My coworker and Central Sierra Broadcasting Account Executive Jennifer Teem took this excellent photo of this bald eagle this morning and it reminded me of the Budweiser Commercial during Super Bowl LX. As it turns out the best time see to bald eagles is in the winter, between December and March, when large numbers of migratory and resident eagles congregate at favored feeding areas,” according to the Department of Fish and Wildlife. New Melones, Don Pedro, and Beardsly Reservoirs are recognized by the department as bald eagle habitats. Bald eagles were removed from the federal list of threatened and endangered species in 2007 but remain protected under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
According to the Anheuser-Busch website the Budweiser commercial “American Icons” features a Clydesdale foal protecting an eaglet during a storm. The ad celebrates the brand’s 150-year legacy and America’s 250th birthday. A montage with the young bird on the Clydesdale’s back, flapping its wings in an attempt to fly with help from the galloping horse ends with the bird in the mud. According to the brand, nearby farmers, including Brian Fransen, a real-life Budweiser barley farmer, look on, amused by the bond. As time passes Lynyrd Skynyrd’s song “Free Bird” plays louder, the now-grown Clydesdale charges forward, sure-footed and graceful as he triumphantly leaps over a log while behind him, a breathtaking wingspan unfurls making it briefly look like a Pegasus until the American Bald Eagle takes flight. Lastly one farmer asks another, “You crying?” as the other replies, “Sun’s in my eyes.” The commercial was directed by Henry-Alex Rubin. For more information and to support the largest eagle sanctuary in the US go to eagles.org
The commercial just before kickoff really caught my eye for its absolutely hilarious clumps of hair singing about how they miss the human that cut them off. The commercial “Hair Ballad” from the company Manscaped features hairballs delivering an emotional final farewell… before being flushed down the toilet. The website states “Directed by The Perlorian Brothers and produced by MJZ, the spot brings a cinematic sensibility to a category that often plays it safe, transforming what most men wash down the drain into tiny hair puppets with big voices and even bigger feelings. Handcrafted by production company Can Can Club, these emotive critters turn the disposable into the unforgettable.” I can’t stop laughing at the gross creatures.
My son’s favorite commercial aired during the second quarter for T-Mobile and featured the Backstreet Boys. The singers were alongside cameos from Druski, mgk and Pierson Fodé, T-Mobile’s website explains “when it comes to wireless, people don’t want it any way, they want it that way.” The agency was Panay Films and the director was Steve Pink.
I also liked the Polar Bear needing therapy for liking Pepsi. The commercial named “The Choice” is directed by Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Taika Waititi. According to Pepsico it “exposes a phenomenon called The Pepsi Paradox – the idea that when labels and bias disappear, cola drinkers prefer the taste of Pepsi.” Pepsico calls the commercial a way to confront a decades-long rivalry.
Artificial intelligence startup Claude’s commercial “How Can I Communicate Better With My Mother?” directed by Jeff Low was also a funny ad rounding out by top 5 favorite. The actress does a good job of sounding very strange delivering a garbled ai message that includes an ad as an example of how how bad it will be now that OpenAI is bringing ads to ChatGPT. Anthropic, makers of Claude used the commercial to show why they are not going integrate ads in to their ai responses in the same way.
