Slash, Betty White And A Pair Of Frogs Make Up The Cast List For Latest Ad

This combination of rock star, elderly woman and assorted scaly creatures makes an odd combo for an LA zoo ad, but we love it.

The premise of the Allen & Gerritsen campaign is simple: Guns 'N' Roses guitarist Slash and 90 year old TV comedienne Betty White have a day out together at the LA zoo. It's a slightly odd pairing but they really seem to have some chemistry and a shared love of the cold blooded inhabitants of LA zoo's latest attraction.

The campaign of 5 short ads sees Slash and Betty visiting snakes, lizards and frogs at LAIR (Living Amphibians, Invertebrates and Reptiles) and sharing a little known fact about the creatures they are admiring.  The animals then study the two stars and ask each other similar questions; they seem particularly curious about Slash's trademark top hat.

A plodding soundtrack and minimal dialogue help to show human and animal stars at their most engaging.  There is no attempt to make the zoo out to be an action-packed day out, but it does show the creatures to be well worth a curious glance.

The most popular of the ads features sonoran toads who can't quite figure out human genders.  This particular ad has gained nearly 52,000 views since it was put up on the 24th February.  Although the other ads are lagging behind we're sure they will take off too. 

The ad closes by claiming that the new LAIR attraction and LA were meant for each other.  We're surprised to find that Slash and Betty seem to be such a great pairing too.

Latest Israeli Ad Takes Cinema Publicity Stunt Viral

There have been plenty of ad campaigns that make use of flashmobs and hidden cameras to create viral-friendly ads.

Usually these come in the form of feel-good, positive messages such as T-Mobile's "Welcome Back" or Carlsberg's "Bikers In The Cinema".

The Israeli Alzheimer's Association has used the technique in a totally different way.  In an ad intended to raise awareness of the effects of Alzheimer's, creative agency ACW present documentary-style coverage of their own stunt.

ACW took over Israel's largest cinema complex and switched all the films around. Cinema-goers were understandably confused when a different film to the one advertised began rolling. After a few moments this was revealed to be intentional, to give film fans a brief taste of what it is like to struggle with Alzheimer's.

A round of applause in the cinema was accompanied by few sympathetic words as the audience left; the message clearly got through to the thousands caught by the stunt. The ad goes on to document the coverage the stunt received online and in conventional media, which it estimates was worth around NIS 500,000 (Israeli Sheqels).

The ad cleverly leaves out the fact that it was broadcast as part of International Alzheimer's Awareness Week, so that this video will keep doing the rounds long after the week it is promoting is over.

Hudson Urban Bicycles: A Life Cycle Of A Bicycle In New York City

Ever wondered what happens if you get a bike, lock it to a post and attempt to take a picture of it everyday for a year? 

Sadly, in this day and age, the chances are it will get stolen. However, Red Peak Branding and Hudson Urban Bicycles wanted to conduct this unique urban experiment in New York.

On January 1, 2011, they chained a fully loaded bike - bells, basket, lights, the works - to a post along a busy street. They took a photograph of the bike every day for 365 days, watching it parts of it slowly vanish before their eyes.

Judging by the video, it lasted an astonishing 200 days until parts started to be stolen. If you ask me, that's not bad going. Living in London myself, if I left my bike for more than a day, regardless of a quality lock and shackle, it would be stolen.

Great idea for an ad, though, and with over 1 million YouTube views since that ad launch on the 17th January, I think it's safe to say others agree.