HB male
The HB male is a cartoon character used by the tobacco manufacturer British American Tobacco (BAT) to advertise the HB cigarette brand . Bruno , the unofficial name of the HB male, is one of the most famous advertising figures in the history of German advertising television .
concept
The commercials in cinema and television with Bruno always followed the same pattern: Bruno, who was initially in a good mood (he often hummed the melody of the song Rejoice in Life at the beginning of the commercial ), turned a harmless everyday situation into a chain of increasing catastrophes through his clumsiness he got more and more upset in an incomprehensible language. The language was Arabic, which was played backwards at double or, depending on the increasing excitement, even faster. At the height of his tantrum, the choleric Bruno literally blew up. This was followed by the slogan spoken from the off in a soothing voice : “Stop, my friend! Who's getting mad so fast? Better reach for HB! ”Bruno floated back relaxed on the floor and, accompanied by the sentence“ Then everything will go by itself ”, with a cigarette in his hand, effortlessly cleared the situation. The cigarette was advertised as a problem solver and relaxation agent, a concept that is still used in many products today.
History and production
Commercials with Bruno were produced from 1957 to 1984 by Werbe Gramm - today Gray - together with the film company Kruse-Film, but after the advertising ban on cigarettes on television (1974) they were only shown in the cinema. In the 1960s, the HB male was known to 96% of viewers. At that time HB was the most famous cigarette brand in Germany.
The creator of the figure, which was initially drawn in black and white, was the animation director Roland Töpfer and the advertising specialist Theo Breidenbach .
Shortly before Bruno's invention, a human embodied the HB male. However, only a few spots of this type were produced. A drawn, bespectacled male of the “manager of the economic miracle ” type was also shown only for a short time . They were looking for a figure who should exude extreme hectic pace. Eventually one came up with the male who later became known as Bruno. In Bruno's early days he did not blow up, but burst with anger.
The expression "HB male" or "blown up like an HB male" became proverbial for the behavior of a quick-tempered, easily excitable person.
The total of more than 400 films with the HB male are coveted by collectors today and are available on video cassette, CD and DVD.
literature
- Gerhard Paul : The HB male - advertising figure of the economic miracle . In: Zeithistorische Forschungen / Studies in Contemporary History . No. 1/2 , 2007 ( article online [accessed June 16, 2011]).
- Wolfgang Hars: Lurchi, Klementine & Co. Our advertising heroes and their story . 2nd Edition. Fischer, Frankfurt am Main 2002, ISBN 3-596-15074-4 , HB-Männchen. The choleric cigarette man, p. 128-131 .
Web links
- Pictures and audio sample
- Clip on YouTube
DVD
- Roland Töpfer, The HB male in his best spots , DVD 99 min, stapler film