The Ultimate Vampire Resource and Directory

I started this thread in my house, but other members have expressed interest in it so I am moving it here.

Vampires in capitalism? You bet! A far cry from the days of horrorific monsters who eat babies and ravage virgins, vampires now sell us everything from cereal to cars. For example:





ENERGIZER BATTERY TV AD:
In this ad, the Energizer bunny enters a vampires castle. The vampire chases him outside and the door closes, locking him out. He reaches for his key from under his "Velcome" mat, but is too late. The sun rises. He turns to smoke and the Energizer Bunny, is "still going" into the sunrise.



PONTIAC WIDETRACK GRAND PRIX TV AD:
This ad begins with the sun starting to rise and a hearse is trying to get to the castle on the hill. The hearse makes a sharp turn on the narrow road and the coffin falls out of the back. The coffin opens and the vampire arises, and curses his beat up hearse, as the Grand Prix comes up the hill. He tries to wave it down, but the car doesn't stop. Inside the car the pasenger asks the driver "Aren't you going to stop?", he says "In this neighborhood...are you kidding?" Theydrive on and the vampire begins smoking as the sun rises.



RICOLA COUGH DROPS TV COMMERCIAL:
In this ad, a vampire awakens in his coffin, and begins coughin'.(bad pun) He cracks the lid and he reaches for his bag of Ricola on the nightstand next to him. He smiles and stops coughing right away.




How do you feel about the vampire being used as an advertisment icon? Do you think it strengthens the vampire lore by keeping the idea of vampires alive in our society, or does it ruin the vampire mythos by satirizing this horrific creature?

I'm a bit mixed really. On one hand, i'm glad to see the vampire is still alive in other's minds and stuff. But on the other hand, they're making a total fool out of them and making them seem like jokes or cute and cuddly like teddy bears.

The vampire to them is no longer scary or something mysterious, it's a marketing tool.

*coughs* Sorry for my rant and even though my point of view may be totally wrong, that's how I feel looking at the ads and commercials you've listed.

At the very least, I feel it desensitizes people to the horror of what being a vampyre can mean.

It normalises the idea in a way, by associating with every day objects of life.

in today's world not many people believe in the vampire, and even less of the people who do believe, believe in the blood sucking variety.

on this site there's plenty of people, but that's because the site is attracting those who have a belief already. go outside and start asking random people and you'll find that not many believe in them.

however, their legend, their charm, and their sexuality has always held a certain allure for those who don't know them from anything but books and movies...

it just makes sense that they'd be used to advertise. what a vampire has, a mortal wants... and what a vampire wants.... well we must all want that...

I agree with Stabb. But other than the cereal, Vampires haven't really come back into the mainstream until Buffy and Blade. Look how popular they are. But even those give mixed messages of what a vampire truly is or feels.

Indeed, there is nothing which comes to mind that represents a vampyre in a non-idealogued sense.

Even though 'Angel' attempts to give a bit of humanity back, it still is filled with the standard monsterous visage to fight against in every episode, as though the main character is the only one with emotions.

As with most advertising, I just wish it made more sence. I love the vampire used to sell Sunglasses. If they are strong enough to save a Vampire from the sun, then they must be great! But iconism for the pure sake of attraction, I guess that is where I get confused.

Actually I think it could be a positive. Those who dress and adhere to the "lifestyle" are no longer seen as being "weird" as it has become "cool" to do so....because we all know that if we see it on tv it MUST be ok, right? (hints of sarcasm here in case you missed it!)

I do agree with many of the ideas expressed here, but I would like to point out that the more something is viewed on tv the less respect that icon seems to have. So, the more the Vampire is seen in silly situations, the less fearfull he/she will become. Buffy and Angel have also given a false sense that all the evil will be destroyed. So, I think that as far as short term influences, it may be a good thing, but in the long term, it could be very bad because noone will have any respect for the lifestyle or the genre. There will be no mystery left to discover soon. Well, that's my opinion anyway.

it is their choice to expose their kind and for that there is consequences

i think its a bad idea to desensitize people to vampires...most of us on here who aren't vampires know the risks that can be involved in vampirism but a young teenager who thinks its "cool" for an older person to drink thier blood is wrong...and it happens to often now...

we should keep that small amount of fear istalled in us all to keep us alert to the dangers of a true vampire...some of them really aren't as nice as the people on here...

I agree so much with what everyone has had to say, the media has taken the true meaning of the vampyre and turned it into something else.

Vampires are popular in movies, literature, music and in advertising. People remember where they have seen anything that has the hollywood vampire in it. And personally I would rather see Vampires used in advertising than the in the news the way it has been in the last several years.

It takes nothing away from us as living vampires. Its the hollywood vampire persona they are using.

I think it is for the masses. Does not the idea of being associated with the unusual or supernatural have its appeal?

Do we not all wish to be something more than what we are mundanely? Can we not buy these products and then on our own subconscious level feel that we are also part of this myth? I think the use of vampires is to help us create that association to be something that we aren't. Just as movies and books have the ability to allow us the briefest escape into a place we long for but do not exist in. We make and mold ourselves to become what we wish through consumerism and ideals.

