Cleaning Up

Mr. Clean, the soap trademark, is more recognizable to shoppers than is Vice President George Bush, according to Procter & Gamble, manufacturer of the detergent. This tidbit of knowledge is based on surveys done by the company, which found that 93% of shoppers could identify the bald, earringed man who sells soap, and by People magazine, which found that only 56% of the public could recognize Bush.

This puts the Geraldine Ferraro-Diet Pepsi commercial caper into a new light. Wouldn’t it be interesting if running for vice president was a loss leader intended to line Ferraro up for a few advertising gigs? Bush won, but Ferraro gets to cash in. If she follows the path of Mr. Clean, she could wind up being more famous than the vice president.