Not surprisingly, Chrysler’s Detroit-themed ads dominate the list.
An upward of 110 million Americans are expected to watch the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks battle it out in Super Bowl XLIX on Sunday. But for many viewers, the highlight of the big game are the ads.
It’s a Super Bowl Sunday tradition: Football, food, commercials — and talking about those commercials the next day.
Everyone has their favorite ad, from the funniest to the most inspiring to the cutest or even the worst. But for us here at the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), our favorite ads highlight some of the best things happening in American manufacturing.
Here are some of our favorites from recent years.
1. Imported From Detroit.
Chrysler targeted American consumers in 2011 with a now iconic ad starring their American-made Chrysler 200 and Detroit native Marshall Mathers, better known as rapper Eminem.
But Chrysler’s pitch didn’t just sell the car. It also sold the Motor City:
“What does this city know about luxury? What does a town that’s been to hell and back know about the finer things in life? Well, I’ll tell you. More than most. You see, it’s the hottest fires that make the hottest steel. Add hard work and conviction, and the know-how that runs generations deep in every last one of us. That’s who we are.”
With Eminem’s “Lose Yourself” playing in the background, the ad closed with the rapper saying: “This is the Motor City, and this is what we do.” The ad closed with the tagline: “IMPORTED FROM DETROIT.”
2. It's Halftime in America.
With big shoes to fill from its previous Super Bowl ad, Chrysler did it again in 2012 by bringing in screen legend Clint Eastwood for their “Halftime in America” commercial.
Eastwood sets the scene: With so many factories closed down and so many jobs shipped overseas, the American people are facing tough times. But Detroit is making its comeback, showing the country how it’s done. As Dirty Harry himself says:
“This country can’t be knocked out with one punch. We get right back up again, and when we do, the world is going to hear the roar of our engines. Yeah, it’s halftime America, and our second half’s about to begin.”
3. America's Import.
How do you follow up Eminem and Eastwood? With Chrysler’s 2014 ad starring Bob Dylan — and America.
As images of cowboys, cheerleaders, rest stop diners, amusement parks and baseball games flash on the screen, Dylan takes aim directly at competitors importing cars from Europe and Asia.
“Is there anything more American than America? ‘Cause you can’t import original. You can’t fake true cool. You can’t duplicate legacy. Because what Detroit created was a first, and became and inspiration to the rest of the world. Yeah, Detroit made cars, and cars made America.”
4. You Can't Do That.
OK, there are Super Bowl ads in recent years that weren’t created by Chrysler — and nothing quite warms our heart than the 2014 spot from WeatherTech, which manufacturers car mats, floorlines and other automotive accessories.
WeatherTech’s commercial takes the comedic route, with the viewer in the place of WeatherTech itself, which is looking to get funding and support for an American factory. The responses the viewer gets include:
“You want a loan to build a factory in America? You can’t do that.”
“Nobody builds factories in U.S. anymore. You can’t do that.”
“Using American raw materials makes no sense. You can’t do that.”
“You want to hire workers here in the United States? They’re too expensive. You can’t do that”
And as WeatherTech explains, the company didn’t listen to those experts. They built American factories, used American raw materials, and hired American workers.
The ad concludes: “Quality like this? You can’t do that.”
But they did — and it’s American-made.