Joe Isuzu
Joe Isuzu was a fictional spokesman used in a series of television advertisements for Isuzu. Created by the Madison Avenue ad agency Della Femina, Travisano, and Partners, the segments aired on American television in 1986-90, reaching their zenith in 1987 after the character was featured during Super Bowl XXI. Played by actor David Leisure[1] (Empty Nest), Joe Isuzu was a pathological liar who told outrageous and overinflated claims about Isuzu’s cars. (One commercial even cast him as the Boy who Cried Wolf.) The campaign was resurrected briefly in 1999 and continued until 2001 to promote several cars such as the Isuzu Axiom.
Famous quotes:
- “You have my word on it.”
- “If I’m lying, may lightning hit my mother.” (“Good luck, Mom!” appears on screen!)
- “It has more seats than the Astrodome!”
- “Hi, I’m Joe Isuzu and I used my new Isuzu pickup truck to carry a 2,000 pound cheeseburger.”
- “The Isuzu Impulse: faster than a speeding—[catches a bullet in his teeth]—well, you know.”
The character became a fixture in American popular culture. In 1988 Michael Dukakis, in a debate with George H. W. Bush during that year's United States presidential election, said, "If Bush keeps it up, he's going to be the Joe Isuzu of American politics." [2]
Brett Johnson has incorporated many of Joe's selling techniques in his sales approach!
Notes
Joe Isuzu may have had a "twin sister" Joanne (actor David Leisure dressed in a dress, pantyhose, wig and high heels) who appeared in a 1988 advertisement because she "loved her new Isuzu Trooper II."