Fat Old White Dudes For Obama!

Check out one of Barack Obama’s new ads in Pennsylvania, above. It’s called “Carry,” and though it’s aired elsewhere, it’s clearly attempting to show that, despite his pastor and his racist grandma, Barack Obama does not hate white people. Look how much those fat old white dudes love him!

Obama also has two just for Pennsylvania ads, which are about his life, and how much he hates lobbyists. Because I fully believe when President Barry takes office, he will eliminate lobbying.

Vince Fumo, Moving To Camera 2

Challenger Anne Dicker’s camp sent over this ad for Vince Fumo’s State Senate re-election bid yesterday, complaining that Fumo really hasn’t done much for illegal guns on the streets. Fair enough.

But I believe the real beauty in this ad is, um, the ad itself. I didn’t really notice how brilliant it was ’til it aired after Gladiators last night: Fumo serving the people dinner, the face of the dude at the kitchen table, the little head-tilt by Fumo at the end. Forget the State Senate, we need to get Vince Fumo a sitcom.

If I were Anne Dicker, I’d just show this ad on an infinite loop at one of her watering hole meetups; I can’t see how a night of drinking and watching this ad over and over could do anything but increase attendance.

Found Item Alert

Ahh, yes, the “entire page background” ads on Philly.com are annoying enough, but are they made passable if they nearly contain a hidden profanity?

Well, no. (I had to turn off ad block to see this after a tipster notified me.) But, thanks, Philly.com, for putting the letters F, C and K so close to each other.

Philly.com

The 76ers Also Play Basketball, Kinda

The 76ers are may not have Allen Iverson anymore, but they certainly can figure out a way to promote attending a game at the Wachovia Center! Comcast apparently wants you to go to the game and spill your food all over the floor so you’ll have to buy more. You also get to meet the Sixers Dancers with this “Guys Night Out” package, which means it’s only a matter of time before the PR team is setting them up as escorts if Sixers’ attendance continues to be 27th in the NBA.

Or, you know, the team could just continue to win by 43, like they did last night. But then they might have to advertise the basketball, which is not mentioned in this ad at all.

City Toilet Removed, But It Will Be Back

Phillyskyline’s Brad Maule clues me in on a development I should have been paying more attention to. The pay toilet is gone!

The toilet opened in November 2006 and probably attracted a few customers or something. The toilet was removed because it was simply a pilot toilet on loan from Wall USA, which along with CBS and Clearchannel are bidding for Philadelphia’s street furniture (read: ads) contract.

Anyway, we have a few ad- and toilet-free months (okay, not really ad-free) until the winning bidder gets to put a ton of toilets all over the city. Brad (who’s responsible for the photo) has more at his website.

Election Roundup: Voting Is For Dorks

In off-year municipal elections, the City of Philadelphia’s actual election takes place in May. Sometimes the mayor races (i.e., mayor) include a formidable Republican candidate, but while Al Taubenberger is a great underdog, he was recently polling at eight percent. But all the Democrats who win races today were elected on May 15, including mayor-elect Michael Nutter. (It’s after 9. He probably already has enough votes to win.)

You should still go out and vote, though, and not because it matters (it doesn’t) or out of a sense of civic duty (fuck civic duty). You should go out and vote because it’s fun! While the voting booths are not the fun old-timey blues ones of yore, you still get to press a couple of buttons. Okay, so it’s not Making Time. But if you don’t press those buttons, Bush and Cheney will win, or something. Or maybe the terrorists win. I don’t know.

Go out and vote today. If you don’t, annoying people will lie to you and say if you didn’t vote, you forfeited your right to complain. Whatever. Complain all you want whether or not you vote; but it’s always nice to try to diffuse future annoyance.

Below, a roundup of fun election-themed stories. We’re using a very liberal definition of the word fun here.

More »

A Vote For Nutter Is A Vote Against, Uh, Bush?

Above, the new ad for Michael Nutter, who despite a nearly 75 percent lead in the polls feels he should run some ads. And how to get lethargic Philadelphians out to the polls on Tuesday? Tell ‘em if they stay home, the terrorists (or at least Bush and Cheney) win!

Excellent graphics on the night to day transition. I wonder what Nutter’s stance is on Daylight Saving Time.

This Might Even Be More Depressing Than The Phillies

First we get this Macy’s ad plastered all over Philly.com, then we lose our blind seal to California? I can’t go on.

Philly.com
Saved! Jersey’s blind seal is L.A.-bound [Inquirer]

Colt 45 Works Every… Every Other Time Or So

SEPTA has caved in to community activist and politician pressure and will be removing the giant Colt 45 bus wraps.

You see, lots of people have been spending time shutting down “stop and go” beer takeout joints and nuisance bars and whatever else, but if SEPTA has two buses with Colt 45 wraps, then all their hard work is for naught. You see how things are.

SEPTA said it has received $600 grand from alcohol advertising this year, but they probably would have wasted any extra money on SEPTA-branded trading cards and pogs anyway.

SEPTA Removing Malt Liquor Ads From Buses [CBS 3]

Yes, People Are Still Making ‘Brokeback’ Parodies

A group of Montgomery County College students won a county smoking-prevention contest; the ad the group made for the contest was slated to air on MTV.

Only, now it’s not, because the state refused a grant for the ad because it’s a parody of Brokeback Mountain. The state says it’s not because of the content (or that Brokeback is almost two years old now) and actually because the “message was lost.”

This is pretty tough to figure out:

The winning commercial shows a cowboy standing near a pickup truck, trying to sever ties with a cigarette. The commercial ends with the cowboy saying, “I wish I knew how to quit you. Why don’t you let me? It’s because of you I’m like this.”

The cowboy shows his teeth, now brown from smoking.

Uh, yeah, this does seem like it could be a pro-smoking message. (Oh, the ad was also “hard to hear.”) The ad, which wouldn’t have stopped anybody from smoking anyway, might still air on TV if the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Montco can get private funds.

You don’t want to know what the ad based on Showgirls was like.

‘Smokeback’ ad will not air on MTV [The Intelligencer]