...Burger King

Burger King is killing the King! Now under now ownerships, management and marketing, Burger King has decided to retire it's somewhat creepy king for now. For years, Burger King had placed its bets on edgy commercials by creative powerhouse Crispin Porter + Bogusky, targeting men in their teens and 20s. Crispin's campaigns got a lot of attention, and plaudits from the advertising community. Unfortunately, however, advertising awards don't necessarily translate into sales, and Burger King has been badly lagging main rival McDonald's. Burger King's same-store sales declined 6% in the first quarter; compare that to a 3% rise for Mc Donald's. It is not the King's fault, it is Burger King's fault. They are now focusing updating the stores, fixing its food and changing its image. Alex Maccedo SVP of marketing said, "People want a reason to go back to Burger King ... There are no plans to bring the King back anytime soon." I am giving Burger King a Digit Down because the King is funny, creepy and makes them relevant. Their food is blah and I do not see that changing anytime soon. Below are some of the commercials that starred the King.

...Charlie Sheen

WINNING! Is one of my favorite things to say, but is Charlie Sheen losing? Only Dr. Drew wants to know this. Why? Well today Charlie Sheen was officially fired from his job on "Two and A Half Men". Warner Bros. Television released this statement, "After careful consideration, Warner Bros. Television has terminated Charlie Sheen's services on 'Two and a Half Men,' effective immediately. Based on the totality of Charlie Sheen's statements, conduct and condition, CBS and Warner Bros. Television have decided to discontinue production of 'Two and a Half Men' for the remainder of the season. Charlie was either upset or peeved by the news, this was his response, "I got a text or something. Here's another thing -- these guys are such yellow cockroaches that they didn't even have the decency to call me. I put 5 bill[ion] in their cheap suit pockets and another half a bil' in what's-his-cheese's pockets and this is the... respect I get? It's just deplorable and they should be ashamed of themselves!" He blamed the firing on his bosses not understanding the actor rather than on his recent media blitz saying, "Whatever. I guess if you can't process a guy, or realize his value, you must terminate him. That's real high-brow thinking, really evolved thinking. I don't know. It is what it is. I'm more worried about my children [Bob and Max] right now than any of this nonsense, you know." What is next for Charlie? Maybe a major lawsuit, "They exercised such a cheap move and [this is] so silly and so transparent and... it's so juvenile. It is the work of infants. It is the work of silly infants and it's just -- if this is what it had to come to, to get me out of those silly shirts, then so be it. So maybe I'll wear one, just on the final day when I go and remove all of their bazillions." I understand why he was fired, but I think there was a better way to handle this. I would have let him finish the season, he would have "moved away" or "died" at the end of the season, just to have everything come together a little better when they introduce a new character to replace him. I just hope that they do not get a new character to replace him who will be playing him. How later and dumb would that be? I did not like it when they did it on "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air", and even though I do not watch this shows, never....not even once, I will not like it here either. Everyone is trying to make money off of Charlie. Every entertainment news outlet is all over this. His life: his past, his present, his future. Shirts, mugs, etc. are using his phrases to sell as much merchandise as possible. I believe Charlie wanted to leave, he was over this show and he was just in it for the money now. I see this show just ending. Lots of money will be lost and Charlie will probably receive some of the money that he is seeking, though that contract could have a lot of loopholes or some iron clad clauses. What makes things worse is when Charlie was in trouble in Colorado for allegedly hitting his wife, holding a knife to her neck and threatening to kill her, the studio and the producers stood by him. Now he goes on a few rants and insults them and they fire him. That says a lot about them and who they really care about...themselves. I am giving Charlie Sheen a Digit Up because no matter what he did, and he did A LOT, he was always himself, good or bad.

...Andrew Shirvell

When I think of this guy I laugh hard! This guy is anti-gay and attacked a student for his "radical" pro gay lifestyle. Everything about him a little gayer than the guy he is attacking. I saw him on The Colbert Report and I laughed so hard. I think this dude is in the closet and he is what the media would call a cyber bully. Watch and listen to him and you decide:

Now this all brings me to this: he has been fired from his job for violating office policies and for borderline stalking. This guy is very stalker-ish and creepy and reminds me of one of those guys who was never invited to the party so now he breaks them up and ruins it for others. I am okay with free speech and all that jazz, but this guy just took it way too far and I am glad that he is gone. Andrew is getting a Digit Down. Also Andrew, come out already GOSH.

...Rick Sanchez

After taking a day to think about this I am now ready to talk about it. Rick Sanchez, my former boss, was fired from CNN after he made some controversial comments about Jon Stewart and Jews. He called Jon Stewart a "bigot". Actually you can hear the radio interview here:








Although I do not agree with what he said, I do see the point h was trying to make. As with most comments that become controversial if he would have thought about what he was going to say before saying it he would have expressed his feelings in a more educated and more thoughtful way. Either way Rick is fired and who knows what the future holds for him. I do think he will land another job somewhere in the near future and I hope he and his family is doing well. For the time being though I am going to give Rick Sanchez a Digit Down because he just should have thought about what he was saying before saying what he said.