It’s not common to see big-name American stars in TV ads in the US, but they’re quite willing to do such ads overseas. Here in Italy I’ve seen Harrison Ford in an ad for a French car brand. Andie McDowell has for years advertised an expensive brand of shoes, and more recently cosmetics, for which she appears in TV commercials apparently speaking perfect Italian with no trace of an accent. Leonardo diCaprio has appeared in an ad for Apple Computers. Both Naomi Campbell and George Clooney have appeared in Martini ads; at least both of them actually do spend time in Italy. (In case you’re wondering, Clooney’s villa is on the posh side of Lake Como, near the city of Como – nowhere near us. If I ever run into him, I’ll let you know.)
The Clooney ad is one in a series on the theme “No Martini, no party,” and is cute enough to warrant a description: George rings a doorbell. The door opens, he’s greeted by several attractive young women, and a party is clearly going on inside. “Hello, George,” they say enthusiastically. Then they see that he’s empty-handed, and slam the door in his face, saying: “No Martini, no party.” George realizes his mistake, and returns with a case of Martini. This time the girls greet him warmly, take the box, and slam the door in his face again.
Gwyneth Paltrow has also appeared in Martini ads, which raised some comment as she has stated publicly that she doesn’t drink alcohol.
