That's whacked: Expedition front and center of grisly Sopranos scene
Automakers have been paying big bucks for product placement in movies like Transformers and Casino Royale. When Ford marketers first heard that their recently redesigned Expedition made a free, blue oval-laden appearance on the wildly popular Sopranos finale, they must have figured that a little luck went their way. When those same product placement-o-holics discovered that the Expedition's big scene was when Tony Soprano enemy Phil Leotardo's head got crushed by said SUV, they probably weren't as happy. We thought the scene was especially odd considering that it contained a sustained close-up of the blue oval followed by Leotardo getting quickly shot in the head. Then we see the historic oval again on the front wheel as the mob boss' head gets run over by the two and a half ton vehicle with a crunch that can only be described as horrific.
Ford spokeswoman Whitney Drake said the appearance was "not a product placement." No kidding? Leotardo may have deserved his fate though. What self-respecting mob boss doesn't get chauffeured in a Town Car?
[Source: Detroit News]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Mr. Oak 11:11AM (6/13/2007)
That was his family car. Not "La Familia" family, biological family. Did you see the kid at the gas station hurl?
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MKULTRABLIZZARD 11:53AM (6/13/2007)
that was priceless!
Christopher Groves 11:13AM (6/13/2007)
Your headline is incorrect in its verbiage..... the correct urban term would be "That's Whack" not "that's whacked" it's kinda like asking a homey for "fiddy cent" instead of fifty cents. I hope this helps you in your future blogs
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steve.ricken 11:52AM (6/13/2007)
I believe he was referring to someone "getting whacked" in the Sopranos. It's called a pun. You may want to learn about them.
Elliott 11:47AM (6/13/2007)
The use of "whacked" was probably intentional. It's a pun.
Christopher Groves 10:09PM (6/13/2007)
Oh the irony! I get a reply telling me to learn about puns. I'll go ahead and grant you your wish, as long as you promise to grow a sense of humor. Perhaps you didn't see that in my post, I'm sorry I laid it right out there instead of burying it in a silly pun. Peace Homeys
bmoredlj 11:20AM (6/13/2007)
The prominence of the Ford (and it's blue oval) is one of many shots of American-made people, products, and ways of life in the episode, "Made in America."
Phil's daily driver was a red Lincoln Town Car, another Ford.
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Dave T. 11:37AM (6/13/2007)
Tony drove an Escalade as well.
Plus in John From Cincinnati Luke Perry drove a new Navigator.
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Stuntman Mike 11:39AM (6/13/2007)
Seem to remember Christopher and Tony both rolling over their Escalades in past episodes. And what about AJ's Xterra catching on fire. Lot of CARnage.
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Rob 11:53AM (6/13/2007)
It's definitely product placement. From the Big 3's own research, SUV buyers tend to be " “Insecure and vain. They are frequently nervous about their marriages and
uncomfortable about parenthood. They often lack confidence in their driving skills. Above all,
they are apt to be self-centered and self-absorbed, with little interest in their neighbors and
communities. They are more restless, more sybaritic, and less social than most Americans are.
They tend to like fine restaurants a lot more than off-road driving, seldom go to church and have
limited interest in doing volunteer work to help others”(Bradsher, 287). "
The vehicle was chosen because SUV owners all want to be badasses, and 'super macho and tough', so they don't have to deal with anybody else except through violence.
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Tony Belding 11:54AM (6/13/2007)
grisly = causing horror or disgust
grizzly = a North American brown bear
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paul34 11:58AM (6/13/2007)
What! Expeditions have always been Jack Bauer's ride of choice while hunting down terrorists.
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Chris 12:59PM (6/13/2007)
Correction: The Expedition featured in the episode was not the "recently redesigned" version with the three bar grille, but a previous one with the cross-hatch grille.
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dave 12:59PM (6/13/2007)
Meh, It wasn't a new Expedition it was a 2003-2006 model.
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Jon 1:51PM (6/13/2007)
If you can't make it make sense, then don't say it at all. Check your verb usage, go back to school.
And if you haven't checked lately, Ford is coming back financially.
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FrankTheCrank 1:58PM (6/13/2007)
That was kind of odd considering how much GM dumped into that show to feature all the main characters driving GM branded vehicles.
Paulie drove a Caddy STS. Tony drove an Escalade. Christopher drove a Hummer.
GM must have asked them not to use a GM car. Surprised they didn't use a Tundra. Or an F150.
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Nick 2:05PM (6/13/2007)
did anyone notice that right before the last scene, as meadow finishes parking her car, a car passes through the street that was also a silver, last gen Ford Expedition. It was real subtle, but it seemed to have some foreshadowing that would leave you to believe tony was about to be whacked.
This product placement stuff is bs. Anthony Jr had an xterra then gets an bmw m3 in the last episode. Carmela drives a Porsche Cayenne. Tony has an Escalade. When Christopher dies he is driving his brand new Escalade EXT. Most of the other guys drove old Devilles. They certainly aren't playing favorites with any brand in particular, at least not the point it smells like corporate placement.
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fizzandpop 3:06PM (6/13/2007)
From my memory, Christopher started out with a Lexus, then got a Range Rover, then a Hummer, then he got Johnny Sac's Maserati, then died in the Caddy SUV POS. Paulie drove a DeVille which was wrecked in the Pine Barrons "I f**king loved that caaaaaaa". Tony had a Suburban, then an Escalade. Carm had a Mercedes wagon, then got the Cayenne as a prezzy for ignoring Tone's goombahing. Phil had a Jag didn't he?
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fizzandpop 3:08PM (6/13/2007)
No, sorry, Little Carmine had the Jag.
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fizzandpop 3:11PM (6/13/2007)
This was on Frobes:
2003 Cadillac Escalade ESV
2005 Porsche Cayenne S
2005 Maserati Coupe Cambiocorsa
2004 Cadillac Seville
2005 Hummer H2
2001 Mercedes-Benz ML430
1996 Cadillac DeVille
2006 Chevrolet Corvette
2003 Ford Thunderbird
2000 Mercury Grand Marquis
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