The King of Super Bowl Ads...
In a timeline yesterday on the Super Bowl of 1987, in addition to the results of the game (The Giants beating Denver 39-20) I mentioned the cost of one 30-second TV spot being $60,000. Today a 30-second ad will set advertisers back $85,000 come Super Bowl Sunday, February 4th. Most advertisers will pass because the risk of results (or what we used to call your "bang for buck") is far greater than its payout reward. Most experts agree that ads for beers, pizza or anything else consumed during the game may see an immediate sales boost...
This year, Super Bowl XLI on CBS-TV is expected to draw about 90 million viewers but how many advertisers are willing to pay up to $2.6 million for a 30-second spot? The answer is more than 25 and talks are continuing to add more commercial time during the game. Among those 25 sponsors, one stands out as the "King". "The King of Beers" is also the king of Super Bowl sponsors: Anheuser-Busch which has bought 5 minutes of ads (you do the math) for its Budweiser and Bud Light brands...
In those 10 Bud spots you'll see the usual stable of Clydesdale's, a tie-in with the horror film "The Hitcher", a gang of red crabs (huh?), Dale Earnhardt Jr. being chased and Comedy Central comedian Carlos Mencia. What you won't see is an ad that was banned from last year's Super Bowl. You won't see it during the game but you will see it by linking to our video clip of it. Here's the Bud Light you didn't see last year: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1985781287441898184 ...
Timeline Memories...
"Happy Trails": 1979] Former Vice President and New York Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller dies of a heart attack at 70. At first report he was alone in his office but it was later determined that he was at home in the presence of his 25-year old female aide who had a Daily News reporter friend call 911 an hour after he had died leading to speculation about the cause the heart attack (you do the math)...1983] Legendary football coach Bear Bryant dies of a heart attack at 69 just 41 days after his retirement...
"It's Showtime at the Apollo": 1934] The Apollo Theater opens in Harlem (125th St. & 7th Ave.)...
"Take a Letter Maria": 1784] Benjamin Franklin sends a letter to his daughter expressing his unhappiness over the eagle being selected over the turkey as the symbol of America (we can only guess what his daughter's reaction was but it was probably something like, "Are you nuts Dad?")...
Drilled to meet you: 1875] George F. Green patents the electric drill (it hurts just writing that)...
The real Commish: 1960] 33-year old L.A. Rams GM is elected commissioner of the NFL succeeding Bert Bell...
Written and Recorded on this date: 1970] "Instant Karma" - John Lennon...
#1 on this date: 1961] "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" - Elvis Presley...
"Put your Dukes up": 1979] "The Dukes of Hazzard" premieres and will run until the summer of '85 on CBS-TV...
"A Hunk-a Hunk-a Burning Love": 1984] Michael Jackson's hair catches on fire while filming a Pepsi commercial...
"(I Wanna) Testify": 1996] First-lady Hillary Rodham Clinton testifies before a grand jury connected to the Whitewater probe (her nose is noticeably longer leaving the court room)...
"Who's That Lady?": 1998] Bill Clinton makes his famous "I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky" speech (the President's nose is noticeably longer after his statement)...
Not so Super: 1997] The Green Bay Packers crush the Patriots 35-21 in Super Bowl XXXI (but Super Bowls XXXVI, XXXVIII and XXXIX produce different results)...
Flying on Empty: 1999] The NTSB concludes that John Denver's 1997 fatal light-plane crash was caused by too little fuel in the tank at takeoff...
Crash Landing: 2003] Billy Joel is hospitalized after crashing his car into a tree in Sag Harbor ("how'd that tree get there?")...
[To ensure accuracy of dates and content, multiple reference sources are used in each timeline]...
Commentary...
"Happy Trails" to Jack Lang who died following an extended period of various ailments. Jack was a Hall of Fame baseball writer who had the pleasant assignment of phoning players selected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with the news of their selection. Jack covered the Dodgers, Yankees and Mets for various papers in New York and was also a correspondent for the Sporting News. Jack was 85...
"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":
Vince Carter (30), Wayne Gretzky (46), Ellen DeGeneres (49), Eddie Van Halen (50), David Strathairn (59), Jean Knight (64), Bob Uecker (72), Huey "Piano" Smith (73), Paul Newman (82) and Anne Jeffreys (84)...
Saturday, January 27, 2007...
Timeline Memories...
"A fiery death": 1967] A flash fire aboard Apollo I during a test kills astronauts Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom, Edward H. White and Roger B. Chaffee...
"Gotta light?": 1880] Thomas Edison patents the electric incandescent lamp...
Radio with pictures: 1926] John Baird, a Scottish inventor, demonstrates a pictorial transmission machine called television...
