Carl’s Jr. Puts Pitchman Rodman Back in Its Lineup

Dennis Rodman, the NBA star who’s returning to action after being benched for kicking a court-side cameraman, also is going back into the game for Carl’s Jr., the Anaheim-based burger chain.

Rodman, who will return to the Bulls’ lineup next week, had been taken out of play by CKE Restaurants Inc., the parent company of Carl’s Jr., after NBA officials suspended Rodman for 11 games.

CKE spokeswoman Suzi Brown said that the ads were pulled after customers complained that it was wrong for the suspended player to be pitching burgers. But now that Rodman has been reinstated, CKE executives are scrambling to get the commercials back on the air in time for Sunday’s NBA All-Star game in Cleveland.

CKE President and Chief Operating Officer Tom Thompson said he decided to put Rodman back into an in-your-face ad campaign that’s aimed squarely at 18-to-35-year-old males who buy most of the nation’s fast food. Thompson said that the ads, only a handful of which feature Rodman, have helped to reignite sales at the burger chain.

Advertising industry executives said it’s risky for companies to rely on celebrities who end up making news that overshadows their professional accomplishments. Rodman, for example, no longer is associated with Nike, which reportedly decided that he had crossed a “thin line” separating celebrity from notoriety.

“Carl’s Jr. obviously studied the pros and cons and decided there’s still some mileage left in this guy,” said Michael A. Kamins, a USC marketing professor who studies celebrity advertising issues. “But if [Rodman] does something else, it’s a no-brainer, especially if the NBA bans him.”

In what some observers see as another measure of his continued popularity, a Los Angeles-based toy company is selling foot-tall dolls bearing Rodman’s likeness through retailers like FAO Schwartz and Target. The dolls, which sell for $14.99, include a miniature basketball and two outfits--a basketball uniform and a silver metallic vest with matching boots and denim shorts.

In keeping with Rodman’s habit of dyeing his hair, the dolls are available with lime-green hair and sunglasses or pink hair and no shades. Target spokeswoman Lisa Woodward described sales of the dolls as “steady,” and said the company expects to sell its 10,000 allotment from toy maker Street Players Holding Corp.

Companies that choose to associate their public image with Rodman’s bigger-than-life persona must “consider broader issues than simply whether the advertising works with their target audience,” Kamins said. “Carl’s Jr. has a large, younger audience, but it also has to appeal to a broader audience, say parents of kids who might prohibit their children from eating there.”

Rodman’s role as burger pitchman has generated plenty of free publicity for the once-staid company that’s named after founder and Chairman Emeritus Carl N. Karcher.

Just days before Rodman’s initial Carl’s Jr. advertisement ran in early 1996, he was suspended for head-butting an NBA referee. Carl’s Jr. spokeswoman Suzi Brown at the time said that Rodman was a “free spirit” and added, “We knew what we were getting when we signed him.”

In the wake of Rodman’s latest brush with authority, Carl’s Jr. was bombarded with calls from television viewers who wanted the ads yanked. The company agreed to pull them until the league’s leading rebounder came to terms with its commissioner.

The chain’s “in your face” campaign includes several other commercials that appeal largely to younger males. Some of the ads show men ogling a beautiful woman while she eats a big, messy burger. Another advertisement spoofed Alfred Hitchcock by using a catsup-laden knife, but it was yanked after viewers complained that the spot was unnecessarily graphic.

CKE on Thursday credited its year-old advertising campaign for sparking solid gains during 1996. Same-store sales, a key indicator, rose by 10.5% during the fourth quarter and 10.7% during the year. In contrast, Irvine-based Taco Bell’s same-store sales declined by 2% during 1996.

Rodman began pitching Carl’s Jr. burgers early in 1996 in commercials that featured him eating the chain’s food. The ads that have run in recent months were shot at the beginning of the campaign, and the company has not said whether additional commercials might be shot.

Also contributing to this story was Bloomberg News Service.