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The 1980s were a particularly challenging decade for PC makers to promote their latest machines. In a time before the great Wintel consolidation(Opens in a new window), literally dozens of incompatible home computer platforms competed for the consumer dollar. Each one needed to carve out its own distinct identity in the consumer psyche if it hoped to survive.
Enter celebrities, who (in any decade) are always happy to lend a hand to sell a product—provided they get paid, of course. Considering the tricky competitive situation, it makes sense that the 1980s saw a huge boom in celebrity computer spokespeople the likes of which we will probably never see again.
Below, we’ll take a look at some of the most prominent PC pitchmen of the era. But this list is by no means complete. After you’re done perusing the slideshow, feel free to share your favorite PC pitchmen memories in the comments.
1. Andy Warhol and Debbie Harry
Computer: Commodore Amiga
Year: 1985
To showcase the graphical power of its new Amiga computer, Commodore enlisted the help of pop art icon Andy Warhol and Blondie lead singer Debbie Harry at the system’s launch in 1985. Warhol used software on the Amiga to manipulate a digitized photo of Harry in his signature colorful, bold style.
2. ‘King Kong’ Bundy
Computer: Vendex HeadStart
Year: 1987
He’s no Hulk Hogan, but Vendex made a bold play in contrasts by hiring a professional wrestler to promote the ultimate intellectual machine. It’s not that “King Kong” Bundy lacks smarts, of course, but Vendex heavily played upon the dim-witted brute stereotype (“It will bring out the genius in you!”) in this magazine ad(Opens in a new window) for the HeadStart, an otherwise forgettable IBM PC/XT clone from 1987.
3. Bill Bixby
Computer: Tandy 1000
Year: 1984
Bill Bixby found fame portraying Dr. David Banner, the mild-mannered alter ego of the Incredible Hulk, in the 1978-83 TV series of the same name. Naturally, he was the perfect candidate to promote Tandy’s early series of IBM PC clones—when he was in a good mood. After the shoot, the last thing Tandy executives saw was a giant green monster crushing a Tandy 1000 between his thighs. I think some tanks were involved, too.
4. Sarah Purcell
Year: 1983
At the time this ad appeared, Sarah Purcell hosted an NBC TV show called “Real People(Opens in a new window), which focused on non-celebrities doing amusing human tricks in front of a camera. I suppose it makes sense, then, that she also promoted the Tomy Tutor(Opens in a new window), a somewhat uncommon 1980’s home computer designed for real children.
5. Bill Gates
Computer: Tandy 2000
Year: 1984
In the days before Microsoft ruled the world, the Redmond-based software firm showed up in some unusual places. In this case, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates appeared in a magazine ad(Opens in a new window) promoting both the Tandy 2000 computer and Microsoft software. (Check out the very early version of Windows on the monitor behind him.) In less than a decade, the situation would be reversed: companies like Tandy would be begging to share the spotlight with Microsoft.
6. Alan Alda
Computer: Atari XL Series
Year: 1984
Alan Alda (of M*A*S*H fame) spent a few years in the early 1980s promoting Atari’s computer line in print and TV advertisements. This particular photo is from an ad for AtariWriter, a word processor for Atari 8-bit computers like the 600XL and 800XL. It shipped on a ROM cartridge—just plug it in and go. If only installing Word was that easy.
7. Cast of M*A*S*H
Computer: IBM PS/2 Series
Year: 1987
Speaking of M*A*S*H, seven other cast members of the hit TV show got into the computer promotion game a few years later. They starred in a series of TV commercials and a few print ads promoting IBM products (like this one for the PS/2 series) starting in 1986. Alan Alda even appeared in a few of the TV commercials, which were always set in a modern office building—not Korea.
8. Roger Moore
Computer: Spectravideo SV-318
Year: 1983
When targeting the European PC market, Spectravideo hired James Bond himself (the late Roger Moore) to appeal to the home computer buyer. The Spectravideo SV-318(Opens in a new window) he’s holding featured a 3.6MHz Z80A processor, 16K of RAM, and integrated Microsoft BASIC. While a capable computer, it sold poorly and soon vanished from the market. And no, it didn’t double as a clandestine explosive device if you pushed a tiny hidden button on its side.
9. Dom DeLuise
Computer: NCR PC4
Year: 1984
Imagine a computer so powerful that it takes three clones of Dom DeLuise to promote it. That computer is the NCR PC4, a somewhat obscure IBM PC clone (ha!) that happened to be NCR’s first fully IBM PC-compatible machine. It sold for a sizable $2,500 in 1985 (that’s equivalent to $5,141 in today’s dollars when counting for inflation), which is likely why few have heard of it and why so few clones of Dom DeLuise have been made.
10. Isaac Asimov’s Sideburns
Computer: Radio Shack TRS-80 Color Computer
Year: 1982
Way back in the wee years of the 1980s, science fiction luminary Isaac Asimov’s sideburns starred in numerous magazine ads for Radio Shack’s TRS-80 brand computer products. While the famous author’s frizzy facial hair spotlighted the TRS-80 Color Computer in this particular ad(Opens in a new window), the ‘burns also promoted the TRS-80 Pocket Computer, the Model III, and the Model 12, among others.
11. William Shatner
Computer: Commodore VIC-20
Year: 1982
Heck, if Captain Kirk likes the Commodore VIC-20, so do I. Not only did William Shatner promote this popular home computer, but he also served as spokesman for its more serious business cousins, the Commodore PET series(Opens in a new window), in print ads around the same time period—before beaming back up into T.J. Hooker’s police cruiser.
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Source link : https://www.pcmag.com/news/11-celebs-who-tried-to-sell-you-pcs-in-the-1980s