1984 (advertisement)
| "1984" | |
|---|---|
Still image from the advertisement | |
| Directed by | Ridley Scott |
| Written by |
|
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography | Adrian Biddle |
| Edited by | Pamela Power |
Production companies | Fairbanks Films, New York |
| Distributed by | Apple Computer Inc. |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 1 minute |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $370,000 – $900,000 |
"1984" is an American television commercial that introduced the Apple Macintosh personal computer. It was conceived by Steve Hayden, Brent Thomas, and Lee Clow at Chiat/Day, produced by New York production company Fairbanks Films, and directed by Ridley Scott. The ad was a reference to George Orwell's noted 1949 novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four, which described a dystopian future ruled by a televised "Big Brother".[1] English athlete Anya Major performed as the unnamed heroine and David Graham as Big Brother.[2] In the US, it first aired in 10 local outlets,[3] including Twin Falls, Idaho, where Chiat/Day ran the ad on December 31, 1983, at the last possible break before midnight on KMVT, so that the advertisement qualified for the 1984 Clio Awards.[4][5][6] Its second televised airing, and only US national airing, was on January 22, 1984, during a break in the third quarter of the telecast of Super Bowl XVIII by CBS.[7]
In one interpretation of the commercial, "1984" used the unnamed heroine to represent the coming of the Macintosh (indicated by her white tank top with a stylized line drawing of Apple’s Macintosh computer on it) as a means of saving humanity from "conformity" (Big Brother).[8]
Originally a subject of contention within Apple, it has subsequently been called a watershed event[9] and a masterpiece[10] in advertising. In 1995, the Clio Awards added it to its Hall of Fame, and Advertising Age placed it on the top of its list of 50 greatest commercials.[11]
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:0was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Graham, David. "David's film appearances". David Graham Official Site. Archived from the original on August 22, 2015. Retrieved 28 July 2015.
- ^ Burnham, David (March 4, 1984). "The Computer, the Consumer and Privacy". The New York Times. Washington DC. Archived from the original on April 3, 2015. Retrieved January 24, 2014.
- ^ Dougherty, Philip H. (May 24, 1984). "ADVERTISING; Ally & Gargano Prevails At Clio Awards Again". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 10, 2019. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
- ^ "The True Story of Apple's '1984' Ad's First Broadcast...Before the Super Bowl". mental_floss. February 4, 2012. Archived from the original on January 7, 2014. Retrieved December 3, 2013.
- ^ Hertzfeld, Andy (September 2004). "1984". Folklore.org. p. 73. Archived from the original on January 15, 2017. Retrieved February 8, 2016.
- ^ Friedman, Ted (October 1997). "Apple's 1984: The Introduction of the Macintosh in the Cultural History of Personal Computers". Archived from the original on October 5, 1999.
- ^ Cellini, Adelia (January 2004). "The Story Behind Apple's '1984' TV commercial: Big Brother at 20". MacWorld. 21 (1): 18. Archived from the original on June 28, 2009. Retrieved May 9, 2008.
- ^ Maney, Kevin (January 28, 2004). "Apple's '1984' Super Bowl Commercial Still Stands as Watershed Event". USA Today. Archived from the original on April 10, 2011. Retrieved January 22, 2014.
- ^ Leopold, Todd (February 3, 2006). "Why 2006 Isn't like '1984'". CNN. Archived from the original on April 5, 2014. Retrieved May 10, 2008.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
nyt1995adagewas invoked but never defined (see the help page).