Arnold Schwarzenegger: Product Pitchman
Yet another one for Sven, this time from weblogger and indepdendent filmmaker Brian Flemming: Just when you thought Arnold couldn’t get any more shameless.
Apparently Schwarzenegger’s new campaign commercial features careful, prominent placement of products sold by his major corporate campaign contributors (Arrowhead, Pepsi, etc.).
Flemming’s take:
Attention reporters:
Arnold’s claim:
[begin quote]
Todd Harris, a Schwarzenegger campaign spokesman, said nothing should be read into the arranging of the products in the commercial.
“The reason those particular products were on a table is we were in a cafeteria and that’s what those people bought,” Harris said.
[end quote]
This product placement absolutely did not happen by accident. Not a chance. And with some digging, you can likely prove it.
Someone chose to dress this set not using the typical generic items that a designer would normally choose. Someone selected these particular branded items and placed them carefully in the frame. And the director and the director of photography both said, Yes, that looks good like that.
It could not have happened any other way in the real world of film production.
May 30th, 2005 at 8:29 pm
Schwarzenegger & his spokespeople lie constantly. All of “Cal-e-for-ni-a” is a stage for him, and of course the product placement was intentional. Everything that takes place on camera with Arnie is a big Hollywood set, and I’m sure nothing happens by accident.
A few weeks ago, Arnold staged an event to promote his redistricting efforts, showing where the boundary was between two houses on the same street. The event was filmed within a gated community. The real boundary was on another street outside the gated community, where it would have been more difficult to prevent the protests that follow him everywhere. Somehow, they claim this was an “honest mistake”
http://www.thekcrachannel.com/news/4461615/detail.html
I’ve been a big fan of a lot of his movies, and own most of them on DVD. Now, my wife and I have even concidered selling them all on Ebay.
Thankfully Schwarzenegger can never run for president.
May 31st, 2005 at 8:20 pm
Ya Sven I hear ya man. I wish he woulda just stuck to movies too. It’s too bad Gary Coleman didn’t win. When is the next election in Cal-e-for-ni-a?
June 1st, 2005 at 7:47 pm
There is an election in 2006. I’m not sure if any of the Democrats who’ve anounced their candidacy can actually beat Arnold, however. It would seem only Schwarzenegger will be capable of defeating Schwarzenegger. And he’s doing a pretty good job of that, so maybe the Dems will have a chance after all.
It’s sad that Arnold seems to think he can get away with calling teachers, firefighters, nurses & police officers “special interests”, while taking huge sums of money from his corporate backers who are, to him, mearly generous constituents.
Yeah, it would’ve been nice if Gary Coleman (the other Arnold) would have won. “For all the little people.”
June 2nd, 2005 at 6:29 am
Ha!!
June 2nd, 2005 at 8:20 pm
In my pursuit of anti $chwarzrenegger propeganda, I came across an article by Rebecca Schoenkopf:
Capitol Punishment
How Arnold Schwarzenegger stopped worrying and learned to love selling out to special interests
http://www.ocweekly.com/ink/05/39/cover-schoenkopf.php
I found it quite humorous, in a Hunter Thompson “gonzo” sort-of-way. Maybe it’s just me.