Everyone should be so lucky as Jay Leno. He has essentially lifetime employment if he wants it, a chin that could double as billboard space, and the world's best garage, next to the Sultan of Brunei. So it's hard to feel jealous of the Tonight Show host in this video that shows him taking possession of his new 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8.
Leno's own Web site hosts the video, which Chrysler passed around to the world on its blog even though it's stuffed with ads for GM cars. Also starring: Leno's 1970 Challenger and a couple of telltale skid marks (the fun kind). Please to enjoy--work safe, but kind of loud, so use the iBuds:
Man, Avril Lavigne is starting to look old. What? You say it's actually logorrheic Canadian chanteuse Alanis Morissette right there alongside a Bluetec-equipped Mercedes-Benz E320?
Oh, OK. I checked the press release. It turns out it is Alanis--and she's standing next to the Benz because she put one in the video for her new song "Underneath," which is on her new album Flavors of Entanglement. In the video, she gives an approving wave to a guy driving the E320 Bluetec, a sort of namecheck for the YouTube-enabled. So she gets to pose next to a Benz diesel. Very nice.
"Making green choices on a local level is important in creating global change,” Alanis told a PR flack waiting nearby to capture her thoughts--or maybe to suggest them in blurb-ready form. "I'm glad that Mercedes-Benz is introducing a great option with the new E320 BlueTEC, and thrilled to include it in the video for my new song ‘Underneath’ as it fits right in with the concept."
If you haven't seen it yet, check out some video clips at the Mercedes-Benz USA Web site, and before you go, tell me--exactly what flavor does entanglement have? Juicy Fruit?
We won't use the word "sellout," but think back to the last time you heard rock band Heart's paean to slimy music-industry execs. Probably wasn't in the context of selling a minivan, was it?
But credit is due the Wilson sisters, who've licensed probably their most recognizable hit, "Barracuda," (only #11 on the charts back then?) as the backing track to a Honda ad hawking the versatile Odyssey. Sure, it's minivan drudgery -- but it's good minivan drudgery. And the kick-ass, Heavy Metal-esque animation and flower-power graphics fit with the Wilsonian Left Coast leanings and with Honda's quirky ad campaigns of late, all the same.
The ad's been running a while, but in case you haven't seen it, YouTube's sporting it:
If you didn't get enough of Disney's animated take on the fables of Route 66, you're in luck. The company's Pixar unit is brewing up another installment of its Cars franchise, with the new animated feature due in 2012.
Autoblog doesn't have many other details about Cars 2, other than it's following on the heels of a third Toy Story movie coming soon. A brief press release says some of the chief characters like Lightning McQueen and Sally Carrera may return, but that Pixar plans to add new characters as well.
The new installment will be directed by Brad Lewis, who produced Ratatouille. We were kind of eh on the first flick but we will lobby for Larry the Cable Guy to show up again in some form. Maybe as an oil slick?
Until 2012, keep playing this YouTube trailer for the original movie:
Audi's hooking up with Robert Downey, Jr., but don't worry -- there won't be any trouble-making except on the silver screen.
Downey's the star of the film version of Marvel's Iron Man, and Audi's the official car of the summer flick, which makes its debut in theaters on May 2. Downey plays Tony Stark, a brilliant superhero who built his own high-tech armor and uses it to work for the good of mankind. Cleverly, when he's out of his armor suit, Downey slips into an Audi R8.
Fine, but we're jealous for two more reasons: Downey's co-star is chicken-cutlet queen Gwyneth Paltrow, and she gets to spin around town in an Audi S5. Jeff Bridges and Terrence Howard also show up in the film, making it a rare four-Oscar-nominee flick.
We can't promise this one won't tank as badly as Grindhouse, but at least the cars will be watchable. Until the premiere, you can check out more at the usual microsite, which has already gone live with exclusive footage. Audi promises eleven film clips will be posted at their Iron Man site before the movie opens nationwide.
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Marty Padgett June 18th, 2008
;)
Everyone should be so lucky as Jay Leno. He has essentially lifetime employment if he wants it, a chin that could double as billboard space, and the world's best garage, next to the Sultan of Brunei. So it's hard to feel jealous of the Tonight Show host in this video that shows him taking possession of his new 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8.;)
;)
;)
;)
