This post is for everyone who likes a good, stiff eggnog during the holidays! President Dwight Eisenhower knew his way around a kitchen, and this eggnog recipe is proof positive of that fact. With a quart of liquor as a prime ingredient it’s proof plus! Enjoy!
Creativity is NOT preferred
This link takes you to an article in Slate online that cites recent research on the subject of creativity. On finding: Creativity is actively resisted by decision-makers in positions of authority. This has big implications for media-intense industries like film-making and advertising. See what you think.
KFC’s over-the-top spot
So, here’s a 2-minute-plus spot from KFC by its British ad shop that is about as over-the-top as I, for one, can imagine. My sense of good taste is slapped silly by this radically over-produced homage to something totally unworthy of the effort. But that’s just me. What about you?
Yes, this IS a real commercial!
Yes, this IS a real commercial!
This is a very long form commercial at 3:05. The “performance” itself is unique and incredibly impressive in terms of what it must have taken to stage this event. The sponsoring company is not revealed until the end. I doubt this could air in the U.S., given our high rates for commercial air time. But as a YouTube video, it could score a lot of hits. We shall see. Any thoughts?
Mike Tyson returns Evander’s ear!
Mike Tyson returns Evander’s ear!
This is from Advertising Age and it’s hilarious. Enjoy!
How Interactive Media Can Scramble Your Brain
How Interactive Media Can Scramble Your Brain
This link takes you to an article from “Strategy + Business” about the mental hazards of multimedia. The article references research by one of my most influential scholars, Stanford’s Clifford Nass. This a good and insightful read. Enjoy.
Christopher Walken’s silent side
Christopher Walken’s silent side
This link will take you to a series of spots for a clothing company in which Walken portrays a kind of magical-mystical tailor-designer. There are cgi effects to account for his super powers. A most remarkable features of these commercials is that Walken speaks not one word of dialog! The psychological impact of not using what is arguably one of the most distinctive voices in the TV-film acting world creates a special kind of weirdness that true Walken fans (like myself) can only marvel at.
Looks count more than sound for musical performance preferences
An email newsletter I subscribe to about the music business notes, “The way a musician looks on stage is more important to listeners than the music being played, according to a study just released. That is, even though most music fans swear that they are evaluating the music based on the music itself, and little else.” The news cites a study from Dr. Chia-Jung Tsay, a professor at the University College, London, that is part of the proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The piece can be downloaded free from the Academy website at this URL: http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2013/08/16/1221454110.full.pdf+html?sid=e6485f76-186a-42d1-9c95-af1c3e2f32f0
Elmore Leonard passes and I am at a loss
He was 87, which isn’t bad. Might have gone longer if he hadn’t kept smoking, but no real way to know that. I regret that I discovered him fairly late in life, in my early 50s. I loved everything of his I ever read, from the westerns to the crime stuff. He was a real master of dialog. He wrote characters that sounded true to life. They were all shades of gray, not a full black or white in the whole parade. If you never experienced him, I’d suggest Rum Punch for openers. And of course the books with Raylen Givens in them, starting with the short, Fire in the Hole. “Justified” is a wonderful series, and I only hope the producers will stay true to the course they have set when “Dutch” was around to lend a guiding word now and then. God bless Elmore.
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