Fake TLC promo isn't far from the real thing

A few months old, but new to us—this wonderful fake promo for TLC, advertising shows like 12 Wives 12 Problems, Dwarf Hoarders, Uterus Cannon, Cake Whores, Old Face New Vagina and 9 Fat Kids 1 Dessert. The real TLC, home to such actual programs as 19 Kids and Counting and I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant, is getting more outlandish all the time. Its newest show, Strange Sex, premiered on Sunday, and featured one woman with two vaginas and one with no vagina. (For the record, both of their faces looked young-to-medium.) Via Kottke.

Filed under Nudd, Parody, TLC, TV, Vaginas
Permalink | Comments (3)

Fired Geico guy likes Palin-Bachmann ticket

It looks like D.C. Douglas has been busy since being fired as a voiceover artist by Geico last year for leaving an angry voicemail for conservatives at FreedomWorks. Here's his latest production—a momentous music video in which Thomas Jefferson and John Hancock sarcastically sing the praises of a Sarah Palin-Michele Bachmann presidential ticket in 2012. Douglas (aka Lance Baxter) writes on his blog that he "decided to pin his hopes on a political powerhouse duo who could both save the needy and stop our sun from going supernova. That duo was Sarah Palin and Michele Bachmann." He adds: "You may say that I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one."

Filed under Nudd, Parody, Politics
Permalink | Comments (2)

Cheesy car-dealer spot slyly pitches 'Cars 2'

This "Sale-A-Bration" spot for Cars 'N Deals of Emeryville is supposedly not an ad for a used-car dealer but a brilliant viral promo for Disney-Pixar's upcoming Cars 2, featuring various visual references to that film. It was directed by Chris Cantwell, who did last year's "Lots-o'-Huggin' Bear" spot for Toy Story 3. Well, slam on the brakes, because I say the spot is, in fact, exactly what it purports to be—an ad for a place that sells used cars! Check out slimy pitchman Stu: He's got a stuck-on moustache, likes to record his spiel on Watergate-era reel-to-reel audio tape, and dresses up in tiger suits. Seems like a genuine used-car dealer to me. Then there's the little futuristic robot that peeks out from beneath one of the clunkers. I mean, you can't visit a lot these days without tripping over one bot or another, am I right? As for the dude in the skin-tight ninja outfit who rises from a manhole and then dematerializes, well, I see him everywhere I go. He's in my kitchen right now making tea. Look, Lots-o-Huggin' Bear was branded a fake—but you can buy the stuffed animal! He's for real! My point: These days, "truth" is increasingly subjective, and even if it's not real yet, it will be soon. Now, excuse me while I go hit up Stu for a sweet deal on an '89 Capri. Or maybe a Lunar Rover.

Filed under Automotive, Disney, Gianatasio, Movies, Parody, Pixar
Permalink | Comments (6)

How did Richard Branson succeed? Drugs.

The marketing machine keeps rolling for upcoming movie Limitless and its fictional wonderdrug, NZT. Now it's not just Bradley Cooper shilling the pills, either. In the new spot below, Sir Richard Branson attributes all his business-leading, global-ballooning, space-traveling success to NZT, a drug which unfortunately carries minor side effects such as psychosis, brain damage and extreme paranoia. Early ads made no mention of the movie, but the cat's out of the bag now. Still, it's a decent viral approach for a flick that stokes and then crushes our dreams of using more than 10 percent of our feeble brains. Via Entertainment Weekly.

Filed under Movies, Parody, Stanley, Virgin
Permalink | Comments (1)

Hot grannies getting sexed up for equal pay

In honor of International Women's Day today, let's look at another spot about equal pay for women. This one, from Equal PayDay, a Belgian non-profit, is an audacious spoof of Benny Benassi's "Satisfaction" video (the hot version of the video with jiggling jugs and the power tools, not the creepy one). And in contrast to Dame Judy Dench's sonorous lecture about equality (delivered over Daniel Craig in drag), this spot is highly amusing. There's just something about watching old ladies operate power tools in slow-motion as their false teeth slide from their mouths. The spectacle is brought to you by Mortierbrigade Belgium. Aside from it being International Women's Day, these equal-pay spots are all coming out in March because the typical woman has to work for a year and three months to make the same amount as a man makes in a year.

