite child, but then he goes ahead and rattles off his top-three in the next breath. By the transitive property, MJ could probably rank his offspring, which actually fits perfectly with his competitive and results-based history. Nothing wrong with that, just interesting insights that come from this four-minute candid interview.
Credits after the (basketball-related segue) jump.
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In a follow-up to the earlier NBA 2K14 spot which heralded Lebron James‘s first game cover, Zambezi returns with the official launch ad for the game featuring who most believe is the best in b-ball today. Yours truly hasn’t been much of a gamer since Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter 2 were in existence, but hell, we’re down to revisit the days when we were on fire in NBA Jam. Along with the spot, Zambezi curated an interview with the one and only Michael Jordan dubbed “Uncensored” in what perhaps the greatest basketball player ever actually goes against the grain and dubs Kobe Bryant the only one he probably couldn’t beat in the NBA today. Well, he did emulate his style to perfection after all, so maybe MJ’s on to something. Credits and the Jordan interview after the jump.
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LeBron James may have a South Beach mansion full of trophies, but until yesterday, he had yet to accomplish one basketball-related goal: gracing the cover of a video game. NBA 2K14 won’t hit stores until the fall, but last night, viewers of the NBA Finals on ABC got to watch the introductory ad – created by Zambezi – where James announces his plan to join past coverboys like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. For 2K Sports, having the best basketball player in the world endorsing your basketball product is not too shabby, either.
Lost in all of this is the noble presence of Steve Kerr, once the foil to MJ in the NBA, and now, the foil to Marv Albert in NBA broadcasting. Kerr plays the role of “2K Investigator” in the commercial’s somewhat-lame hook. But when a six-foot white guy who couldn’t dunk gets into a basketball video game commercial, everyone wins.
Credits after the jump.
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Who is your favorite Beyonce? Is it “Bootylicious” Beyonce? Sasha Fierce? “Crazy in Love” Beyonce? There’s always the more traditional millionaire mogul/super-duper female role model Bey, the one who signed the Pepsi endorsement deal that brought us to this point. In “Mirrors,” which comes to us from 180 LA and features Mrs. Carter’s track, “Grown Woman,” you don’t have to choose a favorite Beyonce, because they are all there for you to admire. The 60-second spot is part of Pepsi’s “Live for Now” campaign.
I’m not sure what Beyonce or Pepsi has to do with the idea of living for now. And Coke tastes much better, had to throw that in there. But Pepsi has been making strides in the music industry, helping to brand popular and upcoming artists to enormous audiences. This spot evokes the Gatorade “Who Got Next” commercial from a few years ago with Michael Jordan playing one-on-one against earlier versions of himself. That was clever and made sense with the brand; this doesn’t, but it’s Beyonce, so everyone will gawk at her on YouTube or their television screens. Maybe they should. #BeyHereNow.
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L’artiste Rocco Malatesta a eu l’excellente idée de penser une série de posters illustrant les mains de personnages et personnalités mythiques. De Jésus à Michael Jordan en passant par E.T, les visuels de cette série sont à découvrir dans la suite.
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La chaîne de télévision ESPN a pensé pour les USA cette nouvelle publicité très drôle et intelligente. Reprenant la notoriété de la légende du basketball Michael Jordan et la détournant avec beaucoup d’humour, ce spot est à découvrir dans la suite de l’article en vidéo.
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With the newest round of Jordan commercials hitting the airwaves in recent days, there is only one thing that comes to mind… “Thank you Wieden + Kennedy, for you have done it again.” Each of the ads pushes the viewer to “become legendary.” And I must say, 60 seconds of Michael Jordan telling me I’ve probably just been making excuses, well, it cuts me to the bone. Each ad is awe-inspiring and each ad serves as a nice reminder that the brilliant advertising, it’s still out there.Â
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