The 1980's TV commercials for California raisins have been called some of the best ads ever made. Lyrics.com. The following year, Vinton created another TV special called Meet The Raisins! SW: Kalem Barserian, raisin industry veteran, again. Oh, that's sweet. And this is what I told him. Needless to say, their band history borrowed heavily from the types of origin stories real bands tended to have. My girl!BK: Yeeeeah the marketing guys at Del Monte filed a complaint with the Department of Food and Agriculture over it. ', SW: Barry Kriebel was president of Sunmaid at the time. And it became more entertainment than strategy. et Cie, S.C.A. Oh! The Raisins released numerous studio albums in the 1980s, starred in a cartoon series, and were nominated for an Emmy for their 1988 "Meet the Raisins" mockumentary. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Instead, it was a group of tiny, claymation raisins playing a Motown hit in a national ad campaign. These albums were included in the Smithsonian collection and were illustrated and art-directed by Helane Freeman, who later became famous for her work on Hannah Montana and The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, among other Disney programs. SPEAKER EIGHT: And I guess subliminally, it probably worked because I do remember eating raisins as a snack. Colossal issued a challenge to some of its animators: BRUNSFELD: How can you make a raisin look appealing? 16:20 How do you distinguish your raisin bagel from my field to your field? How is that better than Ray Charles?'. His crime: growing raisins and then deciding to sell . He said: WERNER: He would not approve the nose that I put on the raisin, no matter what I did, he wouldn't approve of it! By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider CH: A warship, the USS Pyro, even asked permission to sail with a California Dancing Raisins flag flying high above ahoy mateys! To access our initial disclosure document, please click, Get the item you ordered or your money back. Hey Sarah. Matthew has observed his fair share of contentious industry meetings. The community that created them, and the questions they left in their wake. The Raisins released numerous studio albums in the 1980s, starred in a cartoon series, and were nominated for an Emmy for their 1988 "Meet the Raisins" mockumentary. CH: This episode was reported and produced by Sarah Wyman, with Julia Press and me, Charlie Herman. The Dancing California Raisins were a go. eBay (UK) Limited acts as a credit broker not a lender. If no one liked it, the raisin industry could not get that money back. Strong came up with the idea and asked Motown writers Holland-Dozier-Holland to work on it with him. SW: Kalem Barserian has worked in the raisin industry for more than 50 years. In 2010, claymation versions of the California Raisins were featured in the special Christmas episode of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, "A Very Sunny Christmas". Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for CALIFORNIA RAISINS: i heard it through the grapevine PRIORITY 7" Single 45 RPM at the best online prices at eBay! California Raisins. Between 12th and 14th Streets And maybe some people are pessimistic about it, I don't know, maybe people are tired of just the lack of unity. KB: Couldn't find it! In 2015, it was announced that a live-action/CGI reboot of the California Raisins would be produced, with president of The Actors Hall of Fame Foundation, Rusty Citron, as one of the people behind the project. CALRAB, the organization who made the campaign, was also closed on July 31, 1994, due to disagreements with raisin producers over the fairness of required payments to the organization. I mean. See terms. And they had good reasons to be! The California Raisins Original Commercial click to see! And he says, even though the Dancing Raisins are long gone, he and the rest of the industry are still dealing with the fallout. The raisin packers didn't reach this decision because anyone had anything against the ad, or because licensing fees had stopped rolling in, or even because raisin sales were down. And the California raisin industry is, after all, a big family. Musicians such as Ray Charles and Michael Jackson even got in on the raisin action, singing their own versions of "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" for later commercials. [4] To their surprise, the commercial became wildly popular, paving the way for several future commercials and opportunities through other media. BK: There's always been a 'If it's good for Sunmaid, it's gotta be bad for them.' This commercial has witimaginationand it was good enough that I went and bought a box of Californian grown raisins.'. But back in 1986, going viral was not yet a thing. Label. SPEAKER ONE: It was like a Mr. You're making us put up $32.50 for generic advertising, and Sunmaid's getting the benefit of it. The ad was fun, but, to quote The Fruits of Their Labors again, it "made no effort to sell raisins. Socit en Commandite par Actions Registered Office: 22-24 Boulevard Royal L-2449, Luxembourg). The California Raisins released four studio albums in 1987 and 1988, and their trademark, "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," was on the Billboard Hot 100. "Picture cover". - The California Raisins II. The California Raisins are often accompanied by a soundtrack of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," originally popularized by singer Marvin Gaye. But were they a success for the raisin industry? SW: Before long, a claymation Ray Charles joined the bunch. Photos not available for this variation. Okay? Sign up for notifications from Insider! And the band wasn't playing heavy metal or rock 'n' roll. SPEAKER FIVE: Every time that commercial would come on, my mom would sing and dance to that song. It's a pop song reimagined as a nervous breakdown. If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. Connect your Spotify account to your Last.fm account and scrobble everything you listen to, from any Spotify app on any device or platform. CH: So where did this journey for you begin? They have two big jobs. SW: Back in Fresno, the raisin growers and packers watched with amazement as the Dancing Raisins turned into superstars. SPEAKER FOUR: My mother thought they were great, and she collected the figurines. Vinton and his team spent weeks making about six different figurines and a set made out of clay. Because that's a whole market supply and demand on both the national and international basis. The musical mockumentary was again created by Vinton Studios, and was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. SW: That's Alvin and the Chipmunks, for those of you aren't fans. Their cover of Marvin Gaye's "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" peaked at #84 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1988. Playlist, Written by: Norman Whitfield, Barrett Strong, Lyrics Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Tratore. Heard it! Back in 1987, the president of Priority Records got in touch with Ross, and he asked him to produce an album of Motown hits, sung by the California Raisins. I says, 'in Canada? The California Raisin Advisory Board. