By Mae Anderson, Business Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --The Denver Broncos defeated the Carolina Panthers during Super Bowl 50 – and there were clear winners and losers off the field, too.
Advertisers pulled out all the stops to woo the 114 million-plus viewers during the Big Game. With 30-second ads costing up $5 million, it's a huge gamble to advertise during the game. Here are the winners whose gamble paid off, and losers who dropped the ball.
WINNERS
Audi "Commander"
In Audi's spot, a depressed aging astronaut is reminded of his joy for life by driving an Audi sports car with his son to David Bowie's "Starman." Super Bowl watcher Raj Nijjer, from Scottsdale, Ariz., said the ad went over well at the bar where he was watching the game. "Every guy in the bar had a smile on their face," he said.
Axe "Find Your Magic"
Axe left previously juvenile ads behind with a spot that urged teens to "Find Your Magic" and celebrate uniqueness and diversity rather than the traditional tropes of masculinity.
Bud Light "Bud Light Party"
Capitalizing on election year buzz, Bud Light enlisted Amy Schumer and Seth Rogan to canvass America to promote "The Bud Light Party." A cameo by Paul Rudd added to the fun.
Heinz "Weiner Stampede"
Budweiser disappointed some by retiring the puppies it featured in ads the past three years, but Heinz picked up the slack. Its ad showed dachshunds dressed like hot dogs frolicking in a field to the tune of Harry Nilsson's "Without You."
Mountain Dew "Puppymonkeybaby"
Love it or hate it, Mountain Dew's bizarre ad showing a creature that was part puppy, part monkey and part baby was one of the most talked about spots of the evening.
LOSERS
Pharmaceutical ads
Three pharmaceutical ads struck a jarring tone with viewers. One promoted an anti-diarrhea medication Xifaxan and showed a small-intestines mascot trying to watch a football game. Another sought to raise awareness about "opioid-induced constipation." A third tackled toe fungus.
"Wrong place. Wrong time. Wrong subject," Kelly O'Keefe, a marketing professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, said of the constipation ad.
Henkel
In first time advertiser Henkel's commercial for its Persil ProClean detergent, a tuxedoed spokesman told us that Persil ProClean beat rival detergents in a test – a generic-feeling ad people have seen many, many times before.
Quicken Loans
First time advertiser Quicken Loans imagined a world where it's as easy to get a loan on your smartphone as it is to buy music and plane tickets. "Push button, get mortgage," copy reads. Some viewers took to Twitter to complain the ad reminded them a little too much of the 2008 financial housing bubble and subsequent financial crisis.
Colonial Williamsburg
The tourist destination created an ad that showed historical events going in reverse to illustrate the idea that American history started with Colonial Williamsburg. Some viewers were offended that one of the events going in reverse was the collapse of the twin towers on September 11.
Alec Baldwin Urges Judge To Stand By Dismissal Of Involuntary Manslaughter Case In “Rust” Shooting
Alec Baldwin urged a New Mexico judge on Friday to stand by her decision to skuttle his trial and dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge against the actor in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie.
State District Court Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed the case against Baldwin halfway through a trial in July based on the withholding of evidence by police and prosecutors from the defense in the 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film "Rust."
The charge against Baldwin was dismissed with prejudice, meaning it can't be revived once any appeals of the decision are exhausted.
Special prosecutor Kari Morrissey recently asked the judge to reconsider, arguing that there were insufficient facts and that Baldwin's due process rights had not been violated.
Baldwin, the lead actor and co-producer on "Rust," was pointing a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal when it went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza. Baldwin has said he pulled back the hammer โ but not the trigger โ and the revolver fired.
The case-ending evidence was ammunition that was brought into the sheriff's office in March by a man who said it could be related to Hutchins' killing. Prosecutors said they deemed the ammunition unrelated and unimportant, while Baldwin's lawyers alleged that they "buried" it and filed a successful motion to dismiss the case.
In her decision to dismiss the Baldwin case, Marlowe Sommer described "egregious discovery violations constituting misconduct" by law enforcement and prosecutors, as well as false testimony about physical evidence by a witness during the trial.
Defense counsel says that prosecutors tried to establish a link... Read More