Wobbly Table Stunt Raises Awareness of Parkinson’s Disease

Shake it Up Foundation

Here in Canada there are nearly 100,000 people living with Parkinson’s, while in the US, at least 500,000 are believed to suffer from the disease. Unfortunately these figures are expected to increase as the average age of the population increases. In Australia, Clyde Campbell (who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2009) launched the Shake It Up Foundation in 2011 to promote and focus on Parkinson’s research, where one in 350 people are affected by the disease.

On April 11, World Parkinson’s Day, Shake It Up Foundation volunteers placed 1,000 wooden door wedges under tables in cafés and restaurants around Sydney. As people sat down at the wobbly, shaky tables they experienced an example of one of the symptoms of the disease (thank goodness no one spilled hot coffee in their lap).

The wedge was printed with the message, “It’s more than just the shakes”, and then when flipped over read, “Thirty Australians are diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease every day. But thousands more are affected, from family to friends. You can help stop it at shakeitup.org.au”.

[via mUmBRELLA]

Australia

Slackline Superstar Faith Dickey ‘Walks the Line’ Between Two Speeding Volvo Trucks

Volvo FH trucks - Slackliner

The first thing I did after nearly having a heart attack watching this stunt was to followup on the differences between the different types of tightrope walking. Tightwire is when the wire (or line) is tensioned between two points (Nik Walenda crossed Niagara Falls last month on a highwaire, essentially a tight wire suspended high above the ground), while slackline relies on the tension created by the person performing the act.

World-record holder Faith Dickey is one the best slackliners in the world, and on a deserted highway in Vrgorac, Croatia Faith demonstrated just why she is the best. In the video Faith ‘walks the line’ (with a short safety line) suspended between two speeding Volvo FH trucks. She has to complete the walk before the trucks reach two separate tunnels or… well there’s going to be some Wile E. Coyote-esque trouble. After nearly falling in the first few seconds, she manages to crawl back up

The stunt was conceived by Swedish ad agency Forsman & Bodenfors, and directed by Henry Alex Rubin (Murderball).

[via Complex Rides]

Sweden

Ted Baker Promotes NYC Store Opening By Tidying Up the Big Apple

Ted Baker 'Midtown Abbey'

To promote the opening of their new Manhattan store at Fifth Avenue and 48th Street, fashion retailer Ted Baker deployed a small army of proper British maids and butlers dressed up in 1920s-era uniforms.

The stunt was dubbed ‘Midtown Abbey’, no doubt to play off of the popular UK TV series Downtown Abbey; saw the butlers and maids scooping up dog poop, polishing the Wall Street bull, ironing wrinkled tourist maps and opening doors for taxi passengers.

[via Muse and Views]

USA

Vitaminwater France Celebrates the Triumphs of Everyday Athletes

Vitamin Water Athletes

Usain Bolt, Gabby Douglas, Michael Phelps; these are just three of the superstar athletes that captured the world’s attention during the last two weeks of the London Olympics. But, what about those millions of regular everyday folks who are playing their favorite sports without the world’s attention?

To give these everyday athletes a thrill (although a few in the video don’t look particularly thrilled at the attention) Vitaminwater France hired a real sports commentator to hide in the bushes near sport locations and provide a running description of the athletes activity. Maybe something is lost in translation, but hearing the announcer implore the swimmer with, “Don’t stop, little salmon, don’t give up! Go lay your eggs all the way up that podium” is a little weird.

No medals were on the line for these folks, but they were offered up bottles of Vitaminwater for their athletic effort. Stay hydrated little salmon.

The campaign was created by Sid Lee Paris.

[via popsop]

France

AMC Sets Zombies Loose on the Streets of New York

AMC Put Zombies Back - NYC Experiment

The only thing that could be more terrifying than coming face-to-face with a brain-thirsty zombie, is the possibility of missing ‘Walking Dead‘ because Dish Network recently dumped AMC from it’s cable lineup. With the premiere of Season 3 of ‘The Walking Dead’ only a couple of short months away, AMC has launched PutZombiesBack, an online effort to get AMC back on Dish.

As a stunt to promote the ‘Put Zombies Back’ effort, AMC transformed dozens of New Yorkers into elaborate zombies and set them loose onto the streets of Manhattan. The zombie horde included a shoppers, postman, parking officer, road repair workers, and even a hot dog vendor zombie (I imagine the health department will have an issue with flesh dripping onto the food).

While some people react in terror, others seem amused. Even the New York squirrels are inquisitive, and believe me this world does not need to have zombie squirrels on the loose. If this is any indication of how New Yorkers will act when the real zombie apocalypse happens, the walking dead will eat very well in the big Apple.

