Mikhail Gorbachev Pizza Hut commercial

Mikhail Gorbachev, the last leader of the Soviet Union, was featured in a 1998 television advertisement for Pizza Hut. It was filmed in November 1997 on Red Square and in a Pizza Hut restaurant elsewhere in Moscow. It was aired internationally in January 1998, but not in Russia.

In the commercial, a family inside the Pizza Hut restaurant discusses Gorbachev's political legacy. The younger man and the older man loudly argue, until the older lady says that Gorbachev gave them Pizza Hut. The commercial has been described as illustrative of the victory of capitalism inside the former Soviet Union.

Synopsis

The commercial starts with an aerial view of the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour and Manezhnaya Square from the viewpoint of the Four Seasons Hotel Moscow after a recent snowfall. Gorbachev walks through the snow with an umbrella, together with his granddaughter Anastasia Virganskaya while Saint Basil's Cathedral is visible in the background. They enter the Pizza Hut restaurant at Red Square and take a seat at a table in the corner.

A conversation begins among a family at a different table. They speak the Russian language, but English subtitles are provided. The father, played by

Background

Pizza Hut opened in 1990 in Moscow, a few months after the first McDonald's in Russia opened.[2] It was one of the first foreign-owned restaurants that was able to open in Soviet Russia, thanks in part to Gorbachev's own perestroika policies.[8] The idea for a Pizza Hut in Moscow came from a personal friendship between Soviet Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Dobrynin and Donald M. Kendall, CEO of Pizza Hut's parent company PepsiCo. It was part of the largest deal ever between the Soviet Union and an American corporation.[9] The arrangement flopped after the Soviet Union collapsed, which killed Pizza Hut's supply chain.[8]

Pizza Hut had frequently ordered advertisements from BBDO before. BBDO art director Ted Shaine recalled that the company "heard that [Gorbachev] was willing to do something", but others suggest BBDO came up with the idea themselves.[8]

It took months to negotiate a deal. Katie O'Neill Bistrian at IMG negotiated for Gorbachev. The long duration was partly to increase the fee for Gorbachev, but also represented real hesitation on his part. His wife Raisa Gorbacheva feared that the ad could harm his reputation. Gorbachev agreed under the conditions that he could give his final approval over the script. He would also not eat pizza, which disappointed Pizza Hut. O'Neill Bistrian suggested that a member of Gorbachev's family would eat the pizza slice, which ended up being his granddaughter.[8]

The exact amount that Gorbachev received was never disclosed, although it was argued that it was one of the largest talent fees in history.[8] According to The New York Times, some reports indicate Gorbachev was paid close to US$1 million (equivalent to about $M in ).[10] Gorbachev said the money would be used for The Gorbachev Foundation, and was quoted in CNN saying:

I'm in the process of creating a library and a perestroika archive, and this project requires certain funds. Perestroika gave impetus to Russia and to the whole world. It is very important that everything that happened be preserved in these two centers. It's an important part of life. It's not only consumption, it's also socializing. If I didn't see that it was beneficial for people, I wouldn't have agreed to it.[11]

agency	BBDO‡R1R‡
writer	Tom Darbyshire‡R1R‡
product	Pizza
client	Pizza Hut
released	January 1, 1998
runtime	1:00‡R2R‡ or 0:30‡R3R‡
country	Europe · United States
language	Russian with subtitles in English language
starring	Mikhail Gorbachev Anastasia Virganskaya Richard Marner
slogan	"Good friends. Great pizza."‡R4R‡ or "Have you been to the edge?"‡R5R‡

Mikhail Gorbachev Pizza Hut commercial

Synopsis

Background

Production

Broadcast and reception

Analysis

Further developments

See also

External links

References