Lunch in Translation: Sell It Like Beckham

Mega-stars don’t demean themselves in crappy third-rate commercials, right? Well, they do in Japan! Just like Bill Murray pimping for whiskey in that movie where he has a borderline inappropriate relationship with Scarlett Johansson, major celebrities seem to have no qualms about trading on their fame for even the most mundane products…as long as it’s in the Land of the Rising Sun. And so we bring you Lunch in Translation, a recurring series in which we showcase what food products the world’s biggest celebs are hawking in Japan.

David Beckham is about as famous as you get.  He’s known worldwide as a soccer legend.  He married a Spice Girl and became half of one of the most paparazzi’d couples around.  And then he singlehandedly put professional soccer on the map here in the States.  OK, well, maybe that last one didn’t work out so well. But just because he wasn’t able to convince Americans that watching a scoreless soccer match was exciting doesn’t mean he’s not a dynamic pitchman, and so we present Becks shilling for a chocolate company called Meiji.

Full critique, and the final verdict on how big a sell-out this ad is…after the jump.

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Farewell, Harry

Growing up in South Jersey, both gansie and I are big Phillies fans.  And as happy as we were when the Phightin’s took home the trophy last year, we’re both really saddened by the loss of Harry Kalas, the team’s long-time Hall of Fame announcer who was as beloved as anyone in the city.

Even if you’re not from the Delaware Valley, you’ll likely know Harry the K’s work.  He has long been the voice of NFL films, providing dramatic voice-overs for countless highlight reels.

So when Campbell’s decided to go with pro football stars as part of their advertising campaign for Chunky Soup, who better to serve as the voice of these commercials than Harry?

Feed Us Back: Comments of the Week

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– There’s some disagreement on Snickers’ panned pun ads.

EveryGirlsSecret: I hear you. When I saw SNAXI the other day, on top of a cab, i really wanted to die. Really.

In defense of Snickers,  Mike d says: Why you slurpin’ on that Haterade? This is funny: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBF1lsZUlUI. the master P-nut one, too.

But Nick is aware I was really just trying to start a poor-pun-off: Meh… I don’t know. The “chewniversity” ad made me snicker…

– And everyone’s got their own passions and peeves about the tipping debate:

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Hott Link: Meat Madness

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Bracket Busted? Not to worry. You can still get in on So Good’s Meat Madness tourney (which has been having a bit of a food blog feud of its own).

After yesterday’s lamb vs. ground beef nailbiter, today it’s on to the fowl region, where duck is working on an upset of #2 seed turkey.

Feed Us Back: Comments of the Week

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– Everyone loves “nuts.” EricW wants to make sure you all caught this follow-up. Not to be missed.

– In our first food blog feud, 48 percent of you say Scanwhich should stop whining. Britannia: Maybe “Scanwich” can take the left half of the sandwich and “Scanwiches” can take the right half. Problem solved.

– Keep those March Madness food analogies coming. JoeHoya:  Dick Vitale = Bacos. He’s loud. He’s assertive. There’s something distinctly unnatural about him. He’s been around forever, and dammit, he’s EVERYWHERE. But he’s not for everyone – either you love him, in which case you think he makes every game-watching opportunity better, or you hate him, and his mere presence ruins the experience completely.

– Finally, wow am I glad I swallowed my pride and asked for your bad-egg-detecting techniques. ESers really came through on this one:

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Artsy Photo of the Day

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Breakfast of Champions

Pic: DAD GANSIE

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