Caliber commercial anti-gay? Chrysler responds…
One of the new commercials in Chrsyler’s marketing blitz for the Caliber includes a scene in which a diminutive
fairy casts her wand about cute-ifying objects in a city. At one point she waves her wand at a tough guy walking his dog
and he becomes a “cute” guy complete with white shorts, a yellow polo on four tiny pups on pink leashes.
Sounds tame enough, but the leader of a prominent gay rights group in Detroit remarked in a newspaper “this
guy looks pretty gay to me.” Jason Vines, Chrysler’s head of communications, hasn’t taken kindly to
the remark stating: “If I had said that, there would be demonstrations outside our headquarters and then…
I’d be fired.” Vines goes on to say that the remark made by the gay rights leader seems to only reinforce a
stereotype of homosexuals that implies guys who look tough, wear work boots and jeans and walk large dogs can’t be
gay.
*Sigh.* Can’t we all just get along?
[Source: Chrysler]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
blis 10:31AM (4/07/2006)
Found the video :)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=WgqD47AnroQ&search=caliber
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steve s 10:39AM (4/07/2006)
Just proves that no matter what you do someone will always object to it. Guy looks like the typical Biff, tennis playing rich guy stereotype as opposed to a gain guy.
Personally the commercial is great and very well done. I applaud Dodges advertising company for coming up with it.
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S 10:44AM (4/07/2006)
The guy in that picture doesn't even look like common gay stereotypes.
He looks much more like a tennis-playing conservative yuppy from 1985.
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J'mo 10:51AM (4/07/2006)
That guy looks pretty STUPID to me.
Gay men dont dress in 80's preppy country club fashions, we're supposed to have taste damnit!
Me and my friends certainly dont dress like that and my dog is a black pitbull/lab with a black leash. If I ever dress like that I want everyone and their mother to pimp-slap me back to 1985 until I come to my senses.
I think the ad is funny.
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Ryan 10:54AM (4/07/2006)
"He looks much more like a tennis-playing conservative yuppy from 1985."
-HA, that is funny, it's true
So anyway, I have to say my partner and I, even though we are gay, can help but get a really good laugh out of the commericial. My partner laughs and says, well It's probably bad I'm laughing, but it's funny! So really, if you can't laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at?! Also, it's not really "anti-gay" at least I dont see it, more "gay humor" mabye?
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Richard 11:05AM (4/07/2006)
No self-respecting gay man would ever wear white tube socks and even if he did they would never be hitched up like that. And that haircut is just soooo not gay!
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josh 11:16AM (4/07/2006)
". No self-respecting gay man would ever wear white tube socks and even if he did they would never be hitched up like that."
haha... i did --> http://jaguar.ir.miami.edu/~jjuroch/enzo.jpg
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Presto 11:20AM (4/07/2006)
Since when does a sissy-looking dude instantly make him a homosexual? I think this gay rights group is looking for some free publicity and they're making the stereotype on their end.. "Yes, that's what we look like!!!!"
How gay is that?
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electro^plankton 11:22AM (4/07/2006)
He's sooo not gay. LOL
He's a total throw-back to the 80's. Poor guy.
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dumb as dirt 11:25AM (4/07/2006)
so who's gay? the guy or the fairy?
good spot.
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Corey W. 11:28AM (4/07/2006)
This is stupid!! So now if you're "cute" or "preppy" you're gay... Crap like this is going to create a desensitized view, just a another "group" whining about something else trivial.
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Jim 11:30AM (4/07/2006)
Dude looks like Cole from the Tom Hanks classic "Bachelor Party." So, yeah, 80's preppie all the way...
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SoWhat 11:32AM (4/07/2006)
They always have something to complain about. Will it ever stop...this constant need of a platform to gripe and moan due to their need for special rights. I wish they would take hypersensitivity and depraved sexuality and get back in the bedroom. And I'm not a hater, just right!
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Cam 11:32AM (4/07/2006)
"It's anything but cute."
No kidding. I think the Caliber looks like the bastard child of a Magnum and a running shoe.
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Chris 11:45AM (4/07/2006)
This is all so stupid...the fairy, who is hot, just turned the badass into a wimp. We all know there are straight and gay wimps...so this commercial really just offended the wimps. No one cares if the wimps are offended, it's why they are wimps to begin with.
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agent864 11:48AM (4/07/2006)
#12 yr so totally a hater one hypersensitive gay person does not the whole lot make. go post your hate elsewhere.
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Chris 11:51AM (4/07/2006)
The wimps have no platform to talk from...someone took it from them.
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agent864 11:52AM (4/07/2006)
#12 sexual depravity and sexual preference are mutually exclusive
for example :
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2006-04-05T184158Z_01_N04209957_RTRUKOC_0_US-CRIME-DOYLE.xml
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SoWhat 11:53AM (4/07/2006)
#13 go post your anti-speech, normal bashing militancy elsewhere. I'll say what I want anywhere I want.
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mr 11:54AM (4/07/2006)
I don't think it's gay-bashing - just consistent with Dodge's practice of marketing exclusively to hypermacho jerks.
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