This week, we take a look at marketing firsts.

Specifically, the very first commercials ever produced for famous products and companies.

From the debut of the Jolly Green Giant, to the first AIDS PSAs, to the very first pharmaceutical ad, all the way to the first iPhone commercial, we say hello to these products and issues for the very first time.

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This week, we talk about spectacular landmarks built by visionary entrepreneurs.

These magnificent buildings stand in Toronto, New York and Chicago.

They are all very different in design, built in different eras, but they share one thing in common.

They are all named after famous brands.

And it’s easy to forget that.

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This week, it’s our annual Brand Envy episode, where I tip my hat to great ideas that have lasted for years.

We’ll talk about a very funny character who has made the world laugh without uttering a single word.

An idea that was born on the side of highways.

And we’ll talk about a movie that has had the longest run in cinema history.

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This week, we're dropping an episode from our sister podcast, "We Regret To Inform You: The Rejection Podcast".

In this podcast series, we talk about the mountain of rejections famous and successful people had to overcome and how they did it.

In this episode, we talk about the golden piece of advice Rue McClanahan’s mother gave her when she was told she’d never make it in television. 

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This week, we look at the marketing of violent sports.

Starting with a man named Tex Rickard, who wrote the playbook on fight promotion back in the 1920s.

We’ll analyze how WWE pro wrestling took a page from Rickard to create spectacles.

And we look at the phenomenon that is the UFC – and how mixed martial arts promotion can be carbon-dated all the way back to Rickard in the ‘20s.

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This week, we look at weird, unhinged advertising.

Like the “PuppyMonkeyBaby” Super Bowl commercial. 

The sad Skittles commercial where everything a man touches turns to Skittles.

A leather diaper you can wear to heavy metal concerts so you won’t miss any songs.

And a pizza that takes a year and a half to be delivered to your home.

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This week, we listen to the most creative use of sound and voice.

 Like the mattress company that gave people discounts based on how loud they snored.

 We’ll explore a radio campaign that says ugly is a superpower.

 And we’ll play a vinyl record that was left out in the sun that warns people about the harmful effects of UV rays.

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There are many products in the world that have “unintended uses.”

Originally designed for one purpose, the general public has discovered alternate uses for these items.

From Windex to baking soda to Ozempic, the makers of these products had no idea they would be used for so many unimagined tasks.

And in one story today, the alternate use of diapers may surprise you.

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With the Oscars around the corner, we take a look at creative movie marketing.

We’ll talk about miniature billboards that promoted Ant-Man.

A billboard that actually sweated to promote an action film.

And we’ll discuss a movie that was saved by a Beatle – then got banned, and was a box office success.

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This week, we tip our hat to the tiny, small innovations that make our lives better.

Like the tiny arrow on your fuel gauge. And the bread clip. And the miniscule treadwear indicators on your car tires.

In every case, the inventor saw something nobody else saw, and their miniature ideas went down in history.

Small Wonders.

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