This spot presents a slice of Americana with an atypical twist. It all starts out familiar—kids playing sports on a neighborhood street. While we may remember baseball, stickball or touch football as the game of choice, nowadays—at least in this spot—it’s street hockey.
But that’s not the major new wrinkle, which instead comes when the Good Humor truck approaches. Rather than flock towards the ice cream vendor, the kids disperse and hide, screaming "ice cream man." However, their warning goes unheeded by a tricycle-riding little boy, who unknowingly makes his way toward the truck.
"Jimmy, Jimmy," the kids cry out repeatedly, trying to get him to turn back. However, Jimmy pays no attention. With money in hand, he’s determined to get a sweet treat.
However, at this point, the ice cream man appears and we see why the boy’s well informed friends have fled. The vendor is puffing away madly on a cigarette. A child’s voiceover then relates, "Second-hand smoke causes lung cancer. A message from R.A.T.—Reject All Tobacco." The R.A.T. logo—replete with a talking, animated rat character—then appears on screen. The spot then returns to Jimmy, as we see the ice cream fall off the cone he’s holding.
This :30 for The Partnership For a Healthy Mississippi was directed and shot by Jim Dollarhide of Dollarhide Film, Jackson, Miss., for agency Maris, West & Baker, also in Jackson. The Maris, West & Baker creative team on the spot included creative director Eric Hughes, art director/copywriter Keith Fraser and copywriters Randy Lynn and Laurien Lee. Freelancer Jim Smith served as agency producer.
Dollarhide and Philip Scarborough of Dollarhide Films teamed as offline and online editors on the spot. Colorist was Peggy Clark-Holden of Video Post & Transfer, Dallas. Audio mixer/sound designer was Sam Watson of Jackson-based Sound By Sam.
