POP/ROCK - Sept. 15, 1987
<i> Arts and entertainment reports from The Times, national and international news services and the nation's press</i>
The Pepsi-Cola folks are starting something--again--with singer Michael Jackson: an episodic, four-part commercial that will be the showpiece of the soft drink giant’s upcoming advertising campaign. The commercial, to be shown worldwide in both English and Spanish, will show Jackson involved in various “extraordinary and exciting situations, ending in a blockbuster conclusion,” said Rebecca Madeira, a Pepsi-Cola spokeswoman, over the weekend. Details of the commercial’s story line were not revealed, nor was the amount of money Jackson will receive from PepsiCo. Madeira said the 60-second spots probably would be aired later this year or early in 1988.