Monday, July 02, 2007

One More Big Summer Toon Opening

Kwik-E-Mart sign

Ratatouille is successfully launched, but yet another major animated feature is on its way, and Rupert's movie studio is leaving no donut unholed:

Over the weekend, 7-Eleven Inc. turned a dozen stores, including ones in Burbank and Los Angeles, into Kwik-E-Marts, the fictional convenience stores of "The Simpsons" fame, in the latest example of marketers making life imitate art. Those stores and most of the 6,000-plus other 7-Elevens in North America will sell items that until now existed only on television: Buzz Cola, KrustyO's cereal and Squishees, the slushy drink knockoff of Slurpees.

It's all part of a campaign to hype the July 27 opening of "The Simpsons Movie," the big-screen debut for the long-running television cartoon, which loves to lampoon 7-Eleven as a store that sells all kinds of unhealthy snacks and is run by a man with a thick Indian accent.

Kwik-E-Mart Squishee machine

I drove down to the Burbank Kwik-E-Mart (one of twelve nationwide) and the place was pretty much a madhouse. Burbank police. Traffic co-ordinators. Lots of Kwik-E-Mart execs inside.

Parking sign

Fox is getting a lot of publicity from this tie-in, and the response seems to be strong.

I'm thinking there's another $47.2 million opening in animation's near future.

Update: Ted Kennedy, an object of fun on The Simpsons for some years, isn't letting pride get in the way of helping his home state:

Ted Kennedy is turning the other cheek.

For years, the Massachusetts senator and his family have been lampooned on the cartoon series "The Simpsons" by Joe Quimby , the skirt-chasing Democratic mayor of Springfield who speaks with a Boston accent, throws money at political problems, and vacations in a coastal resort called the "Quimby Compound." Now Kennedy wants to make peace with his yellow, four-fingered foe.

"We cordially invite all the Simpsons -- Homer, Marge, Bart, old 'Diamond' Joe Quimby, Grampa, Lisa, and Abe -- to join us in Springfield, Mass.," Kennedy announces in a video that will be posted online today . "Just think: After 400 episodes, you'll be able to enjoy some real 'chow-dah.' "

1 comments:

Anonymous said...

thats so cool I LOVE SIMPSONS SO MUCH I WAS IN THE HOSPITAL FOR 2 MONTHS AND JUST GOT OUT BUT I HAD TO BE PART OF THE 1ST WEEK SIMPSONS NUMBERS I LOVE IT SO MUCH (THE WHOLE SIMPSONS THING) I FEEL LIKE ITS PART OF ME AND IM PART OF IT I WOULD BE SO HAPPY IF IT TURNED OUT TO BE LIKE THE MOST MONEY MAKING MOVIE IN HISTORY ALL IN THE FIRST WEEK AND JUST MAKE AMAZINGLY HUGE NUMBERS BECAUSE SIMPSONS ARE SO AWESOME AND I LOVED IT SINCE TRACY ALMOND WHEN I WAS A LITTLE KID WATCHING ALL THAT BORING CRAP JUST WAITING SO I COULD CHECK OUT THE SIMPSONS CARTOONS I LOVED SO MUCH ALWAYS BEEN AWESOME I LOVE IT I WISH I HAD A KWIK-E-MART NEAR ME BUT THE PICS ARE COOL THANKS FOR POSTING THIS COOL STUFF

-GEOFFREY-NJ
KILLAG4KILLACAM@AOL

Site Meter