Networking: 1927] United Independent Broadcasters, Inc. starts a radio network of 16 stations. The company would later be named the Columbia Broadcasting System or CBS...
Wired: 1948] The Wire Recording Corporation of America announces the 1st magnetic tape recorder. The "Wireway" machine with a built in oscillator selling for $149.50 (did anyone ever have one of these?)...
Dropping A Bomb: 1951] Atomic testing begins in the Nevada desert when an Air Force plane drops a one-kiloton bomb on Frenchman Flats...
Released on this date: 1956] "Heartbreak Hotel" - Elvis Presley (by April 21st it's #1)...1968] "(Sittin' On) The Dock of The Bay" - Otis Redding (released 6 weeks after his tragic death)...
Debuted on this date: 1968] The Bee Gees make their U.S. debut with a concert at the Anaheim (CA) Convention Center...
"Welcome Back": 1981] Ronald Reagan welcomes the 52 former Iranian hostages to the White House...
"Boogity, Boogity": 1984] Wayne Gretzky sets an NHL record for consecutive game scoring with 51 games (and the streak ends there)...
Twice as Super: 1991] Whitney Houston sings the definitive version of our national anthem at Super Bowl XXV and Scott "wide right" Norwood becomes famous for missing a field goal that would have won it for Buffalo. The Giants win instead, 20-19...
"A right-wing conspiracy": 1998] First lady Hillary Clinton blames a "vast right-wing conspiracy" on her husband's personal (Monica Lewinsky) personal problems on "The Today Show"...
"The winner and not Champion": 2004] John Kerry wins the New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary (we won't have John Kerry to kick around anymore in 2008. Pity)...
"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":
Bridget Fonda (43), Cris Collinsworth (48), Mimi Rogers (51), Mikhail Baryshnikov (59), Nedra ("Ronettes") Talley (61) and Bobby "Blue" Bland (77)...
Sunday, January 28, 2007...
Timeline Memories...
Liftoff disaster: 1986] The Challenger Seven explodes taking the lives of 7 astronauts (Smith, Scobee, Resnik, McNair, Onizuka, Jarvis and McAuliffe) as the world watches with mouths open...
"Number puh-lease": 1878] The 1st telephone switchboard is installed in New Haven (CT)...
"Read All About It": 1879] "The Yale News" is published becoming the 1st daily college newspaper in the U.S...
"On Guard": 1915] The U.S. Coast Guard is created by an act of Congress...
Supreme pick: 1916] Louis D. Brandeis is appointed to the Supreme Court, becoming the 1st Jewish judge on the panel...
"Da Bearsssss": 1922] The Decatur (IL) NFL franchise moves to Chicago and takes the name, Chicago Bearsssss....
A tow hold: 1938] The 1st ski tow (using rope) starts operation in Woodstock, Vermont...
Mugging it up: 1953] J.Fred Muggs (a chimp) joins NBC-TV's "Today Show"...
Debuted on this date: 1956] Elvis Presley makes his 1st network TV appearance singing "Heartbreak Hotel" on the "Dorsey Brothers Stage Show"...
Recorded on this date: 1985] "We Are The World" - more than 40 artists (with proceeds going to worldwide hunger prevention)...
Premiered on this date: 1973] "Barnaby Jones" starring Buddy Ebsen which runs until the fall of 1980...
"The plane...the plane": 1978] "Fantasy Island" starring Ricardo Montalban and Herve Villechaize premieres on ABC-TV and runs until the summer of 1984 and then goes into syndication until life itself as we know it ends...
"Tonight, Tonight": 1957] "Tonight America After Dark" premieres on NBC-TV with co-hosts Jack Lescoulie and Al (Jazzbo) Collins. The show runs between Steve Allen and Jack Paar and becomes "The Jack Paar Show" on July 29th...
Campy: 1958] Brooklyn Dodger catcher Roy Campanella is paralyzed below the waist when his car overturns on an icy road in Glen Cove (LI). Campanella will never play again and is inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969...
InVinceable: 1959] Vince Lombardi is named coach of the Green Bay Packers. He will win 5 titles in his 9 years in Green Bay...
Super Bowled: 2004] Ray Lewis leads the Baltimore Ravens to a 34-7 beating of the Giants in Super Bowl XXXV...
"It's a Ford": 1999] Ford buys Sweden's Volvo for $6.45 billion (right now they'd like to have that money back)...
"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":
Elijah Wood (38), Kathryn ("Cold Case") Morris (38), Sarah McLachlan (39), Barbi Benton (57), Alan Alda (71) and (Mr.) Acker Bilk (78)...
Timeline Countdown (as of Jan. 28): 7 days until Super Bowl XLI, 18 days until 'pitchers and catchers' and 52 days until spring...
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