Not to pile on, but I think its just innocent fun and we shouldn't lose sense of humor. And by now most Americans might recognize that the translation from 6 liters to 300 gallons is flat wrong, and find themselves laughing on metric's behalf.
Nat -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Bill Potts Sent: Thursday, 2008 February 14 13:14 To: U.S. Metric Association Subject: [USMA:40436] RE: Procter & Gamble anti-metric ad Actually, it tickled my funny bone, Paul. Consider for a moment who "Jackie Moon" is. Perhaps the following will help: ----start of clip---- Will Ferrell stars in Semi-Pro, a comedy set in 1976 against the backdrop of the maverick ABA-a fast-paced, wild and crazy basketball league that rivaled the NBA and made a name for itself with innovations like the three-point shot and slam dunk contest. Ferrell plays Jackie Moon, a one-hit wonder who used the profits from the success of his chart-topping song "Love Me Sexy" to achieve his dream of owning a basketball team. But Moon's franchise, the Flint Michigan Tropics, is the worst team in the league and in danger of folding when the ABA announces its plans to merge with the NBA. If they want to survive, Jackie and the Tropics must now do the seemingly impossible-win. ----end of clip---- This is one of at least two commercials being used to promote two products at a time, namely the upcoming release of the movie, Jackie Moon, and a tangible product. The tangible products in the two commercials are Old Spice and Bud Lite. I haven't yet looked at the Bud Lite commercial, but a simple Google search on Jackie Moon will lead you right to it. Jackie Moon is supposed to be somewhat ignorant-or maybe gloriously ignorant. His comments on the metric system are, therefore, those of an ignoramus. At least, I'm convinced that's what the creators of the commercial had in mind. I think the fact that his initial exaggeration refers to a liter of sweat may be indicative of what we already know to be P&G's metric orientation. The objective of such a commercial is simple. They want you to remember the product, so that you'll instinctively reach for it the next time you're shopping for something in its category. Presenting it in an outrageous manner is often part of that. Finally, we should remember that it's the ad agency, not its client, that produces the commercial. If they can convince the client to sign off on it, then we get to see it. If it can be shown that somewhat tasteless commercials are successful, the client is happy and the ad agency gets its hefty fee for producing it, and the TV network gets its hefty fee for showing it. Obviously, Will Ferrell is very much in demand for such assignments. As metrication activists, we mustn't lose our sense of humor. Having a sense of humor doesn't mean agreeing that every joke or spoof is funny, but it does involve recognizing when something is intended, even if misguidedly, to be a joke or a spoof. I shall not be complaining to P&G. Bill Potts Roseville, CA http://metric1.org [SI Navigator] -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Paul Trusten Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2008 09:07 To: U.S. Metric Association Subject: [USMA:40432] Procter & Gamble anti-metric ad I"M READY TO VOMIT! Procter & Gamble is supposed to be our friend on the metric system. Somebody in their advertising department goofed. Take a look at http://www.oldspice.com/products_new.html. Watch the video, and write to http://www.pg.com/getintouch/syt.jhtml. Let's get this damned thing off the air if we can! -- Paul Trusten, R.Ph. Public Relations Director U.S. Metric Association (USMA), Inc. www.metric.org 3609 Caldera Blvd., Apt. 122 Midland TX 79707-2872 US +1(432)528-7724 mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
