Paris Hilton Burger Ad

Just in case you've been under a rock like I have, Paris Hilton is in a new ad for Carl's Jr. which features her washing down a Bentley while in a bathing suit, and then eating one of their new burgers. It's caused a lot of protests with conservative groups, but still seems to be running. Article here includes video feed of news report on it from Fox News. The full 30-second ad itself can be viewed here at iFilm. A special internet-only 60-second cut of it is at www.spicyparis.com.

Priceless bit from CNN's article:

“This commercial is basically soft-core porn,” said Melissa Caldwell, research director for the PTC. “The way she moves, the way she puts her finger in her mouth -- it's very suggestive and very titillating.”

Carl's Jr.'s message to the PTC: The group needs to “get a life,” said Andy Puzder, CEO of Carl's Jr. “This isn't Janet Jackson -- there is no nipple in this. There is no nudity, there is no sex acts -- it's a beautiful model in a swimsuit washing a car.”

Puzder says he has shown the ad to his three children, ages 12, 9 and 7, and they have shown no signs of being corrupted.

From an Adweek report:

Set to the song “I Love Paris in the Springtime,” the 30-second spot, via Mendelsohn/Zien in Los Angeles, shows Hilton washing a car “with hoses shooting everywhere and her soaping everything up,” said the source. Touting the BBQ Six Dollar Burger, it plays off her catch phrase, “That's hot.”

CKE has taken flack in the past for an ad that showed a woman putting a fist in her mouth and another where a woman sits on a slowly grinding mechanical bull while eating a burger.

“We liken our advertising to more of what the beer brands do,” said Brad Haley, evp of marketing at Carl's Jr. (which targets men 18-34) in an interview with Brandweek earlier this year. “There's a lot of male attitude, personality and edge. Sometimes sex appeal enters into it on occasion. It's something younger guys are interested in.”

You might assume that if I get into advertising, this is the sort of work I'd like to be doing, and you'd be partially right, except that we would never get this sort of concept to fly in Singapore. Feel free to prove me wrong, however. I'm all for getting TCS hotties and models more exposure on TV.

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