The Promotional Idea Showcase - Winter 2000 - Updated Quarterly

THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT PUFFY

With so many new films being released – a number of them less than memorable – it’s not easy for one without mega roll-out bucks behind it to get some positive ink from critics. Especially when the film in question is as quirky and strange as the recent hit “There’s Something About Mary.” 

While the comedy had several unforgettable scenes, one in particular concerned a rather unfriendly small dog of questionable pedigree named Puffy. During the course of the movie, the little pooch is unintentionally fed some methamphetamines and encounters a rare doggy accident – taking a flying jump at someone, missing them, and sailing out of a window several stories up. The next time Puffy’s seen on screen, he’s sporting a full body cast, able to move only his tongue. But even then, he still experiences a few misadventures – such as being accidentally left on the roof of an SUV being driven home from the supermarket – that could leave even the most humorless in tears from laughing. 

The makers of Mary, 20th Century Fox Studios, correctly believed the post-trauma Puffy would be one of those standout moments filmgoers talk about long after the movie’s over. It was therefore decided the dog would be able to generate the desired amount of commotion to help get word of the film out among the public.

Just before the premiere, members of the media received an ordinary plush dog, complete with a realistic-looking rubber tongue, wrapped in a real body cast and wearing tags bearing his name and the name of the film. The final touch: the dogs were individually wrapped and packed in imprinted dog cages. 

“We wanted to showcase the dog as the main attraction of the movie by creating a limited edition collectable piece to be sent out to all of the press and publicity broadcasters around the country prior to the release of the movie,” says Jim Davidson, the counselor who handled the promotion. 

Preparing the mailing, however, was no walk in the park. “To make the dog was a nightmare,” says Davidson, “From the time I found the dog to the time I found the manufacturer who could actually hand-wrap each one took probably 60-70 days. The initial run was 600. There was a follow-up run when people saw them and they started getting out; we just became inundated with requests.” 

By the time all was said and done, the maker ran out of dogs and others had to be found as replacements. The second run produced 350 Puffys, most of which went to overseas press. 

The results speak for themselves: For one, the promotion won an industry award. But
that wasn’t the best part. “We generated about an 80% response from all of the recipients requesting information on the movie and looking for additional Puffys,” Davidson says. Even competitors were in awe of the promo. “Twentieth Century Fox had people from Disney, Sony and Paramount calling them to get the dogs,” he notes. “Puffy was a star.”

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