I would say it's good because it doesn't percieve them to be as bad characters when people do that. But on the other hand it can be pretty bad. I'm mixed really.

i to think it makes a mokery out of vampires, no wonder when publishers see the word vampire they dump it in the trash.

Exactly Stabb. We create our own myth of ourselves and who we wish to picture ourselves as. It is in our comfort that our complacency occurs.

Keep us happy, well fed and numb, so that we do not question what the real wants and desires are. After all it’s much nicer to be something that shines so others then feel about us the way we felt about the ads.

Is that not the current way?

I have seen a fair number of very 'shiney' vampyres who are 'real', but for some, the image panders to the popularism, bringing success, influence and a measure of self-satisfaction.

And well done to them. It is a great acheivement to reach such heights of renown.

In my opinion, using the vampire to market products is no different than using a half naked woman (the age old "sex sells" adage). The marketers are trying to appeal to the imaginations of millions. There are few if many at all people over the age of ten that arent familiar with "vampires" or vampire lore and most find themselves drawn to either the danger, sensuality, or fear that the idea of vampires can provoke, so using vampires in marketing is really not a bad idea because it certainly draws one's attention, does it not?

I think it makes vampires more accessible to people, adults and kids alike. When I was a tot I loved the Count (Sesame Street) and all sorts of things like that. I dressed as vampires and witches for Halloween. I don't see how getting more people involved could possibly be a bad thing, otherwise I wouldn't be here. Besides, what's the difference between vampires trying to sell me cars, and vampires trying to sell me the latest in 'goth-gear'? I hardly think a 'real' vampire would be too interested in either.

Those Vampires are just pure fiction so why worry about Image when we and every other logical being knows that those advertising vamps are fiction.

At least they arent killing people.

...hell, i think it' great! the more press the better! so what if joe-shmoe society thinks it's cutesy? we all know the truth of it. let them become complacent - we will close for the kill when they least expect it! muhahaHAHAHA! %^D~

Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen. Tonights performance( damn...I love the screaming) is brought toyou by the VAMPYRIC BLOOD SOCIETY. We offer several types and vitages of blood. Check us out at VBS.adalucar.

I feel it is one more step into being equals in the world of now and into the future!

Some of the advertising is powerful imagery and others are just plain silly... but I find it simply entertaining to see vampires in advertising...to me it is no different than seeing anyone or anything else used...

Didn't they use Leslie Nielson from his Dead and Loving It movie with a red upper lip for the "Got Milk?" ad?

Advitisement is rather putting down the fact of the origine of vampire also. I have ssen one that was about a vampire eating a reeses peanut butter cup and all you see it two holes in it and his teeth and then it says you can eat you cup how ever you like it, another way to put down our kind tot he level of product just if we were the one being advitiseand not the product.

I never really thought about it, but in todays moronic capitolist society, it would be easy for a vampire to take control of pretty much all of it, so, what the hell, why not. maybe they would find a way to kill all mortals a little faster than the mortals themselves are going. huh.

I feel indifferent to vampires in advertising. I see no harm in it. It's all good fun I guess.

Vampires are definitely a part of American culture. Almost every little boy was a vampire for Halloween. Vampire fiction is of monsters, but they are our comfort zone.

The gothic lifestyle, if you can call it that, is a large market, and I feel advertizers realize this and are now starting to take advantage of it. Times keep changing, as the population ages and new ideas and creations change our world. There will be more of this kind of marketing in the future, I am sure of it. I think it is cool, but I also see the downside to it as well. I say, to each their own.

I will say that i think advertising downplays the whole vampire in general. However that is what advertising does to most things. The imagine of the vampire is very well known and they will use it around certain times to up sales. I am not agreeing with it in any way but i understand where companies are coming from in doing this

It's not a real big deal if you think about it. Besides, is it really anyone's goal to terrify the public and make it harder to get along in everyday society? Having a more approachable persona for vampires is fine by me. And honestly, I'm sure a lot of you have seen Blade Trinity. The little vampire shop? We've all seen things like that. Most of us probably own some of it. It'd be a bit hypocritical of us to say we don't want anyone else doing that. Goths don't own vampires any more than anyone else does, so I say, let them have their fun.

I actually get a bit of a kick when I see something like vampirism used in advertising. Perhaps it's related to my pleasure at pushing religious buttons. I just know some evangelist in middle America is going nuts everytime a vampire is depicted in a magazine or TV ad.

I'm actually a bit miffed that the Devil has been given such a back seat in the ad world (or kicked off the bus entirely). If you look at advertisements in the 50's and 60's it was quite popular to use imagery of the devil in both advertising and in toys and comics and costumes...I actually had a hard time finding halloween decorations that include the devil. Sure we've got the mosters, witches and yes the vampire, but the devil has been ushered out of the building.

So the vampire to me makes for a decent fill in on that level and it pleases me to see the vampire take a stronger roll in marketing since the devil has been shown the door.

