As an 11-time winner, I am Proud to serve as a #Telly Jury Council Member for the @tellyawards 40th anniversary, and lend my insights to help review this year’s best video work! There’s still time to enter your work too. https://t.co/QoA4udO00X pic.twitter.com/3HnxclrlXh

— Michael Lloyd (@MarketingVIP) February 19, 2019

Number 1
Universal Studios Tour
Featuring Alfred Hitchcock

Alfred Hitchcock freaked me out, but always got my attention. His celebrity knew no boundaries having cameos in all of his movies and a creepy voice to boot. I lived literally across the street from Universal Studios and I wanted to go there every time I saw this ad; and why wouldn’t I? To keep up the entertainment value of the tour (and to compete with Disneyland), Universal Studios adding fixed attractions to the tour, beginning with the Flash Flood in 1968, the Parting of the Red Sea (from The Ten Commandments and, uh, the Bible) in 1973, the Collapsing Bridge in 1974, and the Ice Tunnel in 1975. In 1976, Universal added what would become its biggest tour attraction to that date: Jaws. Based on Steven Spielberg’s break-out hit Jaws recreated the village of Amity from the movie, with a 25-foot animatronic shark emerging from the water to attack the tram.

Number 3
Earl Sheib Auto Painting
He could paint any car, any time, for $49.95…and $10 free metal work. Who could say no to this offer?

Number 4
Cal Worthington “My Dog Spot”
For nearly a twenty-five years, from the 1960s until the 1990s, Worthington ran a series of offbeat television and radio advertisements for his auto dealerships patterned loosely after the pioneering “oddball” advertisements of Earl “Madman” Muntz. They began as a parody of a competitor who appeared in advertisements with a puppy recently adopted from the pound. They were known as the “My Dog Spot” ads because each commercial would introduce “Cal Worthington and his dog Spot!” However, the “dog” was never a dog. In most cases, it was an exotic animal being led around on a leash, such as a tiger or elephant.

Number 5
RTD
The bus system in Los Angeles produced a commercial that fed on the stereotypes of LA traffic. Funny thing about this ad is that if you rode the bus you would still have sit in traffic. But that didn’t matter if an alluring model fed you a breakfast apple from the seat next to you and if you were easily saving a thousand dollars a year!

Number 6
Jerseymaid Singing Cows
A catchy country tune straight from the farm would have you imitating this spot at recess the next day at school. But why didn’t they have chocolate frozen yogurt and only strawberry. No kid ever ate strawberry. I never got an answer.

Number 7
Aames Home Loan
Character actor Patrick Campbell was forever in trouble with his finances and always accompanied by his faithful chicken. I bet I saw this spot fifteen hundred times in the seventies to the point where I could still remember this entire spot, word for word. Look at the way the copy flows from the announcer’s voice:

Number 8
Pup ‘n’ Taco Train
One of the first cheap fast-food chains to integrate American food and Mexican food on their menus, the media buyers at Pup ‘n’ Taco practically invented the remnant spot with their :10 second commercials that drove you back into your regular-scheduled programming. More bang for your buck. Taco Bell scooped up their 99 locations in 1984 and they ceased operations. 

Number 9
Continental Airlines Wide Body DC-10
Featuring Vin Scully

Smooth as silk, Vin takes you from the ballpark seats to airline seats. Great copy is the touchtone for the spokesperson commercial in this one.

Number 10
Swanson Hungry-Man Dinner
Featuring Steve Garvey and Tommy LaSorda of the Dodgers

I don’t know what the record is for holding a product close to your face in a television commercial, but this one has to be at the top of the charts.

Honorable Mention
Must Inappropriate Dialogue of All Time
Ralph Williams Bay Shore Car
Although from Northern California, Ralph got his start in Los Angeles and this is an all-time classic that really aired:

Get ready for the Oscars’ politically tinged acceptance speeches — and likely more than 45 minutes of advertising.

Before I get to all of the tidbits around the Academy and the Dolby Theatre, I’ll bore you with my winners prognostication. Before you roll your eyes, remember that I started covering the Academy Awards six years ago and my picks have been accurate to the point I want to fly to London back them up with a little bit of cash. For the record, I’ve gone  on in the major categories with 37 out of 44 correct selections. Here’s the Media Guy choices for the telecast on Sunday:

Best Picture
La La Land

Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Emma Stone, La La Land

Just to remind everyone…Spielberg and I have two Oscars combined!

Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea

Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Mahershala Ali, Moonlight

Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Viola Davis, Fences

Directing
Damien Chazelle, La La Land

Animated Feature Film
Zootopia

Foreign Language Film
The Salesman, Iran

Writing (Original Screenplay)
Manchester by the Sea, Kenneth Lonergan

THE COMMERCIALS

Last year’s Oscars drew over 34 million total viewers, Because of that number, a thirty-second commercial on the Oscars telecast will cost you a cool $2 million. This is the most expensive TV buy after the Super Bowl.

Last year’s Oscars featured 80 commercials which generated $115 million in ad revenue which is about equal to the Grammys and Golden Globes combined.

GOVERNOR’S BALL MENU

The 1,500 guests to the Governor’s Ball expect some of Wolfgang Puck’s traditional specialties, but each year they are treated to new dishes to sample, including this year’s treats: gold-dusted popcorn, sweet pea falafel, taro root tacos with shrimp and mango, spice gougeres with black truffle dust, lobster corn dogs and parsnip agnolotti.  no small undertaking…

…It takes a lot of fish and cheese to feed that many guests: 3,500 miso tuile cones, 15 pounds of truffles, 350 pounds of Atlantic tuna, 7,500 shrimp, 2,375 pretzels, 4,250 pieces of handmade gnoccetti and 150 pounds of arugula. And don’t forget the Oscar-shaped smoked salmon matzos.

Dessert stations will offer lava cakes, red velvet waffles, and a chocolate buffet with treats including caramel cappucino Oscar lollipops and bonbons in movie theater flavors like Sour Patch Kids.

THE OSCARS SWAG BAG