I was driving my kids and family to take a Polar Express-themed train ride. We were all dressed in pajamas, including my six-foot-three father – because that’s what you do for the Polar Express. You wear pajamas. I was worried we would be late and, apparently, I was burning a bit of rubber. About 20 miles from our destination, we got pulled over. The officer saw us all in pajamas, laughed, gave me a warning, and told me to slow down. Three hours later, we were ending the train ride and Santa appeared and took the time to talk to all the kids. He got to me and asked what I wanted for … [Read more...]
Fatherhood Highlight for Two NFL Stars
With the pro football season nearing its end, you'll be seeing plenty of highlight reels from the past year but none quite like the ones our friends at Dove Men+Care made featuring two NFL stars. The makers of grooming goodies for dudes and dads (full disclosure: Dove Men+Care is a longtime supporter/sponsor of City Dads Group) have a new advertising campaign that challenges the notion that feats of speed, power and agility on the gridiron are what athletes treasure most. Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer and Green Bay Packers wide receiver Jordy Nelson are featured in … [Read more...]
Football, Fatherhood and Love
To Dad, From Kelly is a poignant collection of love letters from first-time memoirist Kelly Lytle to his deceased father, College Football Hall of Famer Rob Lytle. It’s not every kid who can say his dad was a running back in the NFL and won a Super Bowl Championship ring with John Elway and the Denver Broncos but Kelly Lytle can. Rob Lytle was his son’s hero. But the author seems to make it clear from the start that his father was not his hero for his exploits on the playing field. “This book is my attempt to remember the father who shaped me through his unique blend of humor, kindness and … [Read more...]
Nissan Crashes with Absentee Dad Super Bowl Ad
As a father of three, it thrilled me to see 2015 Super Bowl commercials give dads so much attention. The surge in positive representation of fatherhood in advertising and media during the past few years has been amazing with the portrayal of fathers changing from mostly “doofus dads” to a greater focus on strong, nurturing fathers who raise their children competently and equally with their partners. While most of these 2015 Super Bowl "fatherhood" commercials did a fantastic job of highlighting what great dads can look like, car maker Nissan's "With Dad" spot appears to have completely … [Read more...]
Super Bowl of Fatherhood Advertising
Your team succeeded in Super Bowl XLIX yesterday if it was Team Fatherhood. Dads won big among TV ads run during Super Bowl XLIX Sunday. Toyota, Nissan and Dove Men+Care made notable major efforts to show the importance fathers play in their children's lives all in effort to appeal to the "other half" of the household consumer demographic. For the low-down on all the dad ads and more, read 8 Bit Dad's "Super Bowl XLIX: Dads Cover the Spread in Commercials" by Zach Rosenberg, co-organizer of our L.A. Dads Group. Zach, our resident dads-portrayed-in-ads experts, is also quoted in a January Ad … [Read more...]