HONORING THE VERY WORST IN INTERNATIONAL ADVERTISING
SPANISH AY-AY-AY'S:
Coors put its slogan, "Turn it loose," into Spanish, where it was read as "Suffer from diarrhea."
A Miami T-shirt maker printed Spanish-language shirts for a visit by the Pope. Instead of "I saw the Pope" (El Papa), the shirts read, "I saw the potato" (la papa).
Frank Perdue's chicken slogan, "It takes a tough man to make a tender chicken," was translated as, "It takes an aroused man to make a chicken affectionate."
When Parker Pen marketed a ballpoint pen in Mexico, the line "It won't leak in your pocket and embarrass you" was transformed into, "It won't leak in your pocket and make you pregnant."
LULLABY OF DEUTSCHLAND
Clairol's "Mist Stick" curling iron was a flop in Germany--where "mist" is slang for manure.
CHINESE SODA TORTURE
"Come alive with the Pepsi Generation" was originally translated into Chinese as, "Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave."
TALK ABOUT STRAINED RELATIONS
Gerber sold baby food in Africa with its trademark baby photo on the label. Later they learned that companies there routinely put pictures of what's inside on the label, since most people can't read.
There are many more instances where "lost in the translation" doesn't begin to describe the carnage of international advertising. If you have other favorites, please forward all nominations to The Wax Tadpole Awards Committee.
Hand-carved from actual human ear wax, this most coveted of advertising encomia is named in honor of Coca-Cola's first rendering in Chinese as "Bite the wax tadpole" (or "female horse stuffed with wax," depending on your dialect). The Awards Committee is now accepting new proposals for both prize design and future nominees.
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