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions. Some people were saying they weren't getting a big enough slice of the Dancing Raisins pie. Which meant packers couldn't slap a Dancing Raisin on their packaging or use the characters in ads unless they got their idea approved by the board. It wasn't true. And then we threw the baby out with the bathwater. SW: This is Matthew Malcolm again. I heard it through the grapevine. SARAH WYMAN: Charlie, I have to start with a confession. Lead vocals were sung by musician Buddy Miles. Sunmaid. WERNER: We created this huge conga line that came out of a box of raisins and danced on the coffee table while this husband and wife or boyfriend and girlfriend were watching a movie, and they were unaware that all this was happening in its own little world. Kalem Barserian, along with around 40 raisin growers, packers, and industry members, was in that room. AD ONE: Lay some happiness on me, give me raisins and I'll be. Some years later, Noel Gallagher stands on a stage strumming his guitar while . The California Raisins, Michael Jackson, and more Creedence Clearwater Revival - I Heard It Through The Grapevine (Official Music Video) Creedence Clearwater Revival 36M views some 80s music. And, I didn't know this, but nearly 100 percent of the raisins the U.S. produces come from within a 60 mile radius of the city. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. They even earned an Emmy nomination! Oh I heard it through the grapevine. RV: I said, 'I think that's a great idea.' CH: We're back. BK: You gotta have consensus. And then on top of that, this article also made mention of a raisin mafia, along with allegations of death threats!? And though the process is time-consuming and expensive, Werner's performance managed to win them over. He wrote to Foot Cone and Belding specifically requesting a VHS copy of the ad so he could watch it whenever he wanted to. The face took up most of the raisin's body MB: And then there was little wrinkles here and there, but the more you emphasize that, the more it looked, you know, kind of like a weird prune. It lost message. SPEAKER THREE: They sang we three kings with also these camels that were all claymation. SW: His boss had him working mostly on trade adsstuff for industry publications not the kind of campaigns you or I would ever see in a commercial or on a billboard. You know how families can be about money. Umpteen searches though the archives using the terms "California Raisins" and "Hardee's" came up mostly empty, except for . "[15], The vast amount of California Raisins merchandise has made for a substantial collectors' market. Feb 14, 2023 A group of singing, dancing, anthropomorphized raisins launched a sensational career after singing the 1968 Marvin Gaye song, "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," in a 1986 commercial for the California Raisin Advisory Board. But, that's not where this story ends. SPEAKER ONE: Like obviously, they're raisins, but it just didn't occur to me that like this was a tool to get you to eat like what you see in boxes of raisins. I Heard It Through the Grapevine. Then in 1989, a 13-episode Saturday Morning Cartoon show calledThe California Raisin Show aired. Fresno is a dusty, medium-sized city in the middle of California's central valley. The California Raisins released four studio albums on Priority Records, BMG, and ZTT Records between 1987 to 1994, and their signature song, "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", landed on the Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at number 84 or 85. I said, 'Ok, that's one piece of the marketing puzzle. But an even bigger faction of raisin packers did not have their own name-brands. Web. Not much longer would you be mine baby. Paul McCartney requested his own copy on VHS. SW: Within a month of its release, the album went gold. But that wasn't the story around town. And because they were big companies, not headquartered in the Fresno circle, they were not at the table, and participating in all of this back-and-forth. Seth Werner, the young copywriter newly in charge of the California Raisins account, had a concept. Heard it, heard it! We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly. There were some other big names, like Dole and Del Monte, but they didn't just sell raisins. Is it that people remember it? California Raisins poster vintage 1987 Heard it Through The Grapevine. Javascript is required to view shouts on this page. Your email address will not be published. And, for better or worse, they're also in it together on that front. The California Raisins were a fictional rhythm and blues animated musical group as well as advertising and merchandising characters composed of anthropomorphized raisins. 80s classic toys. It was the sequel to the Emmy-nominated special Meet the Raisins! This figure is also included on CalRaisins.org. The claymation raisins singing and dancing to Marvin Gaye's "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" became a kids TV show, recorded an album that went platinum, launched a range of toys and costumes, and starred in an Emmy-winning Christmas special. CH: After the break, five million dollars DOES go a long way, the Dancing California Raisins conga line their way to record deals and awards, and they split the raisin industry right down the middle. It turns out the raisin industry is actually a very contentious industry there's this long history of lawsuits going back and forth between different members. SW: Michael Brunsfeld was the commercial animation director at a company called Colossal Pictures, which had been contracted to do a mockup of the ad. It just knows that it needs water, it needs to be pruned, needs to be fertilized, it needs to be babied. And they should pretty much be still once they do their heard it! SW: So are the California Raisins coming back, do you thinkthe Dancing California Raisins? Yeah the good news is the industry is at a point where people are working together more than they have historically, at least in the past 20 years or so. California Raisins Heard it Through the Grapevine (Better Quality) Herozilla Video Editing and Livestream Gaming 82.3K subscribers Subscribe 10K Share 983K views 3 years ago I don't own the. Finance is provided by PayPal Credit (a trading name of PayPal (Europe) S. r.l. California raisins from the California vineyards. The briefthe goal of the campaignwas to come up with a commercial that would make customers see raisins differently. You don't, right? Oh! If you have any issues please contact me before leaving negative response I will always do my best make it right! But there's one letter that really stands out: WERNER: Okay, this is from the Fitzgerald-Hartley Company. AD FIVE: Honey, are you playing with your food again? 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