Muhammad Ali to be Featured in New Coca Cola Ad
Chicago Sun Times
January 10,2003

Stars, 'real' in new Coca-Cola advertising.

Finally, Coca-Cola is getting back to being real.
A cavalcade of stars will headline a major new Coca-Cola ad campaign debuting Monday on the American Music Awards telecast. The campaign with the concise tagline "Coca-Cola. . .Real" includes more than a dozen television commercials, as well as print and radio. The general market work comes from Coke's longtime lead agency, McCann-Erickson/New York, while Burrell Communications/Chicago and Lapiz/Chicago are handling African-American and Hispanic executions.

Celebrities appearing in the new work include R&B singer Mya, hip hop artist Common, actors Penelope Cruz, Courteney Cox Arquette and David Arquette, late-night host Craig Kilborn and even boxing legend Muhammad Ali.

The spots capture moments when being real and the purported real refreshment of Coke merge. One of the new executions trumpets the joys of having a roommate, while another captures an embarrassing moment for a well-known actress.

"It was important for us to involve celebrities who are genuine and who really connect with others," said Esther Lee, chief creative officer of Coca-Cola North America.

The new tagline harkens back to one of Coke's most successful tag's ever: "It's the Real Thing," which appeared in campaigns between 1970 and 1975. After Coke dumped several forgettable lines in recent years, many marketing mavens suggested the beverage giant and market leader should get back to its one "real" marketing hook.