History Main / CelebrityEndorsement

-->'''Felicity Riggs-Wentworth:''' ''(reading from script)'' Without further ado I would like to introduce any available English celebrity... ''(realizes what she's read)'' Angus Deayton.

* In ''Series/{{Castle}}'', Castle receives a package of books from the publisher for him to read so that they can solicit cover quotes for marketing purposes. When questioned by his mother and daughter on how he can possibly get them all read, he replies he doesn't have to, and proceeds to demonstrate with a couple of examples:

* Phil Rizzuto for The Money Store.

* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' has fully endorsed this route, with commercials staring Verne Troyer, Creator/WilliamShatner, Creator/MrT, Creator/ChuckNorris and more. This is to demonstrate how widespread the game has become, so all of the celebrities you see, actually play the game. Creator/JayLeno has also done this as one of the "greenskins".

* The other thing most French people born before the 2000s know Creator/OmarSharif from outside of ''Film/LawrenceOfArabia'' and ''Film/DoctorZhivago''? The TV UsefulNotes/EquestrianSports magazine announcements he did in TheEighties and TheNineties. To be fair, he really did have a "[[{{Catchphrase}} great passion]]" for said sports, being a good horseman on his own.

ImNotADoctorButIPlayOneOnTV is a subset of this. See CharacterCelebrityEndorsement for endorsements from celebrities that are not, in fact, real.

See also AdvertisingCampaigns, and CharacterCelebrityEndorsement when the product is promoted by fictional beings, who are celebrities nonetheless. Some celebrities willing to do endorsements but afraid of being seen as sellouts indulge in {{Japandering}} by appearing in foreign ads that are not meant to be seen by their home fanbase.

* Creator/MichaelJFox was such a huge supporter of Pepsi/Diet Pepsi during the late 1980s, most likely due to the rather prominent Pepsi product placement in ''Film/BackToTheFuture''. More Pepsi product placement was included in ''Film/BackToTheFuturePartII''. Michael J. Fox was even given a lifetime supply to Diet Pepsi.

Interestingly, the idea of celebrity endorsements dates back ''at least'' to Ancient Rome. Popular gladiators would regularly be paid to endorse various products and services. (In fact, Ridley Scott planned to have a scene in his film ''Film/{{Gladiator}}'' where some of the arena fighters endorsed products, but changed his mind when he realized [[RealityIsUnrealistic that the public wouldn't buy it as real]].)

* Parodied in Pixar's ''WesternAnimation/{{Cars}}'', with the Rusteze Medicated Bumper Ointment Commercial.

-->'''Mr. T''': Snickers!! Get some NUTS!! '''MMMM!'''

* Former England footballer Gary Lineker advertises Walker's crisps (chips in America) and other snack foods. He also is the main presenter for Series/MatchOfTheDay on Creator/TheBBC and is a frequent guest on [[Main/PanelGame panel games]] where he is often teased about the connection. His attitude is generally: "Main/MoneyDearBoy".

* Sarah [=MacLachlan=] has done a pair of infamous ads with the ASPCA, panning over shelter dogs while her song "Angel" plays in the background. Since starting, the ASPCA estimates that $30 Million has been raised as a direct result of the ad.

* Numerous pop culture figures ranging from the VideoGame/AngryBirds to [[Film/TheMuppets Kermit the Frog]] have appeared in the ad campaign for Wonderful Pistachios, a California pistachio grower.

* A quasi-example since he actually made it himself, but in Japan, the biggest selling point of the ''VideoGame/{{MOTHER}}'' trilogy was that it was the work of Creator/ShigesatoItoi, who was at the peak of his popularity at the time; most of the promotional material for ''MOTHER'' made a point of pointing out that it was his creation. In straighter examples, SMAP member Takuya Kimura was all over the advertising for ''[[VideoGame/EarthBound MOTHER 2]]'', and actress Kou Shibasaki discussing the emotional impact of the game was pretty much the entire television commercial campaign for ''VideoGame/MOTHER3''.

* ''Blog/TheIslandOfMisfitChristmasSpecials'' had a running gag in which Peter Paltridge sometimes ended reviews by asking, "Does Mary Lou Retton like it?", then presenting a picture of the gymnast expressing either displeasure or enjoyment of the special. (The pictures consist of screenshots of advertisements she did in TheEighties, Photoshopped to include characters from the specials.) Peter's review of ''WesternAnimation/RapsittieStreetKidsBelieveInSanta'' ended by revealing that Mary Lou Retton somehow died while watching the cartoon, so the following reviews replaced her with more obscure "celebrities".

