Best Commercials:
Top Ads (We Can't Get Out of Our Heads)

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  1. Life Alert: I've Fallen, and I Can't Get Up! (1990)

  The best-remembered (and most-parodied) commercial phrase of the past 25 years isn't for a cola or sneaker. It comes from that elderly woman using the Life Alert gizmo around her neck to call for help. It is the ultimate product-as-hero ad.
  I Can't Get Up!

  
  
  

  Next: Apple Macintosh: (1984)

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  2. Apple Macintosh: (1984)

  The ad all others have aspired to be: Never mind that it aired once nationally, on the Super Bowl and that few recall much besides that very buff woman wielding a sledgehammer. It sold Macs. 1984

  
  
  
  

  Next: Wendy's: Where's the Beef? (1984)

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  3. Wendy's: Where's the Beef? (1984)

  The same year Apple went over the top to tout its Mac, Wendy's went under the bun to tout its burger. Crusty ol' Clara Peller ranting "Where's the Beef" became ingrained in pop culture. It may be the most effective fast-food ad ever. Sorry, Ronald. Where's the Beef?

  
  
  

  Next: Isuzu: Joe 'Trust Me' Isuzu (1986)

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  4. Isuzu: Joe 'Trust Me' Isuzu (1986)

  Joe Isuzu ranks among the most memorable auto pitchmen. He (David Leisure) was a remarkably likable liar making outrageous claims about the Isuzus. Joe's job as slimy hawker wasn't to sell cars, but to familiarize consumers with the then-little-known Isuzu name. Did he ever. Trust Us

  
  
  

  Next: Energizer Bunny (1989)

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  6. Bartles & Jaymes: New Wine Cooler (1985)

  Frank Bartles and Ed Jaymes perfected the art of sitting on the front porch step and shooting the breeze. (OK, Ed never spoke.) They convinced millions that the new wine cooler was from a coupla country geezers -- never mind that wine giant Gallo was behind it. Thank you for your support

  
  
  

  Next: Heard It Through the Grapevine (1986)

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  7. Heard It Through the Grapevine (1986)

  The ad wasn't just the birth of the dancing raisins. It also was the birth of Claymation -- clay animated figures that could move and groove. And it was the original better-for-you snack pitch: raisins instead of sweets? Heard it Through the Grapevine

  
  
  

  Next: Budweiser: Croaking Frogs (1995)

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  8. Budweiser: Croaking Frogs (1995)

  Perhaps the most fondly remembered Super Bowl campaign from Anheuser-Busch starred a trio of talking frogs in a dark swamp croaking: "Bud. Wei. Ser." It was so widely mimicked and so wildly successful, the King of Beers made it a series with talking lizards and ferrets. Croaking Frogs

  
  
  

  Next: Bush Campaign: Willie Horton (1988)

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  9. Bush Campaign: Willie Horton (1988)

  Who can forget that mug shot? The ad tried to link Democratic presidential opponent Michael Dukakis to a prison furlough for the Massachusetts convict during which Horton raped a woman and stabbed her boyfriend. But Dukakis felt the knife. Willie Horton

  
  
  

  Next: California Milk Processors Board: Got Milk? (1993)

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  10. California Milk Processors Board: Got Milk? (1993)

  What could be stickier than to have an entire peanut butter sandwich stuffed into your mouth -- and have no milk to wash it down? This first ad was a springboard for Got Milk? -- and Aaron Burr -- into pop culture. Got Milk?

  
  
  
  

  Next: 'This Is Your Brain on Drugs' (1987)

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  11. 'This Is Your Brain on Drugs' (1987)

  To scare teens off drugs, this public service ad compared an egg in a frying pan to a brain on drugs. Any questions? Yes: Got cholesterol?

  
  
  
  

  Next: Ikea: Gay Men Shopping (1994)

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  12. Ikea: Gay Men Shopping (1994)

  Major marketers were too timid to court gays on TV until Ikea broke the barrier. Two male actors portray a couple shopping for a dining room table. IKEA was bold, but not so much that they shopped for other rooms. Gay Men Shopping

  
  
  
  

  Next: McDonald's: Nothing but Net (1993)

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  13. McDonald's: Nothing but Net (1993)

  With a Big Mac at stake, Michael Jordan and Larry Bird play the most famous game of h-o-r-s-e ever captured on film. Each proposes -- then swishes -- increasingly improbable shots in this Super Bowl ad. For McD's, it was nothing but net. Nothing but Net

  
  
  

  Next: Pepsi: Michael Jackson on Fire (1984)

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  15. Reagan Campaign: Morning in America (1984)

  Here's a rarity: a positive political ad. The ultimate feel-good spot boasted of things President Reagan had done, while showing waving flags, happy kids, smiling brides. Only thing missing was a puppy. Morning in America

  
  
  
  

  Next: Nike: Bo Knows (1989)

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  16. Nike: Bo Knows (1989)

  Super jock Bo Jackson proved he could play pro football and baseball and wear Nikes, all at the same time. But Bo Jackson, you're no Bo Diddley. Bo Knows

  
  
  
  
  

  Next: Nike: Revolution (1987)

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  17. Nike: Revolution (1987)

  Nike changed the world -- at least, the ad world, by being first to feature an original Beatles recording in a TV spot. This resulted in a predictable (for Beatles music) flurry of lawsuits, including one for Nike. But in the end, the love you take is equal to the ads you make. Revolution

  
  
  

  Next: Pardon Me, Would You Have Any Grey Poupon? (1984)

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  18. Pardon Me, Would You Have Any Grey Poupon? (1984)

  Ah, the beginning of a condiment class system. Out with the yellow mustard, in with the brown Dijon. Pardon me, got any purple Heinz ketchup? Pardon Me, Would You Have Any Grey Poupon?

  
  
  
  

  Next: Federal Government: Crash Test Dummies (1985)

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  19. Federal Government: Crash Test Dummies (1985)

  It took a coupla dummies (Vince and Larry) to persuade Americans to buckle their seat belts. We all learned a lot from these dummies. Crash Test Dummies

  
  
  
  
  

  Next: Playtex: Model (1987)

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  20. Playtex: Model (1987)

  Playtex showed some skin - if you can call it that - in the first TV spot showing a bra on live models. No more mannequins in lingerie - cross your heart! It's the grandmother to the Victoria's Secret fashion shows.
  See All 25 Top Ads From USA Today

  
  
  
  

  Next: See All Top 25 Ads

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