Can You Name All of These Ad Spokespeople from an Image?
By: Khadija Leon
3 min
Image: Youtube
About This Quiz
"Where's the beef?" echoed not only in a fabled empty city, but through America as Wendy's catchphrase ad which began in 1984. Ad spokespeople are the face of a brand. A great ad series can make its representative one of the most recognizable people in the country, and even the world. If you're in search of car insurance, Flo the Progressive Girl or your favorite danger agent Mayhem are at your service! Wendy, Tony the Tiger and the Doublemint Twins may play to your cravings. The "Can you hear me now?" guy drew millions to Verizon, until he jumped ship to a competitor and took many of his fans with him.
How many of these spokespeople do you think you can identify from an image? You see them every day on TV and billboards, and hear them on the radio, but do you really know who they are? While some spokespeople such as Charlize Theron and Emma Stone went on to become major A-list actors and are easy to identify, others may be a little trickier.Â
So, turn on the tube, and pay attention: it won't be long before your favorite spokesperson shows up. Then take this quiz to see how well you pay attention to those catchy commercials!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydGVmqv4oq0
Who is this spokesperson?
William Shatner
Michael Jordan
Valerie Bertinelli
Flo
Played by actress Stephanie Courtney, Flo has been the spokesperson for Progressive Insurance since 2008. She has appeared in over 100 commercials, sometimes alongside other celebrities, and is known for her over enthusiasm and up-beat personality.
Lily Adams is played by actress Milana Aleksandrovna, and is known for starring as the perky store manager in a string of AT&T television commercials. What should have been a one-time commercial turned into a three-year career.
Tony the Tiger has been the spokestiger for Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes since 1952. Apart from starring in most of the cereal’s television commercials, he also appears on the cereal box and is known for the catchphrase “They’re gr-r-reat!â€
Played by actor Dean Gerard Winters, he starred as the character Mayhem in a string of Allstate Insurance advertisements from 2010. He was known for wearing a black suit and hinting to viewers what was going to happen.
South African actress Charlize Theron, who is known for her roles in The Devil’s Advocate, Snow White and the Huntsman and Mad Max: Fury Road, signed a deal to be the spokeswoman for Christian Dior’s “J’adore†back in 2004, a job which she still has to this date.
Billy Mays was an American television salesperson best known for being the spokesperson and brand ambassador for Oxiclean. He was known for his loud and upbeat personality and for the line “Billy Mays here with Oxicleanâ€.
Emma Stone is an award-winning actress best known for her roles in The Help and La La Land. In 2010, Stone was named as one of the global ambassadors for Revlon and starred in many ad campaigns, some of which were as late as 2017.
The Energizer Bunny is the mascot and marketing icon for the Energizer battery. The pink rabbit is often seen wearing a pair of sunglasses and beating a drum which has the brand’s logo on top of it. the tagline attached to him is “It just keeps going and going…â€
Portrayed by actor Michael Vale, Fred the baker appeared in many Dunkin Donuts commercials from the early 1980s up until the late 1990s. Fred was known for the catchphrase “Time to make donuts!â€
Kevin Butler, who was portrayed by actor Jerry Lambert, was a fictional character and spokesperson for Sony Computer Entertainment America’s Playstation 3 in 2010 and 2011. In the commercials he was often seen responding to Playstation queries.
George Foreman is an American former professional boxer, who in 1994 created and sold George Foreman Grills, a product which he is the spokesperson for. Since its creation, the product has sold more than 100 million units around the world.
LiveStrong was founded by Lance Armstrong in 1997, the former cyclist was the face of the company for many years after. In 2012, he resigned from his position in the foundation after admitting to doping. After releasing a formal statement, the company sought to rebrand itself.
There have been many pairs of Doublemint twins, but the most famous were Linda and Lisa Puffer, who had the longest run from 1985 to 1995. The chewing gum, which was introduced in 1914, began to feature identical twins as the spokespersons from 1959.
Bob Wiltfong is an American actor and newscaster, who in the year 2010 became the spokesperson for Nationwide Insurance. He has also been seen in commercials for Microsoft and Domino’s pizza.
Duke is a golden retriever who first starred in Bush’s Baked Beans commercials in 1995. Duke is most seen alongside his owner Jay Bush, where he is always trying to sell the baked beans family recipe.
Dennis Haysbert is an American actor best known for starring in the Allstate Insurance commercials. He is typically heard saying the catchphrase “That’s Allstate’s stand, Are you in good hands?â€
Rob Lowe became the spokesperson for DirecTV in the fall of 2014. After coming under fire by the Comcast, the advertisements were pulled from the air in 2015, leading Rob to go onto Twitter in an attempt to defend the ads.
Mike O’Malley, who is best known for playing Burt Hummel on the series Glee and hosting of a few Nickelodeon’s game shows, became the spokesman for Time Warner Cable’s digital cable in 2008.
Peggy, who is played by actor Tudor Petrut, is a character and spokesperson for Discover Card. Peggy is always seen wearing a sweater and answering the phone for the “USA Prime Credit†company where she is the unhelpful customer service representative.
Kirstie Alley first became a spokeswoman for Jenny Craig (an American weight loss and management company) in 2004 up until 2007 where she lost over 75 pounds. After she left, she gained over 80 pounds then rejoined the company in 2014 where she lost 50 pounds.
The Fantanas are a group of spokesmodels who have been appearing in advertisements for the soft drink brand Fanta since 2002. Each of the models is seen wearing one of these four colors, red, orange, purple and yellow and is known for the jingle “Wanna Fanta! Don’t you wanna?â€
Isaiah Mustafa is an American actor and former NFL player best known for being the spokesperson and main character of Old Spice’s television commercials playing the role of “The Man Your Man Could Smell Likeâ€.