Filed under Cullers, Europe, Parody, Women's rights
Permalink | Comments (1)

'Limitless' sees promise in a brain on drugs

Rogue Pictures parodies the famous "This is your brain on drugs" PSA in the spot below, promoting Limitless, a movie about a wonder drug called NZT that heightens your mental processes and lets you unlock you full potential. Now, they're asking for your "Brain on drugs" spoofs, too. The big prize is an iPad, which is hardly limitless, since it can't even run Flash. (Those Apple dudes are such pills!) In the film, Bradley Cooper plays a writer—the perfect profession for this particular plot, as we use only about 1 percent of our grey cells on a daily basis. Judging from the movie snippets, NZT puts you in the fast lane with a fat stock portfolio, fancy cars, private jets and hot chicks. Usually, you have to steal the idea for a social network to get all that. Obviously someone has already submitted a "Brain on drugs" spoof with Charlie Sheen. That's apt, as his ability to amass Twitter followers, at least, is limitless.

Filed under Anti-drug, Gianatasio, Movies, Parody
Permalink | Comments (0)

Winning, a new cologne from Charlie Sheen

Jimmy Fallon does a decent Charlie Sheen impression, and puts that timely skill to good use in this spoof cologne commercial for Sheen's scent "Winning." Presumably it smells like violent hatred.

Filed under Celebrity endorsements, Fragrances, Nudd, Parody
Permalink | Comments (3)

15 great jingles for fake brands. Sing along!

Creating an addictive jingle has long been one of the most prized skills in advertising. It's especially impressive when a memorable jingle doesn't even promote a real product. To celebrate the latter, we've collected 15 great jingles written for fake brands. Enjoy having them stuck in your head for the rest of your time on Earth!

Filed under Griner, Music, Parody
Permalink | Comments (19)

Groupon ads are getting even more horrible

If you thought the Tibet-themed Groupon ad from the Super Bowl was over the line, take a gander at the next spots—pegged to Saddam Hussein, the BP oil spill and a load of other not-laugh-out-loud-funny topics. Yes, they're parodies cooked up by Conan and crew, a late-night cocktail of goofy, offensive and smart. You decide which these are.

Filed under Conan O'Brien, Groupon, Parody, Stanley
Permalink | Comments (1)

Unfinished ad for Doritos delays Super Bowl

Just how much bedding down takes place between the NFL and its Super Bowl sponsors? So much that the turf in Dallas will be colored Doritos orange, the game balls will be shaped like Doritos, and the halftime show will be awash in Doritos-themed 3-D. Oh, and the Big Game itself—not happening this Sunday, because Doritos needed more time to finish its bodacious babe-centric commercials and fine-tune an in-game ad that will use the power of the Doritos crunch to sack a quarterback. So says the new Comedy Central series, Onion SportsDome, with a pitch-perfect "breaking news" parody (below) that aired Tuesday night and included an NFL statement saying a Super Bowl without a Doritos ad would be "unimaginable." The indefinite delay will help other marketers, too, with Bud Light using it to pump out 30 or 40 more spots, The Onion says, and Chevrolet trying to coax "a less hateful performance out of Howie Long." See? It really is all about the commercials.

Filed under Doritos, Parody, Stanley, Super Bowl, The Onion
Permalink | Comments (4)

Summer blasts winter in withering attack ad

Winter claims it only lasts three months, just like every other season. But doesn't it feel longer? What is winter hiding? This timely message paid for by summer. Via BuzzFeed. Previously in mock negative political advertising: Attack ad takes shots at "disgusting" babies.

Filed under Nudd, Parody, Politics
Permalink | Comments (1)

If ad agencies planned kids' birthday parties

You'll enjoy this. Canadian ad agency John St., with a little help from Arcade Fire, put together this mock case study for one of its greatest marketing triumphs: Making Chelsea Bedano's 8th birthday party a success in an already cluttered birthday market. What's the takeaway? The integrated campaign of direct mail, out-of-home and social media was important—as was the pre-party sleepover with the snacks, the movies and the Justin Bieber songs. But to keep the audience engaged, you really do need that mini pony. UPDATE: This is the new version of the video, sans Arcade Fire. 

Filed under Canada, John St., Nudd, Parody
Permalink | Comments (26)

Old Spice parodies getting quite regrettable

We reached the expiration date on Old Spice parodies a while ago. That hasn't stopped them coming and coming and coming. Even venture capitalists are getting in on the act. First Round Capital has crafted a holiday video with partners and portfolio companies acting out Isaiah Mustafa's role. Most chose to wear body suits rather than show off their techie bodies. Good choice. Investment banker Terry Kawaja is not so shy. He quickly turned around his own Old Spice spoof for his firm, Luma Partners. Terry goes all-in with shirtlessness that he frets will dismay his wife. I have to give him the win over First Round Capital on keeping it brief. The VC firm's video runs more than seven minutes. UPDATE: First Round Capital is going all-in with response videos.

