Energizer Bunny
Encyclopedia
The Energizer Bunny is the marketing
icon and mascot
of Energizer batteries in North America. It is a pink toy rabbit
wearing sunglasses and blue and white striped sandals that beats a bass drum
bearing the Energizer logo. It is a parody of the preexistent Duracell Bunny
, still seen in Europe
and Australia
. It has been appearing in television commercials in North America since 1988. In Australia and the United Kingdom the mascot for Energizer is instead a muscle-bound anthropomorphic battery. The mascot is promoted as being able to continue operating indefinitely, or at least much longer than similar toys using rival brands' batteries.The American Energizer commercials, produced by D.D.B. Chicago Advertising, originally began as a parody of TV advertisements for rival Duracell
. In the Duracell ads, a set of battery-powered drum-playing toy rabbits (Duracell Bunnies) gradually slow to a halt until only the toy powered by a copper-top battery remains active. In Energizer's parody, the Energizer Bunny then enters the screen beating a huge bass drum
and swinging a mallet
over his head. The criticism was that Duracell compared their batteries with carbon-zinc batteries, and not similar alkaline batteries like Energizer.
The creative team at DDB Chicago who conceived and designed the bunny chose All Effects special effects company to build the original Energizer Bunny, a remotely operated vehicle. All Effects operated the Energizer Bunny in most of its first commercials. Later commercials were made by Industrial Light & Magic, Cafe FX
and Method Studios.
As the series progressed, realistic-looking commercials were aired for fictional products (such as "Sitagin Hemorrhoid
Remedy", "Nasotine Sinus Relief", "TresCafe Coffee", etc.) only to have the Bunny march through. To date, the Energizer Bunny has appeared in more than 115 television commercials. In these commercials, a voiceover would announce one of various slogans used throughout the years; all of them would relate the stalwartness of the Energizer Bunny to the long-lasting power of their batteries. The original slogan boasted that "...[n]othing outlasts the Energizer...", but it was eventually changed after a lawsuit filed by Duracell disputing Energizer's claim. In 1993 through 1995, Energizer ran a series of commercials featuring a fake rival battery, Supervolt (including a Supervolt weasel mascot), which was an obvious look alike of Duracell. In many of the later commercials, film villains (such as Darth Vader
, The Wicked Witch of the West
, King Kong
, Wile E. Coyote, and Boris and Natasha) would try to destroy or capture the Bunny only to see complications arise when the Supervolt batteries ran out, the villains themselves collapsed from exhaustion, or other circumstances allowed for the mascot's escape (i.e. the sun coming out to kill Dracula
before he could seek shelter, or a fire sprinkler (the smoke detector was presumably operated by Energizer batteries) being inadvertently triggered leading to The Wicked Witch of the West melting, or Boris and Natasha attempting to shrink the Bunny, but inadvertently end up shrinking themselves (and they try to escape the Bunny, who is now massive to them). The second one showed the quality of the product being advertised when it created complications for the villain-so as not to boast that Energizer was better than any other brand, as well as to encourage people to buy Energizer batteries for their smoke detectors.
In 1991, Energizer unsuccessfully sued the Adolph Coors Company
for creating a parody of its Energizer bunny ads.
In North America the term "Energizer Bunny" has entered the vernacular
as a term for anything that continues endlessly. In Europe and Australia the term "Duracell Bunny" has a similar connotation. Several U.S. presidential candidates have compared themselves to the bunny, including President George H. W. Bush
in 1992 and Howard Dean
in 2004.
Energizer was the corporate sponsor of Star Tours
at Disneyland Park for several years; the bunny appeared in several ride-themed advertisements around the show's exit.
Marketing
Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments...
icon and mascot
Mascot
The term mascot – defined as a term for any person, animal, or object thought to bring luck – colloquially includes anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name...
of Energizer batteries in North America. It is a pink toy rabbit
Rabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...
wearing sunglasses and blue and white striped sandals that beats a bass drum
Marching percussion
Marching percussion instruments are specially designed to be played while moving. This is achieved by attaching the drum to a special harness worn by the drummer. The drums are designed and tuned for maximum articulation and projection of sound, as marching activities are almost always outdoors or...
bearing the Energizer logo. It is a parody of the preexistent Duracell Bunny
Duracell Bunny
A Duracell Bunny is any of several anthropomorphic pink rabbits powered by batteries, used to promote Duracell brand batteries. In commercial advertisements, the Duracell Bunny is actually only one of these rabbits, powered by a Duracell battery rather than rival batteries...
, still seen in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. It has been appearing in television commercials in North America since 1988. In Australia and the United Kingdom the mascot for Energizer is instead a muscle-bound anthropomorphic battery. The mascot is promoted as being able to continue operating indefinitely, or at least much longer than similar toys using rival brands' batteries.The American Energizer commercials, produced by D.D.B. Chicago Advertising, originally began as a parody of TV advertisements for rival Duracell
Duracell
Duracell is a brand of batteries manufactured by Procter & Gamble.Additionally, Duracell owns the Procell professional-use brand.-Products:Duracell manufactures alkaline batteries in many common sizes, such as AAA, AA, C, D, and 9V...
