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WZZM 13 ONLINE
(DETROIT FREE PRESS/ALISA PRIDDLE)
LAS VEGAS - Chrysler's surprise Super Bowl commercial featuring actor Clint Eastwood will air during halftime of tonight's big game, according to dealers who were given a sneak peak of the advertisement today.
The commercial features Eastwood giving an inspirational message to the country and will focus on second chances, said Tammy Darvish, executive vice president of Darcars Automotive Group in Silver Spring, Md. Darvish had at least one dealership terminated by Chrysler in the wake of its 2009 bankruptcy.
The key message is that there is still another half to go as both Chrysler and the nation continue to recover from the 2008-2009 recession that drove Chrysler and General Motors into taxpayer-funded bailouts.
"It's a whole different kind of theme from last year," said Darvish, who was among dealers who got a sneak peak of the two-minute commercial during a dealer convention today in Las Vegas. "It's all about the greatness of the country."
Chrysler has tried to keep details of the two-minute commercial under wraps. The company has declined to confirm earlier reports that Eastwood would star in the ad.
David Kelleher, a dealer in Glen Mills, PA, and chairman of Chrysler's National Dealer Council, thinks the ad outdoes last year's, joins the two at the hip and takes the inspirational message forward.
He said the message for Americans who are down is: look where Chrysler was and where it is now - but only at halfway point with more to go.
Unlike last year's commercial, tonight's Super Bowl ad doesn't focus on a single vehicle or one city. Instead, it includes glimpses of a Jeep Wrangler, Jeep Grand Cherokee and a Ram pickup along with workers at a plant and a panorama of the city of Detroit.
"It is very emotional and powerful," said Terry Megee, who runs Floyd A. Megee Motors in Georgetown, Del.
Last year Chrysler was the first company in the history of the Super Bowl to air a two-minute commercial. The ad, which featured rapper Eminem, included the tag line "Imported from Detroit."
That ad has had more than 21 million views on YouTube, Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne said recently.
Last year Chrysler experimented with a two-minute ad that had a single airing during the game.
Contact Alisa Priddle: 313-222-5394 or apriddle@freepress.com