The classic ad, which inaugurated the era of heady ‘character-based’ advertisements, as well as the trend of premiering big new ads during the Superbowl. The ad aired during the Superbowl in 1984.

There is much written on the history of this ad, much of it incorrect. Advertising Age has an encyclopedia entry on Apple, which contains a discussion of the ad.

Most ads for American beer are based on humor or scantily-clad women.  Imported beers, however, seem to follow the hard-liquor model of advertisements, emphasizing the kind of person who drinks their beer:

Hennessy’s ‘Flaunt’ campaign (aired primarily on Jon Stewart’s ‘Daily Show’) is typical of aspirational luxury character ads. Part 2:

Hennessy’s ‘Flaunt’ campaign (aired primarily on Jon Stewart’s ‘Daily Show’) is typical of aspirational luxury character ads. Part 1:

When ads for hard liquor reappeared on American TV in 2002, they immediately started with the kind of character appeal ads typical of other expensive, discretionary goods. Jack Daniels was no exception:

Starting in 2009 / 2010, Ford ran a series of ads appealing to fathers. This is one of the first

From 2004, a commercial for the Porsche Cayenne Turbo, appealing to the commodity fetishist:

From about 2007 – Saturn introduced its new models, including this Minivan, with appeal to fathers:

Atmospheric identity ad that reflects the 2001 movie ‘Moulin Rouge‘

And for the foodies out there, Mastercard has a card for you too!