* ''Literature/{{Dispatches}}:'' On the British paperbacks, '''The best book I have ever read on men and war in our time.''' -- Creator/JohnLeCarre is much more prominent than ''Dispatches -- Michael Herr''.

* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' has fully endorsed this route, with commercials staring Verne Troyer, Creator/WilliamShatner, Creator/MrT, Creator/ChuckNorris and more. This is to demonstrate how widespread the game has become, so all of the celebrities you see, actually play the game. Creator/JayLeno has also done this recently -- as one of the "greenskins".

* ''VideoGame/GameOfWarFireAge'' uses supermodel Kate Upton as its spokesperson and LadyNotAppearingInThisGame.

* "Macho Man" Wrestling/RandySavage would like to tell you to SNAP INTO A SLIM JIM! OH YEAH! The Wrestling/UltimateWarrior also endorsed Slim Jims, and Wrestling/{{Edge}} subsequently would in more recent years.

* A short story for ''ComicBook/DamageControl'' had a proposed advertising campaign built around [[Comicbook/IncredibleHulk Joe Fixit]], with the tag line "We Clean Up The Hulk's Messes, We Can Clean Up Yours". Needless to say, he wasn't pleased...

* George Foreman and his "Lean, Mean, Fat-Reducing Grilling Machine". (Many people don't even remember what Foreman was famous for -- He was a professional boxer.)

* Creator/JohnCleese did a series of commercials for the Dutch Postbank N.V. banking firm. As can be expected, they were quite funny. So funny in fact, that people remember the commercial, but not what it was for.

** Much later on, the ever-leggy Music/TinaTurner was taken in as the face of Hanes hosiery.

** Music/MichaelJackson was pressured into shilling for Pepsi in 1984 by the rest of his family and wound up severely burned in an accident on the set of one of the resultant ads. Nevertheless, the money was good enough that he continued to shill for them into TheNineties...until he was accused of child molestation. Pepsi chose not to renew their contract with him after he cancelled the remainder of the Dangerous Tour they were busy sponsoring when the charges broke. In 2011, however, PosthumousPopularityPotential came into play and they began using old footage/images of him in their newer campaigns.

** Welles also infamously recorded several voiceovers for Findus Frozen Foods, with the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyko_oQ0da8 profanity-laden blooper reel]] becoming a Hollywood in-joke. Maurice LaMarche's recitation of the commercials provided the basis for an episode of Animaniacs titled [[Recap/AnimaniacsEpisode52 "Yes, Always".]] (Although, this being a kid's show, they toned down the language considerably.)

* Art Linkletter used to appear in a small seal on the box of ''[[TabletopGame/GameOfLife the Game of Life]]''. He also appeared on the $100,000 bill in the game.

** Lampshaded when he appeared on ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'' and stated that there were ''some'' things he decided not to endorse. Cue mock commercial with a woman asking him, "Michael... do you ever get that not-so-fresh feeling?" And when Jordan appeared with the Superfans at Ditka's restaurant he was given the option of Coke or Gatorade (the two beverages he had shilled for and was about to shill for respectively). He declined both.
* Creator/PeytonManning, and here's his following endorsements: [=DirecTV=], [=MasterCard=], Sony, Oreo, Gatorade, Wheaties, Papa John's Pizza, and Nationwide Insurance.

* ''Advertising/MetroManners'': The "Wait your turn to enter" PSA features a cameo from Creator/DannyTrejo, where he introduces himself with "Hi, I'm Danny Trejo" and delivers the message of the episode. Done in a self-aware way, as Trejo acknolwedges that he's not the campaign's usual sponsor.

** ...and Promise margarine

* Heavily parodied in the original ''Film/WaynesWorld'', with a scene in which Wayne and Garth explain how they won't sell out to the TV network, [[HypocriticalHumor while overtly displaying various products and spouting advertising slogans]] (including Garth dressed head to toe in in assorted Reebok Sportswear. It culminated in Wayne having a headache and asking for two Nuprin, which appeared on a black and white background, just like the ads.

-->''Wayne:'' (''in a squeaky voice'') [[TakeThat I'm Mike Tyson for Encyclopedia Brittanica.]]\\

** Played straight with Butterfinger candy, but then (naturally, it's ''The Simpsons'') then spoofed, lampshaded and self-parodied in-universe.

* ''Pinball/GunsNRosesDataEast'' was promoted by Music/{{Slash}}, though in this case he co-designed the game.

* Creator/JohnCleese did some very funny commercials for Schwepps Ginger Ale.

* In ''Webcomic/{{Sinfest}}'', [[http://www.sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=1662 Slick runs for president. Satan endorses him.]]