I guess “I’m” not bringing beefy back but it looks like Wendy’s is trying to bring back its once ubiquitous “Where’s the Beef?” tagline.

For those of you born after 1984 here is the original campaign, and then the new one:

What it lacks in Clara Peller it more than makes up for with an attempt at ironic hipster humor. Or not.

Perhaps its the nostalgia speaking but when the original ad was running you couldn’t go anywhere near a burger without someone sneaking up behind you to inquire “Where’s The Beef.” Which would often lead to someone being so startled that they would drop their burger onto the floor, thus making the answer to the question, “It’s on the floor you jerk.”  OK that never happened.

The only thing I can see coming out of this version is a bunch of people running around in faux retro t-shirts. I will say that the new burger looks delicious so that’s a win.  It is interesting that the new commercial prominently features a double patty version of it rather than the single, which was the comparison point for the original.

So what do you think? Are you expecting a wave of “Wheres the Beef?” at all hours of the day or will this new commercial fade away quickly?

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4 Responses

  1. Kevin

    Hey Mark. I’m enjoying your posts. I must say, that between your sugar vs. corn syrup argument, and the fact that Wendy’s switched from a single to a double, explains a lot about the way I look and many others these days. I say I got what I probably asked for, more beef and more me. Maybe someone should start a “Where’s the chicken cesar salad, with the dressing on the side?”, campaign. On second thought, just pass me a Porter.

    Reply
  2. Ryan

    The new burger will not sell purely for the fact that nobody with any sort of dignity is going to roll up to the drive through and ask the order taker for Dave’s Hot-N-Juicy. I’ll leave with my Frosty and my dignity, thanks.

    Reply
  3. Cynthia

    I have to admit that I felt a small wave of nostalgia when I first saw this commercial. I even looked up the original and showed it to my 16yo daughter, who had no idea what this new commerical was about. She loved the old one, too.

    Reply

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