When it comes to TV commericals, the more famous the face making the sales pitch, the less likely some of us are to believe them. Well, except Shatner, of course.
I don’t understand how a singing, dancing Brad Garrett is going to convince me to buy a soft drink; or how that guy who used to be the president on “24″ knows I’m going to be in good hands if I change insurance companies. And, look, who doesn’t love Betty White? But do you really think she knows what the dog food tastes like that she pushes 24 hours a day?
This brings us to Eric Clapton, who is one of the last people I suspect many of his fans would think they’d see pitching cell phones. I mean, it’s not the now-legendary moment wherein Bob Dylan became a huckster for Victoria’s Secret, but Clapton’s ad for a special, limited edition cell phone is fairly high on the whattheheck-o-meter.
Surely, you’d think, someone with Clapton’s cache must be doing this for the sake of some charity, right? Wrong, and don’t call me Shirley. It’s just another item available through the Eric Clapton store, along with T-shirts, albums, key chains … and a four-cup espresso set. He might have a rock and roll heart, but apparently he needs the cash.
When it comes to musicians as TV pitchman, give me those freecreditreport.com guys anyday.
Speaking of commercials, last week we joked that the era of detente on the airways might lead to an on-air reunion of David Letterman, Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien. How close that came to being true. The CBS promo spot that aired during the Super Bowl featuring Letterman, Leno and Oprah (you really need a last name?), almost did feature O’Brien as well. Logistics apparently prevented the unemployed talk-show host from getting there.
NFL legends Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith were chosen for induction into the Hall of Fame over the weekend. They’ve both been on teams which won multiple Super Bowls and now they go into the Hall together. But Smith still has the better of Rice, since he won “Dancing With The Stars” while Rice finished second. Ah, Emmitt, who can forget your channeling of MC Hammer for the freestyle routine in the finals?
One final football-related note: The Super Bowl became the highest-rated TV show in history, surpassing the finale of M*A*S*H. The two do have something in common: The M*A*S*H finale included a bomb blast that left Father Mulcahy deaf; the Super Bowl had The Who.
Movie casting news No. 1: Brad Pitt, who last rode high in the saddle as Jesse James, is apparently the front-runner to portray Marshal Matt Dillon in the film version of “Gunsmoke.” Personally, I think it’s a great idea … if they cast Jennifer Aniston as Miss Kitty. On second thought, why don’t they just cast Matt Dillon as Matt Dillon?
Movie casting news No. 2: Michael Douglas, currently involved with the sequel to “Wall Street,” has agreed to star in director Steven Soderbergh’s film bio of – wait for it – Liberace. Now, while the young folks rush to Wikipedia to discover just who Liberace was, the other bit of casting for the film is that Matt Damon will portray the flamboyant pianist’s late-in-life love interest.
Now, here’s what you call a segue: What do you do after a book about a yuppie (remember them?) investment banker (remember them?) who becomes a serial killer is turned into a dark comedy slasher film (remember them?)? Well, if the book is Bret Easton Ellis’ “American Psycho,” there’s only one place to go … Broadway. Yup, they’re turning it into a musical! An American “Sweeney Todd” … without the pies.
