Coca-Cola - The History of an American Icon

Rating:
Summary: Outstanding DVD on the All-American Beverage!
Review: Coca-Cola stands alone in the level of success its has achieved in the world. No brand-name beverage is sold in more countries or in greater volume than Coca-Cola. The history of success it has seen as a company and as a product dates back over the past century. Early on, the creed was written that Coca-Cola would aim to make people feel good about themselves and their country through effective advertising. What you have here is a beautifully done account of that advertising. You see examples of ads that live on in our memory, along with others you may have never seen before. When they are combined over the years, it is easy to see why Coca-Cola was so successful and triumphant through the "cola wars". Buy this DVD as a resource for effective advertising and product design, buy it as a historical account of true Americana, or simply buy it to sit back and enjoy the entertainment value of "feel good" ads. Whatever your reason is, you will not be disappointed!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent History of an American Icon
Review: It's a trip into the past, to the early days before there was Coca-Cola®. With pictures, advertising, film clips and commercials, we are transported through time to learn more about what steps were taken through the years to make Coca-Cola® one of today's leading soft drinks. The historical background is enhanced with comments from Phillip F. Mooney (Archivist, The Coca-Cola® Company), Frederick Allen (Author, "Secret Formula"), KaralAnn Marling (Pop Culture Historian), and Jan Slater (Professor, Ohio University).

High quality film clips and commercials, many in color, help to tell the story and give us a picture of what life and Coca-Cola® was like throughout the years. Although this documentary ends in the late 1980's, clips from ads of the 1940's through the 1980's are included, such as Mean Joe Greene and never-before seen outtakes from "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke®". Songwriters Bill Backer and Billy Davis join in to talk about several jingles.

If you are interested in the history of Coke® or if you are just interested in the past, this is an excellent documentary that will definitely hold your attention. The DVD also includes excerpts from several promotional films, commercial jingles and lots of bonus pictures. This is a fine addition to anyone's collection.

Rating:
Summary: Mandatory for Coke collectors.
Review: It's the real thing. If you love Coca-Cola this is a must own. It has tons of great info on the history of Coke. Lots of old television ads and behind the scenes of the music. You will not be disappointed.

Rating:
Summary: Sip On An Ice-Cold Coca-Cola While Watching This Fun DVD!
Review: That most popular of all soft drinks known to man -- Coca-Cola -- was created way back in the year 1886, and it has remained a huge part of Americana every day since that first glass of "ice-cold Coke" was poured. It's doubtful you could find any other single product in history that has permeated each corner of the globe the way "Coca-Cola" has over the last 100-plus years. It might very well be THE biggest success story ... ever.

The following informational blurb taken from Coke's own website gives you an idea of just how BIG this caramel-colored beverage has become during its lifetime ..........

"The Coca-Cola Company exists to benefit and refresh everyone it touches. Founded in 1886, our company is the world's leading manufacturer, marketer, and distributor of non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, used to produce nearly 400 beverage brands. Our corporate headquarters are in Atlanta, with local operations in over 200 countries around the world."

This DVD from "MPI Home Video" (which sports a complete title of "Coca-Cola: The History Of An American Icon") tells the complete Coke story, from Day 1 all the way through the disastrous introduction of "New Coke" in April 1985, and the following resurrection of the old formula that people demanded that was re-named "Coca-Cola Classic".

Several old Coke TV ads are shown in this documentary program, which will elicit the proverbial nostalgic memories of days gone by, plus lots of rare archival footage released by the Coca-Cola Company.

This documentary also shows us many of the old ad campaigns and slogans that were employed by the Coca-Cola Company down through the ages, along with a glimpse of lots of the artwork, posters, and general signage that was used by Coke to get their message across to the nation and to the world. Some great-looking artwork, indeed, was created by many hard-working artists over the years.

The main program on this disc lasts 1 hour, 45 minutes. Total running time for all segments of this DVD (main documentary plus bonus material) is approximately 2 hours and 25 minutes. The video aspect ratio for all portions of the DVD is 1.33:1 (Full Frame). Audio is 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo. Subtitles for the main program are provided in both English and Spanish.

The back of the DVD case claims this disc offers a "Spanish Language Track". This is incorrect. No Spanish track exists here. It's a mis-print; it should say "Subtitles" instead of "Language Track" on the packaging.

I like the looks of the DVD cover art used by MPI for this release. It is replete with the color red (I guess you could call it "Coke Red", the same color that has appeared in many Coca-Cola print ads). There's a 4-page mini-booklet included in this DVD package as well -- with a lot of "red" adorning it too. The booklet has a Chapter List for the 105-minute main program, plus details about the bonus features.


Here's a look at the individual "Chapters" for the main program...........

1.) "In The Beginning"
2.) "Spreading The Word"
3.) "Container To Icon"
4.) "Boom Times"
5.) "Art For A Nation"
6.) "Coca-Cola Goes To War"
7.) "The 1950s...Coke Time"
8.) "Coke Goes Global"
9.) "Changing Times"
10.) "New Coke"
11.) "Credits"

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"Special Bonus Material" included on this disc...........

1.) "Early Bottling Footage (1919)"
2.) "Refreshment Through The Years (1939)"
3.) "Always Tomorrow (1941)"
4.) "Work Safely: Refreshment On The Job (1950)"
5.) "Una Bibita e Una Industria (1957)"
6.) "The Prom: It's A Pleasure (1961)"
7.) "Photo Gallery"

The Photo Gallery runs on a timed track (but can be "paused"), and includes accompanying "Coke jingle" music.

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If you want to see a comprehensive documentary program all about the history and marketing of the #1 cola drink in the world (plus a look at some nostalgic advertisements), then this DVD should suffice very nicely (thank you).

Rating:
Summary: Would I Like To Buy The Whole World A Coke?
Review: This DVD is great for any Coca Cola fan. It is full of interesting facts and takes us through the history of Coke. Did you know that Coke sent mobile bottling plants to Europe during the second world war? or that the coca cola bottle got its design from the seedpod of a coco plant? The DVD is made by the Coca Cola Company, So I do wonder if they had left out some of the negative details. This DVD is well made, and by the time you have finnished watching this DVD you'll be ready to by the whole world a Coke.

Rating:
Summary: Disapointed!...
Review: Yeah there are outakes of "I'd like to buy the world a coke" but it amazes me that the whole commercial is'nt included in this dvd. And most of the ad's included are not the good ones.