The greatest Super Bowl ads of all time
Friday, 1 February 2008
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Fox, broadcaster of this year's Super Bowl, are charging an estimated $2.7m (£1.4m) for each of the 63 30-second advertising slots up for grabs during the international television coverage of American football's flagship event. And, despite the price, companies such as General Motors, Coke and Pepsi are queueing up to debut their ads on what is now largely regarded by the American media as the world's greatest promotional stage.
We look back at some of the best adverts of previous years and ask you to vote for your favourite of all time. Here, in no particular order, are the nominations:
1 Xerox 'Monks' (1977)
An uncontestable classic, the exploits of Brother Dominic and the head monk of his monastery have gone down in Super Bowl ad history, having been voted one of the top 25 commercials of the 20th-century by the New York Times, and inducted in the CLIO hall of advertising fame.
2. Electronic Data Systems 'Herding Cats' (2000)
Does anyone know who Electronic Data Systems are, or what it is they do exactly? No. But is it a great advert? Yes, yes it is.
3 Coke 'Mean Joe Greene' (1979)
Coca-cola has always had a reputation for slick television marketing. Here the offer of a bottle of Coca-Cola to Pittsburgh Steelers star Charles Edward Greene softens him up to the point that he offers up his game jersey to a young fan, bless his cotton socks.
4 Apple '1984' (1984)
Apple knew how to make great ads even 20 years before the iPod silhouettes, as this Orwellian nightmare vision of the future of home computing shows. Doesn't that guy on the big screen look kind of like Bill Gates?
5 Pepsi 'Diner' (1995)
The downside of brand loyalty is that it can drive people with so much in common apart. Still, good soundtrack.
6 Budweiser 'Frogs' (1995)
Three frogs, three syllables. You know the rest.
7 McDonald’s 'The Showdown' (1993)
NBA legends Larry Bird and Michael Jordan face off for Jordan's McDonald's lunch. With hilarious consequences. Odd to think that even in peak physical form, Jordan would be scoffing a Big Mac.
8 Monster.com 'When I Grow Up ?' (1999)
This was the ad that put monster.com on the map, taking them from unknowns to one of the biggest websites of the time in just one ($1.64m) fell swoop. That stretching noise in the background is the dotcom bubble getting ready to pop.
9. Reebok 'Terry Tate: Office Linebacker' (2003)
The fictional "Terry Tate", played by real-life actor and failed American Football player Lester Speight, breaks as many paradigms as he does hips in this 2003 Reebok commercial filmed way outside the box.
10 Pepsi 'Security Camera' (1996)
Hot on the heels of their success a year earlier with "Diner", Pepsi's 1996 Super Bowl offering depicted a paunchy Coke deliveryman with his hand in the Pepsi cooler.
So which is the greatest? Vote for your favourite Super Bowl ad in our poll, and watch this space for the hit ad of 2008.