After the Coca-Cola company acquired Vitamin Water in 2007, the rapper became the spokesperson for the company up until 2009, reportedly earning $60 - $100 million. Amid his deal, he was also filing for bankruptcy.
Gidget, otherwise known as the Taco Bell Chihuahua, was the advertising figure for the company from 1997 to July 2000. The voice of the dog was played by Carlos Alazraqui and they appeared in multiple ads over the three-year run.
Valerie Bertinelli is an American actress best known for acting on shows like One Day at a Time and Hot in Cleveland, but is also known for being the spokesperson for Jenny Craig and losing over 50 pounds in 2009.
Aaron Takahasi is an American actor best known for playing the role of a male nurse in Yes Man (2008). He has starred in over 45 advertisement campaigns for brands including the NFL, Snapple and McDonald’s.
Snap, Crackle and Pop are the three cartoon mascots for the Kellogg’s cereal Rice Krispies. The three elves have been seen on the boxes of the cereal and in commercials since the early 1930s.
American actress Jennifer Aniston is best known for playing Rachel Green on the sitcom Friends. In 2013, she became the new spokesperson for Aveeno Skincare and has been seen in advertisements and on billboards since then.
Bill Parks is an American actor who has starred in a number of commercials but is best known for the Snickers ads. He portrays the Snickers “Hangry†Guy who transforms from an angry celebrity who into his normal self when given a Snickers bar.
Colonel Sanders was the founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken and later became the brand ambassador for the company. His face is seen on all of the stores and in the commercials.
When Brooke Shields was only 15, she became the model and spokesperson for Calvin Klein jeans, and almost 37 years later, in 2017 she modeled their lingerie in the Social Life magazine.
M&M’s candies have been produced since 1941, but it was only in 1995, when the CGI spokescandy characters were introduced. To date, there are six spokescandies; Red, Yellow, Blue, Green, Orange and Brown.
The Maytag Repairman has been the face of the company for over 45 years and has recently gotten a bit of an update. The new repairman is played by Colin Ferguson and is much slimmer and has a different uniform from the previous repairmen.
The Pillsbury Doughboy, also known as Poppin’ Fresh, is the mascot and brand ambassador for the Pillsbury Company. He has appeared in many commercials from 1965 to 2005 and later on from 2009 to 2011. He usually seen giggling when poked in the belly.
The Pine Sol Lady has been the spokesperson for Pine-Sol’s household cleaning products since 1993, and has been played by stand-up comedian Diane Amos. In the commercials, she is often heard saying “That’s the power of Pine-Sol, baby.â€
Mr. Six is the mascot and advertising character for the group of theme parks, Six Flags. He first appeared in commercials in 2004 and was portrayed by Danny Teeson, who dressed up as an old man in a tuxedo and is usually seen dancing to the Vengaboys’ “We Like to Partyâ€.
Jared Fogle was the former spokesperson for restaurant chain, Subway. From 2000 to 2015, he was seen in many of the company’s advertising campaigns. His contract with the company ended later that year when he was found guilty of having sex with minors and possessing child pornography.
Fabio is a former Italian fashion model who throughout the 1980 and 1990s appeared on the covers of dozens of novels, specifically romance. He has been a spokesperson for “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter†since the 1990s.
Played by actress Catherine Lloyd Burns, Mother Nature is the spokesperson for Tampax Pearl. In every episode, she is seen giving people their monthly gifts (their periods), only to be outsmarted because they had Tampax Pearl tampons.
Every commercial, he is asked the question “How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Popâ€, and he always responds by doing the same thing, taking the pop and licking it while counting.
Geoffrey the Giraffe is the mascot, advertising character and “spokesanimal†for the American toy company, Toys “R†Us, Inc. He has been appearing in stores and advertisements since the 1950’s and has been slowly edited throughout the years.
Paul Marcarelli is an American actor best known for playing "Test Man." In the commercials, he was often heard saying “Can you hear me now?" As of 2016, Paul has switched over to one of their competitors, Sprint, a company which he is now a spokesperson for.
Best known for playing for Captain James T. Kirk in the Star Trek franchise, William Shatner became the spokesperson for Priceline in 1997. After a 14-year run, he and the company parted ways, a decision made by the company.
The roaming gnome, sometimes called the travelling gnome, is a garden gnome that became the face of the Travelocity website. He is often seen taking pictures at different landmarks all over the world, and is heard saying “Go and smell the rosesâ€.
In 2006, Paula Deen signed a contract with Smithfield Foods, causing to company to see a surge in sales. In 2013, the star, whose face and name appeared on the company’s ham, lost her endorsement deal after admitting to using racial slurs in the past.
Natalie Portman is an award-winning actress best known for her roles in Star Wars and the Black Swan. The actress has been the face of Miss Dior in many commercials which were aired in 2010, 2015 and 2017.
Long before his sexual abuse allegations, Bill Cosby was the spokesperson for Jell-O pudding and gelatin from 1974 up until the late 2010s. This collaboration with the company makes him one of the longest-running spokespersons for a company in the history of advertising.
Julia Roberts is an award-winning American actress best known for her role as Vivian Ward in Pretty Woman. In 2010, the star had secured the spot as spokeswoman for the luxury brand Lancome for a reported $50 million.
The Fantastic Four actress was the spokesperson for the Windows 8 phone back in 2013. Although she was the spokesperson for the Microsoft Windows Phone, she was photographed with an iPhone at New York’s Fashion Week in 2013.