This has to be a record of some sort. The above 12-second ad for Discount Tire Company is one of my earliest childhood memories of television--and I'm pretty sure I saw it, broadcast on the air, up to a couple of years ago. Because it works. You have the "old lady," the tire, the violent and cathartic act of shattering a window, and the company name immortalized in shards of glass. Sure, it's a lawsuit waiting to happen. It jokingly encourages ill-advised behavior. And it tangentially suggests you might be really unhappy with their product--but I'm pretty sure nobody has ever focused on that. I mean, this ad is minimalist GENIUS. There are exactly 4 shots, all of about equal length. There's one actor, one prop, and one setting. The lady's throwing form is perfection. The camera angle puts you right there with her, makes you an accomplice. And there's not much more you need to say. When it aired originally, you probably either knew where the place was or could grab the phone book. Nowadays, you Google it. They make a simple claim to a customer satisfaction guarantee, the viewer gets to thrill to the sight of a plate glass window getting broken, and you end on the company name. 12 seconds. They fit this ad in-between everything. And hey, Discount Tire Co. is still around today, so they must have done something right.
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