The closing scene with one lonely zombie dragging a Dish network satellite dish along the sidewalk says it all. “Zombies don’t belong here. Put them back on TV.”

[via Adrants]

USA

Window Washer Invites High Rise Workaholics to Ultimat Vodka Party

Ultimat Vodka Window Washer

Back in the 1960s, the idea for the unofficial ‘Summer Friday’ holiday was hatched as New York ad agencies realized that during summer, productivity tended to drop to zero on Fridays. Although after watching five seasons of Mad Men, productivity seems pretty suspect all week long. I can’t imagine Roger Sterling anywhere near the office by the time Friday afternoon rolled around.

In an attempt to re-introduce the concept of ‘Summer Fridays’ to today’s dedicated white collar workaholics, ad agency Amalgamated dressed a window washer in a suit and had him personally workers at the 1 State Street Building out for drinks on behalf of their client Ultimat Vodka. The stylishly-dressed window washer held up a series of signs that read “Do You Ever Leave The Office?”, “Come Have A Drink (On Us)”, “Stop Working. Start Drinking”, and “Have You Heard About Fresh Air? It’s Amazing!” advising these overworked souls on less work and more play.

For the high-rise employees who managed to tear themselves away from their meetings and spreadsheets, cool drinks were waiting for them a few blocks away at the Beekman Beach Club on Pier 17.

Since being released last Thursday the video has chalked up over a million views on YouTube.

USA

Beckham Surprises Fans at #TaketheStage Photobooth

Adidas David Beckham Photobooth

David Beckham is a very busy man these days.

Despite being left off the the roster of the British Olympic football squad, and the London Olympics opening a day or two away, Beckham boarded a plane and flew to Philadelphia where he was one of the best players on the field for the MLS All Stars as they defeated Chelsea 3-2.

Beckham still found time to surprise fans at an adidas #takethestage photobooth at Westfield Stratford City shopping centre, located near the Olympic park where fans had been invited to support the Great Britain team. It’s awesome to see the variety of reactions to Beckham as he pokes his head around the corner.

UK

Belgian Football Fans Undress Billboards to Earn Free Tickets

Sporting Telenet Football Billboards

The Belgian Jupiler Pro Football League is set to open their season this Saturday. To drum up interest for the coming season, cable company Telenet created a giant version of the jersey for each of 16 teams, then placed them over billboards near each of the home stadiums.

The first fan who dared to steal the shirt not only got to keep the giant team jersey, but they earned 5 free football tickets for their trouble. My kudos to the one legged guy who deftly used his cane to earn his prize. Watch the video to see the ingenuity of these jersey thieves.

The campaign comes from TBWA, Brussels.

via Creative Criminals

Belgium

Johannesburg Joy of Jazz Festival Promotion Goes to the Birds

StandardBank Pigeon Jazz

Birdland is a famous jazz club in New York City named after legendary jazz saxophonist Charlie ‘Yardbird’ Parker. When it opened in 1949, just north of West 52nd Street, it featured the who’s who of jazz including Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bud Powell, Stan Getz, Lester Young, Erroll Garner, and many others. The original Birdland closed in 1965 before being reborn on the upper west side in 1986. More recently in the 1990s, Birdland was moved back to midtown Manhattan and remains a destination for jazz musicians and fans alike.

Recently a different kind of jazz/bird relationship was played out in the appropriately named Pigeon Square in Johannesburg. To promote the Standard Bank Joy of Jazz Festival 2012, a set of instruments were set up and covered with seeds and popcorns. Soon, the sweet jazz sounds of the band dubbed the ‘Featherweights’ filled the square much to the confusion and delight of passerby.

I don’t envy the roadies cleaning up after this show.

The stunt was created by TBWAHuntLascaris, Johannesburg and produced by Hey!Fever.

via: Ads of the World

South Africa

São Paulo Bar Targets Drinking Drivers With ‘The Responsible Sip’

Blá Bar Responsible Sip

Drunk driving is a huge issue no matter where you live. In Brazil, harsher traffic laws were introduced a few years ago but unfortunately did little to decrease the number of drunk drivers on the roads there.

São Paulo’s Blá Bar came up with a way to drive home the message to their customers, ‘The Responsible Sip’. Drivers were identified by the parking staff as they entered the bar, and when they ordered a beer it arrived at the table in a special glass printed with a series of humorous quotes of how the evening might proceed if they continued to drink more alcohol.

While most drivers switched to non-alcohol drinks for the remainder of the evening, others continued to drink. Those drivers were given the number for a taxi with their bill.

The stunt was created by QG Propaganda, Brazil.

Brazil