Love Letter To My GEICO Campaign

Love Letter To My GEICO Campaign

Last week, I entered a recoring studio expecting to do one radio spot and ended up doing twelve.   “A campaign?” I greedily wondered.  Not quite.  Indeed, a campaign, but not like my last, true love…

Today, I went into a studio to do three more spots for a McDonalds breakfast campaign.  See?  I said “campaign” again.  And, sure, it’s considered one, but there’s that wistful memory of my old GEICO campaign, “z” snapping in my face, telling those other so-called “campaigns” to “step-off!”  (Yes, I imagine my GEICO campaign as being a twenty-something, hip-hop hottie – amazed we got together, but I know deep down that it was about money…)

Other voice over actors will tell you — GEICO campaigns run forever and pay perversely well (ask the cavemen guys).  Indeed, my two consecutive national campaigns (14 commercials in all) helped me get a house [bless you, Martin Agency]!  I’ve never had a run like that before.  And I do know it can happen again.  (GEICO campaign hottie gives me the “whatEVer” sign.)

So why write about it now?  Am I “drunk-blogging” about an ex-campaign-hottie? No, but good guess.  Actually, I still get a lot of emails about the work I did on it.  (And some think I’m that freakin’ little gecko – I am not!  I bought a house, not a mansion.)  Since I started this blog well after those wonderful years, I thought I’d find a place for my GEICO memories within these pages.

Let’s start with my favorite: being the announcer on a commercial that features the Voiceover God himself – Don LaFontaine.

My second favorite: Joan Rivers!

I didn’t see this one a lot on TV, but I’m a fan of 60’s sentimentality.  Burt Bacharach!

And this lovely and slightly creepy one with Peter Graves

And what’s life without The Pips?!  Pipless, I would think.

How about a little “coochie coochie coo?”  Does Charo ever age?

I’ll just finish this trip down memory lane with the most clever one – Mrs. Butterworth!  Her voice is provided by the wonderful character actress, Edie McClurg!  As I was walking out of the studio I bumped into her as she was preparing a bagel to take into her session.  I squealed with joy that she was Mrs. Butterworth.  She replied in that sweet, off-kilter tonality of hers, “Yes. The original actress killed herself, so I get a job.”   She smiled broadly and went into the booth. (Apologies to Mary Kay Bergman‘s estate.)

I don’t know if these will stay in the cultural landscape of history, but I’m pretty sure I’ll be comparing all my future campaigns to my GEICO hip-hop hottie… And maybe, just maybe, one day I’ll find that perfect campaign that I can live happily ever after with, with residual checks rolling in long after I’m dead…

[This is part of a series – Love Letters]

UPDATE:

Even after the events of April, 2010 – I still love GEICO and these two campaigns.