A bill of goods
Most times, we get bored of billboards, especially with that "Can You Hear Me Now?" idiot pimping a cellphone company that we've simply wish would drop its connection permanently.
Then we run into something like the one above, that the crafty marketeers at EZ Lube came up with and posted off the 210 Freeway heading East just beyond the 605 interchange. It's almost enough to make you want to pull off the freeway and have your differential checked.
Sports-related billboards around L.A. can nail it when they get the right creative touch. We've seen this sampling around down over the last week or so:
UNDER CONSTRUCTION:
This one's at the base of Elysian Park and Sunset, right where thousands of Dodger fans exit Dodger Stadium game after game. Banking on Eric Gagne sounded good at the time, right? On the other side of the billboard, it's Nomar Garciaparra. So the Dodgers are batting .500 here.
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A TRAFFIC STOPPER:
When Will Ferrell makes fun of NASCAR, he does it big. This photo taken from the Harbor Freeway (110) overpass on 7th near Bixel shows the backside of the Hotel Figueroa; the other side is that three-pannel owned by ESPN across the way from Staples Center. And there are already hundreds of these Ricky Bobby billboards around town promoting a movie about car racing that doesn't come out for another week. With all the promotion, it feels like we've endured this flick already.
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A COLLECTOR'S ITEM:
Remember this old ad for Michael Jordan's brand of (fill in the blank)? This one is still around, on the side of a building that's up for sale near the corner of Franklin and Highland in Hollywood. Maybe they should just keep this side of the building up for old time's sake.
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HEAD IS NOT ACTUAL SIZE:
You can't get the full effect here, but this billboard is about the size of the Jordan side-of-the-building one above. As if Jim Rome needs the pub.
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TAKING ON ALL COMERS:
The next season of the reality boxing show, "The Contender," is out on ESPN. This ad, on the side of a building on Sunset near Seward, tries to attract attention of all the homeless roaming the streets here.
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SOCCER GOES WITH ... ANYTHING:
Around L.A., kickball seems to go with anything they're willing to sell. Here, they've created a link between soccer and a beer on 5th and Vermont ...
... and with a wireless phone service on Sunset and Lucile ....
... and another famous Mexican beer named after a town down below the border ...
... and with a sangria on Sepulveda and the Harbor Freeway in Gardena. There's also plenty of old World Cup-related signage that'll stay up for awhile just in the afterglow of that golden trophy that'll never be held on U.S. soil.
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THE SHELL GAME:
You've got this one:
Or, this version:
Maybe the pole vaulter is needed to get over the billboard up top to clear the high cost of Shell gasoline. Higher and higher isn't a theme you want with gas prices right now. Think within the billboard.
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GETTING RIPPED:
With this watered-down beer, the cool thing must be to swig it in the water while you're surfing. This billboard on La Brea and Sunset features a surfer named A.I. who does his own crossover moves.
And would would beach volleyball be without a keg of this stuff. They make it look like Wheaties or something. Be a strong healthy beach player, and drink. Is that a mixed message?
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WORKING BOTH SIDES OF THE KNUCKLE SANDWICH:
This one, featuring a World Fighting Association star, is on Sunset near La Brea for the East-bound traffic ...
... and this one catches the traffic coming West-bound on Sunset. Too bad they couldn't figure out how to make these rotate. Not sure who won this battle last week ta the Forum. But the boards are still up.
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SHOW US SOME LOVE-15
It's a tough sell, even if Maria Sharapova is your cover girl. Any good American players coming to this Home Depot Center event?
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ANOTHER MIXED SIGNAL (BUT IS IT A SURPRISE?):
Vic "The Brick" Jacobs is feeling you up on Sepulveda and Normandie. If that's not titilating enough ...
... then this one should establish the ground rules. Problem is, in either case, they're just yelling too loudly.