The Taco Bell Dog Essay, Research Paper

1 Oversize corn chip + 1 Undersized dog = Millions of dollars

Many people say that the US is the land of opportunity, but the latest money making opportunity has come from south of the border. Chihuahuas, Talking Chihuahuas. Taco Bell has struck a gold mine in its latest advertisement campaign involving a talking Chihuahua, fueling an instant craze for the little dogs, and all of their merchandise.

The actual filming for all of the commercials was shot in western LA using a simple white background. Four look alike dogs were filmed in many situations at many angles. Using simple verbal commands such as sit, stay, and lie the trainers instructed the dogs out of view of the cameras. The entire process of shooting all of the footage for all of the commercials took only four days. On the final day of the shoot, a party was thrown in honor of the soon to be stars. Each was served a specially made cake consisting of carob, Carrots, and decorated dog biscuits. Three of the pups refused to touch the cakes. The forth one ate a portion of his and proceeded to vomit on the set floor. The dogs were also presented with Custom leather jackets by one costume designers. Another crew member gave the dogs a large inflatable Godzilla figure. The dogs reportedly attempthed to sexually gratify themselves on the tail several times and then chewed the toes off.

After filming the footage was sent to an animation company in Texas. Using computers, the animators morphed frames to create the effect of the dogs talking. Backgrounds, many of which are not actually Taco Bell, but a little deli called Sals,

were added along with music and voices. And thus a new sensation was born.

The overwhelming success of the campaign is not limited to combo meals and gorditas, The Chihuahuas image can be seen on every thing from hats to t-shirts to dashboard ornaments to Vases. The immense success has nearly tripled the cost of Chihuahua puppies in many places.

The |Yo Quiero Taco BellX ads were a stroke of marketing genius on the behalf of Taco Bell. It has Made the Chihuahua more than an advertisement. It has become a part of pop culture. A symbol of our generation, And a part of all of our hearts.