Filed under Morrissey, Old Spice, Parody
Permalink | Comments (0)

Steve Jobs (once again) cast as Big Brother

Steve Jobs as Big Brother? At this point, it's typecasting. And spoofing Apple's famous "1984" ad introducing the Macintosh never goes out of style. So, the National Organization for Marriage has launched a video portraying Jobs as an über-villain following Apple's rejection of the group's anti-gay-marriage app. "Jobs has made billions taking on 'Big Brother,' yet the irony is that in refusing to allow citizens to support pro-life and traditional marriage positions, he's become the very 'Big Brother' he has decried," says NOM president Brian Brown. The group plans a mass e-mailing of the clip this holiday season. I know it's the thought that counts, but I'd really prefer a tie or some socks instead.

Filed under Apple, Gianatasio, Parody, Politics
Permalink | Comments (2)

Bradley Cooper hyping cure-all wonder drug

Ever wonder how Bradley Cooper pulled his career out of a post-Alias death spiral and became a Hollywood star seemingly overnight? Maybe he discovered NZT, the magic drug that makes you incredible at everything. Or maybe the ad below is just a bit of viral shenanigans for Cooper's upcoming movie, Limitless, in which he plays a copywriter who dabbles with an experimental and potentially deadly wonderdrug. If your professional life needs a boost but you can't get your hands on some NZT, might I recommend co-starring in a movie with Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson? Warning: Side effects may include sharp, painful career death for Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson. Via TMZ.

Filed under Griner, Movies, Parody, Pharma
Permalink | Comments (2)

Rokk vodka knows you love a pompous ass

Moody, monochrome photography. Futuristic cars. An overwrought soundtrack. Three dweebs splashing around salaciously in an ornate pool. A woman breathlessly relating her dreams of luxury, status and one brand's power to transcend space and time. Such is this sendup of pretentious advertising by comedy team The Lonely Island—featuring Saturday Night Live's Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone, who appear in the spot. It's also a real commercial for Rokk vodka. Some might find it an amusing bit of social satire that successfully skewers overblown ads. Others will view it as under-done and less outlandish than the genre it lampoons. As for the burly Viking dousing the dudes with a garden hose, well, I think everyone can enjoy that.

Filed under Alcohol, Gianatasio, Parody, Rokk
Permalink | Comments (0)

Publicis's Twitter video gets dick-joke remix

Publicis Groupe thought it would be fun to advertise its Twitter feed with footage of staffers (including Maurice Lévy and Kevin Roberts) in their natural habitat, making little chirpy birdie sounds at each other. But shortly after it was released, some prankster uploaded a new version with subtitles for the chirps—which turn out mostly to be dick jokes. See what can happen when remix culture decides to remix you? Check out this page to see the original and the remix (now with more penis!), which implies that Publicis employees spend most of their time taking pictures of their tiny todgers. Via BNET.

Filed under Cullers, Dick jokes, Parody, Publicis, Social media, Twitter
Permalink | Comments (3)

R-rated Old Spice spoof honors Page 3 girls

Old Spice parody turns racy with this effort from Britain's Sun newspaper honoring the 40th anniversary of its Page 3 girls (who've famously graced the tabloid's pages topless since Nov. 17, 1970). Obviously, the clip reminds men that Page 3 girls are the women they secretly wish their women would be like. "To pay homage to this national institution that's been spicing up your life since 1970, we got Page 3's gorgeous Rosie to show you boys her charms," the paper says. Following Grover's spoof last month, it appears these parodies have now targeted just about every age group and sensibility. Via The Boston Egotist.

Video is (probably) safe for work.

Filed under Europe, Newspapers, Nudd, Old Spice, Parody
Permalink | Comments (0)

T-Mobile needles iPhone with Apple parody

T-Mobile skewers the iPhone with this cheeky send-up of the "Get a Mac" campaign. It touts the myTouch 4G device as better and faster and blah blah blah ... but mostly makes me wish Apple would revive its classic spots. They'd better not put Justin Long in a skirt, though. That idea makes me want to skip lunch today. But John Hodgman in drag? Ooh la la!

