Catsparella

Monday, September 5, 2011

French Telecom Commercial Features Kittens Doing Awesome Things

Bouygues Telecom : Les chatons font le buzz

Imagine a world filled with tiny kitten sized office buildings, cabs, living rooms, and more. A world where kittens attend meetings, vending machines dispense fish and milk, and "Catchete" is the latest movie rental of the week.

Now imagine that world no more, in this new commercial for French mobile internet service provider, Bouygues Telecom.

According to Melty Buzz (and my friend Google translate):

"Bouygues Telecom is the leader in customer relationship on the phone, how to prove to those who have not joined? By addressing what works best on the web: the cats. The Lolcat as they are known on the Internet, it is the cats videos posted on YouTube, as summarized in Planet of the Cats, a parody of Planet of the Apes."

Hmm, so I'm still not entirely sure of what's going on here, but I like it! (And am feeling strangely motivated to learn French.)

Via BuzzFeed

Saturday, September 3, 2011

It's Caturday!

Welcome back for another edition of Caturday, where we catch up on the week's latest cat news, and get to meet some of your amazing kitties!

This week brought us glorious cat naps, expensive cat sculptures, silly cat songs, indie cat actors, modern cat fashions, bully cat translations, and last but not least, parody cat advertising for Hissey Miyake, Catfish Dior, Scratch Watch, and more!

I also want to thank everyone for the wonderful comments they left on my post about meeting with Animal Communicator Sonya Fitzpatrick, and to those who commented on the "Tripping Hazard" cat ID tag post from yesterday too, because they gave me a good laugh!

Also, don't forget I have a fantastic giveaway going on right now for a Kittypod Geodome cardboard habitat from H.J. Mews! You have until this Tuesday, September 6th to get your entry in, so click HERE for all the details!

Tinky and JazzSpur

This week's feature feline comes to us from Terri in Ohio, who writes in about her feisty cat Tinky, who's been keeping everyone in check (horses, cats, and people, alike) at the racetrack where she works, for the past 13 years!

Terri writes:

This is Tinky. She is discussing the morning events with JazzSpur. He is a (trotter) harness race horse. 'Tink' was born at Northfield Park Racetrack 12 or 13 years ago. She is without a doubt the boss of the barn. She still runs unwanted (at least in her estimation) cats out of HER barn, climbs up to the rafters and cuts across to the other side of the barn, and successfully hunts birds, bugs, and mice!

Oh yeah - almost forgot - when one of the horses irritates her she has NO PROBLEM at all to stand up and box their nose! LOL!

Tinky catching an early morning cool breeze on a hot day (Lasers at the ready for any unwanted kitty intruders!)

Special thanks to Terri for sharing Tinky's tale with us this week! There's nothing like a beautiful, independent ladycat who's ready to defend her territory and throw a few punches when the going gets tough!

p.s. Happy Labor Day! I hope everyone has a great holiday weekend, and that all of the kitties are able to catch their last window whiffies of summer!

***

Want to see your cat(s) on Catsparella? I'm always accepting submissions for my weekly Caturday post! Just email your best kitty pics to catsparella@gmail.com, and include your cat's name and anything else you'd like to share! I can't wait to hear from you!

Friday, September 2, 2011

Tripping Hazard Cat Tag, For the Tripping Cat in your Life

Caution - Tripping Hazard Pet Tag, $10.00

Some cats are trippers, while others are not. If you have a tripping cat, you know exactly what I mean.

Charlie is a tripper cat, to the max. Wherever you go in the house, he is sure to be underfoot, wrapping his lithe black body around your legs at the most inopportune of moments. I cannot even count how many times he's come close to losing one of his nine lives after me or a family member tripped and almost fell over him due to his snakelike maneuvers.

If you have a cat like mine, perhaps you too would benefit from this cheeky "Tripping Hazard" pet tag by Ebonypaws. While it's doubtful that even a blaring yellow ID tag would help my situation (he always gets me around the refrigerator when I'm not paying attention), it could at least warn visitors and other innocent bystanders to take caution.

Ebonypaws designer Stephanie (love her name!), says that the humorous design was inspired by her own cat, Jack who is also a serial interloper.

She says, "I think sometimes he might be out to get me...especially around stairs or when I'm just getting out of bed. :)"

Do you have a tripping cat, too? Let me know in the comments!

Bully Cat and the Box - The Translation

Bully Cat and the Box - The Translation

You've probably seen the original version of this video where one cat unceremoniously stuffs his unsuspecting pal into a box while a mini-lion looks on, but have you see the translation?

Comedian Chris Cohen is back, and gives us another hilarious look at what's really going on inside the minds of some of YouTube's most popular cat stars.

"We're all working 24/7 to try and get you out!"

Catsparella Behind the Scenes of the Fancy Feast Storybook Wedding Shoot!

Behind the Scenes of "Something Borrowed" - Fancy Feast Storybook Wedding

Fancy Feast just released a behind the scenes video of the making of the "Something Borrowed" Storybook Wedding commercial, and guess what? I'm in it! Well, for a few seconds anyway!

Watch to get a look at what went into the making of the commercial, along with interviews with the writer, cast, marketing team, and more; When you get to around the three minute mark, you'll also catch a glimpse of me, and hear me talk about how I've always wanted to meet the Fancy Feast cat!

If you still haven't seen "Something Borrowed" to see how Sean and Lisa's most purrfect wedding ends, you can watch the full-length version of the commercial here.

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Cat-vertising From Vintage Vanity Fur Parody Magazine

Back in the late 80s, Ilene Hochberg made a name for herself by authoring several best-selling animal themed magazine parodies, including titles such as Dogue, Catmopolitan, and later, Good Mousekeeping. While all of the books include articles, paws down, the highlight of each is the advertisements.

I recently came across a copy of another one of Hochberg's meow-sterpieces, Vanity Fur, and scanned a few of my favorite cat-themed ads for your enjoyment! Click on any of the images below to enlarge.

Hissey Miyake

Poisson Espurrit De Parfum by Catfish Dior Paris

Pawsession by Calvin Klaw

Scratch Watch

Purrscriptives

Purry Ellis

Bonus! In a feature called Slaves to Fashion, "designer dogs and couture cats" show off their pet designers. Can you guess who this young and fresh faced fashion designer is? Why, it's none other than Michael Kors and his Devon Rex cat, Max!

Cat Lady Couture By Tokyolux

Black Cat Pullover - $48.00

It's not always easy to find cool, modern looking cat clothing that goes beyond basic tees and sweatshirts, but Tokyolux designer Audrey Kitching offers just that with her cotton candy tinged line of kitty print pullovers, oversized tees, and accessories.

I featured a few items from the line, including the hugely popular "You Hurt Cats I Hurt You" shirt back in February, and recently checked back in to find a sweet new selection of cat lady chic.