Posted on 02/04/2013 1:11:11 PM PST by drewh
An iconic radio voice took the cake, as Dodge Ram’s “So God Made a Farmer” spot with Paul Harvey as the voice over was the highest-rated commercial during Super Bowl XLVII according to ADBOWL, the original advertising ranking website for consumers developed in 2002 by McKee Wallwork & Company.
It wasn’t flashy or filled with special effects, but Dodge Ram’s Super Bowl spot featuring the late radio broadcaster Paul Harvey’s tribute to U.S. farmers won the hearts and minds of viewers Sunday night.
The two-minute spot featured a series of stark photos of farmers at work. Along with a montage of still images, Harvey’s distinctive voice delivers the narration: his “So God Made a Farmer” speech, which he gave in 1978 at the National Future Farmers of America Convention. He died in 2009 at age 90.
The Ram Truck brand commissioned 10 noted photographers including National Geographic icon William Albert Allard and renowned documentary photographer Kurt Markus to document American farm life, yielding a beautiful and comprehensive catalog of farming images. Many of these artful and compelling still images provide the visual mosaic for “Farmer;” Harvey’s passionate oration provides the narration.
In this latest extension of the brand’s Guts, Glory, Ram campaign, the video uses slices of farming life to remind us of our shared identity and character, the greatness born out of perseverance and determination and the rewards that come from hard work.
“Farmer” was created in partnership with The Richards Group/Dallas. See it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMpZ0TGjbWE&feature=player_embedded
The spot immediately set Twitter ablaze, with viewers registering their overwhelmingly positive reaction to the commercial.
The Ram brand has declared 2013 the year of the farmer, and is kicking off a year of programs dedicating to highlighting the importance of farmers.
As of 11:00 MT, the top 5 ads as ranked by ADBOWL voters on a five point scale were:
1 Ram Truck: Farmer 4.2121
2 Tide: Miracle Stain 4.1356
3 Budweiser: The Clydesdales – Brotherhood 3.9735
4 Coca-Cola: Security Camera 3.6047
5 Kia: Space Babies 3.5926
ADBOWL Winners 2002-2012:
2012 – Volkswagen’s “Dog Strikes Back”
2011 – Volkswagen’s “Imperial March”
2010 – Snickers’ “You’re Not You”
2009 – Bridgestone’s “Taters”
2008 – Budweiser’s “Clydesdale Team”
2007 – Bud Light’s “Rock, Paper, Scissors”
2006 – Bud Light’s “Hidden Fridge”
2005 – Anheuser-Busch’s “Applause”
2004 – Budweiser’s “Donkey Dream”
2003 – FedEx’s “Castaway”
2002 – M&M’s “Chocolate on Your Pillow”
outstanding
It was a GREAT Commercial HOWEVER, I STILL Ain’t Buyin a DODGE(or ANY OTHER Crysler).
Definitely my favorite.......
Makes me realize how much I miss Paul Harvey.
That commercial was a stark contrast to the sheer decadence that was present in most of the others. Unfortunately the others better reflected the decline and decay of current day America in the age of Obama.
Amen! Spot should have been made by Ford
That was my favorite commercial too - it was great. I have only stayed at a few relatives farms and ranches a few times - but it is unbelievable how hard they work. And what good folks they are.
Although it did remind me of an old Bloomsbury Cartoon where Opus is going to become a farmer and someone is helping him:
Okay Opus say “I am becoming a farmer so I can declare my independence and be a self-made man.”
Now, without cracking a smile say “Hurry up with my Federal Farm Grant check!”
Why? It was a terrible commercial. Really long, and until the truck shows up in the last 5 seconds you don’t even know what they’re advertising, and then there’s a truck completely disconnected from everything else. It’s a pretty good monolog but it doesn’t work as a commercial.
Farming these days is largely dominated by corporations, political “contributions,” government subsidies and price controls. For the most part they also support illegal aliens, their slave labor, and socializing their costs. The romantic notion of what a farmer is only applies to a very small group.
The Budweiser ads are so sweet I start getting weepy.
If Dodge’s “God Made A Farmer” ad looked vaguely familiar, it’s because it was on YouTube before the game. Over a year before the game. Made by a different company.
I agree with the #1 and #2 choices.
#1 was really, really good.
It was intended to kickoff the Dodge Ram “Year of the Farmer” promotion. It is right up there with the Apple computer “1984” ad from many years ago.
#2 was easily the funniest. And it was entirely clean.
“The romantic notion of what a farmer is only applies to a very small group.”
Check your facts. There are more family-owned farms and ranches in the USA today than at any other time in US history and there are more people working those farms and ranches than at any other time in US history. We may be a much smaller percentage of the population but we are not a shrinking group nor a disappearing group.
I’m sure there are execs at Ford screaming at their ad people right now. Very awesome ad. It venerates hard working, self reliant, courageous families that put their fortunes into the ground every year with the faith that they will make crops grow. I am waiting for Jesse Jackson to complain it was racist.
Me too. My living room became absolutely quiet at the sound of Paul Harvey's voice. It was wonderful to hear again, sort of like coming home.
I was astounded to see the Dodge truck ad spending so much time in tribute to American farmers. I couldn’t believe a bunch of Madison Avenue types who put out the other types of ads could also put out something like this that honored good old fashioned hard work and honesty. I can only imagine the profanity the Occupy Whatever viewers were spewing right after this ad. (I grew up on a wheat farm, so this ad really resonated with me, personally.)
Not to disrespect farmers, but two years ago I got a bumper sticker:
AND ON THE EIGHTH DAY
GOD CREATED MARINES.
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