For a fun upcoming story, Managing Editor Jen Curry of the Pittsburgh Business Times is asking for people’s most memorable Pittsburgh commercial.
So, we decided to take a few nostalgic minutes and come up with our own list.
Madison Avenue has got nothing on the Mad Men and Women of Pittsburgh.
Here’s our take – #1 – no question:
- Kennywood Park‘s new Raging Rapids with Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Famer Jack Lambert and broadcaster Myron Cope
- Mr Yuk PSA Commercial by Pittsburgh’s Children’s Hospital in 1971- scared the heck out of kids. Here’s a backgrounder.
- Eat N Park Christmas Tree – sweet
- Joe Said it Would – WTAE-TV Weatherman Joe DiNardo – early 90s – lots of news stations would compete hard with these kinds of commercials featuring broadcast teams and especially weathermen – DiNardo was a Pittsburgh Institution – retired in 1994 – 35 year tenure
- KDKA-AM Radio’s K-TEAM John Cigna Commercials here and here
- Winky’s – two famous lines – “There’s no Winky’s in Wilmerding’ and ‘Winky’s Makes You Happy to Be Hungry’ – my old boss created these – competed with McDonald’s and others – Big Wink was their ‘Big Mac’
- Pittsburgh Pirates Commercial
- Iron City Beer – Olympics – – long version – personal bias – friends Jon Kasunic and Tom Megalis perform and produce
- Iron City Beer – Pump an Iron
- Iron City Beer – You Can’t Keep an Iron Man Down
- IC Light Beer – Gimme the Night Gimme an IC Light – The World’s First Light Beer Ever
Note – Two area hospital commercials I could not find on YouTube were:
- Children’s Hospital –’Be Glad You Have Children’s’ Campaign and,
- UPMC’s, ‘Choose a Hospital as if Your Life Depended on it’
Two great campaigns.
And, here are a few ad campaigns that were not locally produced in Pittsburgh, but have significant Pittsburgh ties:
- McDonald’s Big Mac Commercial – ‘Two All Beef Patties’… – Pittsburgh’s M.J Delligatti is the inventor (I had the honor of working with the man) – see backgrounder.
- Pittsburgh Steelers Mean Joe Greene Coke Commercial
Finally, we tip our hat to home grown Joe Pytka of Braddock, PA who is without a doubt the best television commercial producer EVER!
Among his many award-winning achievements, Joe produced: Bo Knows, Larry and Michael, Michael Jackson Pepsi, This is Your Brain on Drugs and more!