Filed under Apple, Gianatasio, Parody, T-Mobile, Telecom
Permalink | Comments (5)

Malaria is a real horror show in spoof trailer

Has there been a surge in malaria diagnoses lately? Everyone seems to be talking about it, from John Mayer to this trailer for The Hunting Moon, which sounds like a YA novel about vampire Indians but is actually (spoiler alert!) an elaborate hoax to promote Malaria No More, an anti-malaria organization. Red Bee Media put it together, even making a Hunting Moon Web site, which puts the idea in context with MNM's goal of stamping out malaria. The campaign is reminiscent of Serve Marketing's fake horror flick 2028, which was actually a teen-pregnancy effort. Too bad The Hunting Moon is fake—this would be an ideal setup for a good survival horror flick, which is way more interesting to me than Saw XII or however many they've made by now. See the Mayer spot (which includes other celebs) after the jump.

Click to read more ...

Filed under Health, Kiefaber, Movies, Parody, PSAs
Permalink | Comments (0)

Smoke pink cigarettes, defeat breast cancer

Big Tobacco is joining the fight against breast cancer by rolling out snazzy pink cigarettes, and promising to donate half a cent to the breast-cancer cause for every pack smoked. This humorous parody from the Upright Citizens Brigade takes a shot at modern consumption-as-activism, the companies that exploit it, and possibly the amount of attention breast cancer gets over other forms of cancer. The pregnant woman and the old lady with the voicebox are glorious, and everything else is pretty spot on. So, all in all I'd say UCB has come a long way from the dorky, unfunny Comedy Central show I remember from high school. If they're looking to make more PSA spoofs, I'd love to see what they'd do with AIDS or domestic violence. Via Consumerist.

Filed under Breast cancer, Kiefaber, Parody, PSAs
Permalink | Comments (2)

Attack ad takes shots at 'disgusting' babies

As you cast your vote today, keep in mind that the world would be a much better place—less barfy, less stinky, less generally disgusting—if we could kick all the babies out of Washington. An amusing spoof by Ramsey Bros. Pictures.

Filed under Nudd, Parody, Politics
Permalink | Comments (0)

Favre hangs loose in SNL sexting parody ad

SNL's new fake ad for Wrangler No-Fly jeans demonstrates how certain things are only comfortable for the person wearing them. Especially if they also forsake underpants, as Brett Favre reportedly did when he sexted a much-younger woman with a picture of his junk. We like to think that the real Favre has been playing football long enough to understand what not to leave exposed during a game, but then again, his judgment does seem to be pretty clouded these days. If Favre ever decides to  break his silence on the issue, an ad like this might be a good way to take a burst of late-career publicity and really milk it (figuratively speaking).

Filed under Kiefaber, Parody, SNL, Sports, Wrangler
Permalink | Comments (3)

Elvira spoofs Christine O'Donnell witch spot

The Christine O'Donnell witch-ad parodies keep on coming. Here's one from Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, promoting her syndicated Elvira's Movie Macabre show, which returned to the air in September after a hiatus of more than 20 years. Read more about Cassandra Peterson's revival of her classic camp vamp character at OC Weekly.

Filed under Christine O'Donnell, Elvira, Nudd, Parody, Politics
Permalink | Comments (0)

Eight years later, another Ellen Feiss parody

Ellen Feiss was 14 when she did her Apple "Switchers" ad in 2002. Now, she's a college graduate. But her famous spot—in which she laconically (a bit too laconically, some said) mourned the loss of an essay eaten by a PC—still reverberates with the tech crowd. Like the people at Bantam Networks, which have just rolled out the spoof above. Feiss herself has not been heard from publicly since this 2007 interview, in which she spoke of the creepiness of fame. "I was famous but not that famous," she said. "It's not like I had to get a bodyguard, but my parents stopped letting me go out alone for a while. … Plus, a lot of my fame seemed to me to be based on the fact that I seemed to be a vulnerable (stoned) young girl. That is never who I was or am. I don't want that kind of gendered fame, and I was never proud of the fact that a bunch of dudes on the Internet thought I was hot or ugly or stoned or stupid or any of the other things people talked about. That being said, a lot of my fans have turned out to be nice, intelligent, Mac-using people. Mostly men, but a few women, too." Ellen's old spot is posted below. Via Adrants.

Filed under Apple, Bantam, Nudd, Parody
Permalink | Comments (0)