Everyone here seems to have the right ideas. Look how they portray witches and how people beleived they burned witches. How closeminded can people get.
BLESSED BE

It's a mixture of both. It still has the same theme in the background You know? At least it's not some pink frilly vampire playing with horses or something.

basicaly in one of the unwritten laws vampires are ment to be hidden. never seen never heard. even this site is going against the unwritten laws. but some laws can be broken and moved to the 21st cent.....you know what i mean

there is also an advert for a low fat cerical bar thing in which and evil count is sitting in his throne with lil pesants cleaning and some one brings him a tray of said bars and he eats one and gives the peseant the day off and opens the curtains, the closing part shows people claping from the dungeons

thats a rough idea of the ad i can't remebr it too well

I am mildly annoyed with the use of vampires in advertising but then again to say that it desensitizes the public to the idea of vampires; well you'd have to include all the movies that do the same thing. We're never going to escape advertising unfortunately so while we rant and rave (and trust me I have too) they are going to continue to pull from any viable place to sell a product.

Besides I remember that Sunglasses commercial and it actually made me veiw vampires as even 'cooler' ... I'm not sure how young was but I remember the commercial, it could have been worse.

~Fie

This is just as fun and amusing as any fictional character in advertising. Spiderman, The Hulk- we know they aren't real. As my wife says, they are obiously not using human vampires for this. It's obvious they are using mythological characters.

I don't think anyone would be amused by a psy-vamp in a commercial. Just a human, no one would even know their significance.

i think its kinda funny.... it portrays them in a different way.... its nice to see a different take on them....

I would be more offended by Don Henrie on Mad Mad House (reality show) than I would by Count Chocula. Which one really demeans the idea of real vampires and which one is a harmless cartoon...come to think of it they may both be harmless cartoons but I still think Don Henrie is more demeaning.

While imagesinwords has a point that they are not in fact refering to people living the 'vampiric' lifestyle when using vampires in advertising I think she rather missed my point. Advertising in general irritates me because a product should be good enough to sell itself or it's not a good product for the most part. As for my fangs, I am not 'advertising' anything but simply portraying myself in a light which I find to most represent my lifestyle and myself as a person. I made no mention of trying to escape the comparison to myth... my issue had nothing to do w/ the portrayal of the mytholigical vampire simply more w/ the way that society will never escape advertising...

Advertising is based on getting the product in front of the consumer. Unfortunately, many a consumer will not respond to a simple "this product is good - try it and see" line of promotion. Most consumers, whether they admit to it or not, respond to emotional stimuli when shopping or seeking a specific type of product. The fact that advertising works so well is testament to the fact that the best product can be lost among a sea of emotional fishing lines.

That is not to say that all advertising is deceitful or malevolent. Often times, a logo or packaging is designed merely to visually portray the actual effects or use of a product. Most people don't want to read every package they buy so if the product 'looks like' it will do what you want, you might buy it and find out that it 'does do' what you want. Advertising is a bit like a subconcious language to tell you what a product does. (see sunglasses on vampires being used to portray a more powerful protection or more realistically the way technology products always use technology colors - like blue, yellow, green etc)

Now advertising has other purposes as well such as creating a 'status' or loyalty with brands and in that respect (see vampires as a logo like Chocula cereal to make you want it cause it's 'cool' or the various vodka 'cliques' that exist), you may be talking about a less 'honest' role in marketing...but in todays world of impulse shoppers and mass consumption, it's almost a necessary role.

I should also point out that advertising is in fact the act of (if I may paraphrase) "portraying something in a light which is found to most represent a lifestyle a buyer as a person."

i don't really like how they're making vampires seem less mysterious and dangerous. it's because of that that i was attracted to vampires in the first place.

It is a very smart marketing strategy indeed. Using something that is a hot topic these days. Especially fictional vampires are "cool" icons, and therefor I do not see a problem with producers using them as a spokes persons for every day products.

Someone posted that it could have the effect that youngsters would start drinking blood, I doubt there is a risk for that. But there may be a risk of kids starting to eat more "count chocola cereals"

There is no harmful effect from advertising with vampires over any other marketing strategy...although I remember a WKRP strategy that went awry...something about releasing live turkeys from a helicopter (who knew turkeys couldn't fly?)

In as much seriousness as I can muster right now, and as a graphic designer involved in marketing, icons of any archetype that can help identify your product with a particular audience or buying group is a good thing. People want to be marketed to. It makes them feel special. Most people that identify or enjoy a particular type of fiction or lifestyle or culture, enjoy having something that was 'designed for them' even when they know that it's 90% marketing...and I've always preferred BooBerry Cereal anyway...I've got a box at home in the pantry next to my skull lolipops.

it depends on wether you think the vampire should be feared or not. if so, than they should not be in advertizing, lol

vampires are used in advertising because of all the little kids play goth in the world today. business is smart, they know who point their commercials at. if you want it to stop don't go to school or out in public dressed black and your pale makeup. goth is an attitude, not your closes.

Advertising will try and make money off of anything they can. If they think vampires are popular they will use it.