Just how far outside the kitchen can a chef’s name and brand extend?
Would Pharmaceuticals be too far?
Emeril Lagasse and Mario Batali don’t seem to think so. They are endorsing a burn medication called Burn Cream MD.
What could these goodly chefs say about such an unguent, pray tell?
It so happens that Super Chef can tell you. During National Fire Prevention Awareness Week, October 4-10, 2009, the twosome will endorse the cream with these quotes:
- Emeril: “I was pleasantly surprised how well Burn Cream MD ™ worked for me and my staff. Not only did it absorb quickly leaving a clean feel, it also reduced the sting of my serious burns effectively.” [letterhead – PDF]
- Mario: “After applying Burn Cream MD ™ to my burn recently, the pain was immediately dulled and this lasted a long time. The wound healed quickly, and I didn’t have to stop and think about the pain. I would definitely recommend Burn Cream MD ™ to my chefs, my friends and my family. [letterhead – JPG]
(You can tell that these are real quotes in the press release, because both super chefs acknowledge the trademark “™” while actually talking — and only super chefs how to use the “™” thingey in when they’re talking. All the while, you can hear the Cure single “Hot, Hot, Hot,” playing in the background.)
One chef who should really stock up on burn cream is Jean-Christophe Novelli: he set fire to a kitchen just last week. The Telegraph quotes him saying:
I felt very guilty. I was talking too much and I completely forgot to move my pan. It could have been a massive disaster.
Wouldn’t Novelli give a more convincing endorsement than Lagasse or Batali? As children of the Television Age, any one of us could finish out for him: “But, thank goodness!, I keep a steady supply of Burn Cream MD ™ handy wherever I’m cooking.” Or, a la American Express (voice over of the late, great Karl Malden) “Burn Cream MD ™: don’t leave home without it.”
Chefs endorsing Pharmaceuticals could open up new territory — but which miracle cures will they endorse?
The possibilities are endless – and lucrative. With increasing numbers of TV drug advertisements aimed at baby boomers (a growing segment of the general population), celebrity chefs have a huge new area to exploit.
Shall we give them some ideas?
(Photos of Mario Batali and Emeril Lagasse, courtesy of tracynf422 on Flickr)
For the sake of clarification, Mr. Lagasse and Mr. Batali are not investors,
paid sponsors, or in any way financially motivated users of Burn Cream MD.
They are simply well known professionals who have used the cream in their
actual kitchens and have had a very good experience with it, and as such
have agreed to endorse the cream with no explicit compensation at all.