Snippet: An Oral History of ‘Get a Mac’ ☇

Douglas Quenqua for Campaign US:

In September 2005, Steve Jobs gave his advertising agency, TBWA\Chiat\Day, an assignment: Come up with a campaign that clearly demonstrates the Mac’s superiority to the PC. There was no deadline.

Seven months, dozens of tense meetings and countless discarded ideas later, the agency produced “Get a Mac.” It would go on to become one of the most succesful [sic] and admired ad campaigns in Apple’s history, no small feat when “1984,” “Think Different” and “Silhouette” are the competition. Among those legendary ads, “Get a Mac” stands out as the most overtly comedic and one of the most expansive: The team shot 323 spots over three years just to get the 66 that made it on air.

This is a fascinating read and was also a good look back at some notable ads in the series. In the years since, it was easy to forget how many different ads ran and for how long the campaign was on the air.

Part 2 has also been posted.