. In the Duracell ads, a set of battery-powered drum-playing toy rabbits (Duracell Bunnies) gradually slow to a halt until only the toy powered by a copper-top battery remains active. In Energizer's parody, the Energizer Bunny then enters the screen beating a huge bass drum
Bass drum
Bass drums are percussion instruments that can vary in size and are used in several musical genres. Three major types of bass drums can be distinguished. The type usually seen or heard in orchestral, ensemble or concert band music is the orchestral, or concert bass drum . It is the largest drum of...
and swinging a mallet
Mallet
A mallet is a kind of hammer, usually of rubber,or sometimes wood smaller than a maul or beetle and usually with a relatively large head.-Tools:Tool mallets come in different types, the most common of which are:...
over his head. The criticism was that Duracell compared their batteries with carbon-zinc batteries, and not similar alkaline batteries like Energizer.
The creative team at DDB Chicago who conceived and designed the bunny chose All Effects special effects company to build the original Energizer Bunny, a remotely operated vehicle. All Effects operated the Energizer Bunny in most of its first commercials. Later commercials were made by Industrial Light & Magic, Cafe FX
Cafe FX
CafeFX was an award-winning feature film visual effects facility offering visual effects production and supervision, CG character creation, and 3D animation. Founded in 1993 by Jeff Barnes and David Ebner, CafeFX was located in a studio on an eight-acre campus in Santa Maria, the heart of Santa...
and Method Studios.
As the series progressed, realistic-looking commercials were aired for fictional products (such as "Sitagin Hemorrhoid
Hemorrhoid
Hemorrhoids or haemorrhoids , are vascular structures in the anal canal which help with stool control. They become pathological or piles when swollen or inflamed. In their physiological state they act as a cushion composed of arterio-venous channels and connective tissue that aid the passage of...
Remedy", "Nasotine Sinus Relief", "TresCafe Coffee", etc.) only to have the Bunny march through. To date, the Energizer Bunny has appeared in more than 115 television commercials. In these commercials, a voiceover would announce one of various slogans used throughout the years; all of them would relate the stalwartness of the Energizer Bunny to the long-lasting power of their batteries. The original slogan boasted that "...[n]othing outlasts the Energizer...", but it was eventually changed after a lawsuit filed by Duracell disputing Energizer's claim. In 1993 through 1995, Energizer ran a series of commercials featuring a fake rival battery, Supervolt (including a Supervolt weasel mascot), which was an obvious look alike of Duracell. In many of the later commercials, film villains (such as Darth Vader
Darth Vader
Darth Vader is a central character in the Star Wars saga, appearing as one of the main antagonists in the original trilogy and as the main protagonist in the prequel trilogy....
, The Wicked Witch of the West
Wicked Witch of the West
The Wicked Witch of the West is a fictional character and the most significant antagonist in L. Frank Baum's children's book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz...
, King Kong
King Kong
King Kong is a fictional character, a giant movie monster resembling a gorilla, that has appeared in several movies since 1933. These include the groundbreaking 1933 movie, the film remakes of 1976 and 2005, as well as various sequels of the first two films...
, Wile E. Coyote, and Boris and Natasha) would try to destroy or capture the Bunny only to see complications arise when the Supervolt batteries ran out, the villains themselves collapsed from exhaustion, or other circumstances allowed for the mascot's escape (i.e. the sun coming out to kill Dracula
Dracula
Dracula is an 1897 novel by Irish author Bram Stoker.Famous for introducing the character of the vampire Count Dracula, the novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to relocate from Transylvania to England, and the battle between Dracula and a small group of men and women led by Professor...
before he could seek shelter, or a fire sprinkler (the smoke detector was presumably operated by Energizer batteries) being inadvertently triggered leading to The Wicked Witch of the West melting, or Boris and Natasha attempting to shrink the Bunny, but inadvertently end up shrinking themselves (and they try to escape the Bunny, who is now massive to them). The second one showed the quality of the product being advertised when it created complications for the villain-so as not to boast that Energizer was better than any other brand, as well as to encourage people to buy Energizer batteries for their smoke detectors.
In 1991, Energizer unsuccessfully sued the Adolph Coors Company
Adolph Coors Company
The Golden, Colorado Adolph Coors Company was formerly a holding company controlled by the heirs of founder Adolph Coors. Its principal subsidiary is the Coors Brewing Company. It was founded in 1873....
for creating a parody of its Energizer bunny ads.
In North America the term "Energizer Bunny" has entered the vernacular
Vernacular
A vernacular is the native language or native dialect of a specific population, as opposed to a language of wider communication that is not native to the population, such as a national language or lingua franca.- Etymology :The term is not a recent one...
as a term for anything that continues endlessly. In Europe and Australia the term "Duracell Bunny" has a similar connotation. Several U.S. presidential candidates have compared themselves to the bunny, including President George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
in 1992 and Howard Dean
Howard Dean
Howard Brush Dean III is an American politician and physician from Vermont. He served six terms as the 79th Governor of Vermont and ran unsuccessfully for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination. He was chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 2005 to 2009. Although his U.S...
in 2004.
Energizer was the corporate sponsor of Star Tours
Star Tours
Star Tours is a motion simulator attraction currently operating at Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Park at Disneyland Paris. The ride is based on the successful Star Wars film series created by George Lucas, making it the first Disney attraction based on a non-Disney produced film.The first...
at Disneyland Park for several years; the bunny appeared in several ride-themed advertisements around the show's exit.