milk *an advertising agency

It Occurred To Us...

On September 1st we posted about the advertising documentary Art & Copy and referenced that advertising great Lee Clow bore a striking resemblance to the late great Jim Henson - but we didn't provide proof. Our bad. We'll let you guess who's who.

Inspiration or Imitation? – The Credit Debate

American Express is running a new commercial to promote its purchase protection service. The spot uses a series of images featuring everyday objects or scenes that resemble a sad face or happy face (see the screen grab above.) It’s a nice spot. Simple and well executed. But here’s the rub and the reason for this post. When we viewed it on YouTube we saw a comment from someone accusing AmEx of ripping off the concept of a site called Faces in Places and failing to credit the site and its contributors. As you might imagine, FacesInPlaces.com is a site that features images of faces in everyday places. It's a lot of fun. Maybe AmEx’s agency knew of this site. Maybe they didn’t. But let’s assume they did and it inspired them or they simply “lifted” the concept. Do they owe the site credit? Is the act of recognizing the image of a face in a pumpkin suddenly the intellectual property of FacesInPlaces.com? No. AmEx is not going to use a second of its sixty to say, “Thanks FacesInPlaces.com!” Nor should it. Just as every movie with a Cinderella story doesn’t credit every Cinderella story that came before it. We understand that person’s beef, and it’s a debatable issue, but man would never have flown without seeing the birds first. What’s your take?

Brew Ha-Ha - Dunkin' T's Starbucks

Back in June we posted about the storm brewing in the coffee category when McDonald's went all-in with McCafé. Well the pot is boiling over. Have you seen this t-shirt from Dunkin' Donuts? It reads, "Friends don't let friends drink Starbucks." Not sure who would pay $14 for it, but DD has spunk for doing the kind of direct competitive messaging we've seen recently in this lagging economy. Dominoes taking on Subway's toasted subs comes to mind. In fact, so does a poster ABC ran about ten years ago to promote its prime time shows. It read, "Friends don't let friends watch Friends." We love a good fight.

Maximum Exposure - Pepsi Max and CBS Video Ad

To promote CBS' new fall lineup and Pepsi's diet drink Pepsi Max, the two brands teamed up to take advantage of a new technology from Los Angeles-based Americhip, features a paper-thin interactive video player. It is being unveiled in an insert packaged with a co-branded ad that will appear in Entertainment Weekly's annual fall TV preview issue dated Sept. 18. Cool idea. Let's hope the quality lives up to the hype.

Brand Statement - Ben & Jerry's

We don't know what side of the issue you're on, and we're not here to play politics, but rarely do you see a big brand make such a positive statement on an issue as polarizing as gay marriage. So kudos to Ben & Jerry's for taking a risk few brands would. The company has changed the name of its iconic flavor Chubby Hubby to Hubby Hubby in support of Freedom to Marry. Get the full scoop here.

The Maddest Men of All - Art & Copy

Many years ago, American Express ran a print ad featuring Lee Clow, an ad man who looks a lot like the late Jim Henson. It would be fair to say 99.9% of the people who saw the ad probably said, "I thought Jim Henson was dead." But to the .1% of us who know Clow and what he has meant to our industry and brands like AMEX, the man is a legend. That's why we at The Boathouse can't wait to see Art & Copy. The film "reveals the work and wisdom of some of the most influential advertising creatives of our time -- people who've profoundly impacted our culture, yet are virtually unknown outside their industry. Exploding forth from advertising's "creative revolution" of the 1960s, these artists and writers all brought a surprisingly rebellious spirit to their work in a business more often associated with mediocrity or manipulation." You'll definitely want to check this out.

We're So Very, Very Sorry - Creepy Vintage Ads

We can't go a day without encountering ads that leave us wanting to apologize on behalf of our industry. Most of us mean well. We really, truly do. We're just not sure what the hell they were thinking back when these ads were created. Courtesy of the very funny site, RetroComedy.com. The Joe Sequenzia pick of the month. Check it out.

Madres of Invention – Taco Bell Does it Again!

Cue the music. Let the confetti and balloons fall from the rafters. Taco Bell has just created a new menu item using the same four basic ingredients for the 1,000,000th time! Introducing the new Bacon Cheesy Potato Burrito! We know, we know – Pizza Hut, Burger King and all the rest spit out new menu items using the same building blocks like a lawn sprinkler with Tourettes, but no one in Fast Food Land does it with such frequency and zest. Now if Taco Bell would only recycle the Chihuahua. Yo quiero Chihuahua! Check it out.

The Art of Business Cards by Moo

We have to tip our hat to Moo for the great name and URL. (We are Milk after all.) But what really excites us about Moo is its passion for making business cards cool, as well as mini cards, stickers, postcards and more. You can customize your cards with your own images or choose from their excellent designs. Now business cards can do more than pick stuff out of your teeth. They can show a lot of creativity too. Check it out.

What a Load of Crap – The Comfort Wipe

Honestly, we posted this just for the headline – but come on, a stick that holds the toilet paper so you can wipe your butt? Does North Korea make this stuff so they can laugh at us? Not only that, when you visit the website (and you know you want to) you may notice the three spelling errors in the main paragraph. So you know it’s a quality product. Check it out.