A lot of HOGs may think of a different "Captain America" when they think of Harley-Davidson and super heroes, but the motorcycle brand is looking to change that for a new generation. Harley-Davidson has launched the Assemble Your Freedom contest in cooperation with Marvel comics. The winner will "become a character in an Avengers comic."

The partnership comes in anticipation of Marvel's upcoming summer movie, The Avengers. The film, starring a team of core Marvel characters, includes Captain America, a hero with whom Harley-Davidson already had a deal in 2011. But one Marvel hero, a motorcycle hero, is missing from the Harley-Marvel team — the title character in the just-opened Ghost-Rider: Spirit of Vengeance movie starring Nicolas Cage..Continue reading...

You can't spell the brand "Yakult probiotic yogurt" without "yak." (above)

"Do you realize that toilet paper has not changed in my lifetime? It's just paper on a cardboard roll, that's it. And in ten thousand years, it will still be exactly the same because really, what else can they do?" George Costanza, meet the new tube-less Scott toilet paper.

Can branded content be funny? Is branded content just another name for product placement? Yes and yes.

Hermes and Yamaha unveil their $62,000 motorcycle (but does it come with Kelly Saddlebags?)

Expectations run high for slogans and signs at tomorrow's Stewart/Colbert rally in DC.Continue reading...

According to the Motorcycle Industry Council, the number of American households that own motorcycles jumped 26% between 2003 and 2008. This trend is global, evidenced in a recent Harley Owners Group (HOG) in Beirut. But no rider group is growing faster than women, which increased from about 9% of the total in 2003, to more than 12% in 2008. Hollywood has taken notice.

Harley-Davidson, well aware of the trend, has partnered with celebrities like star fitness trainer Jillian Michaels and singer-songwriter Jewel in a recent advertising spread in upscale glossy mag Vanity Fair. The move accents Harley's dedicated resources such as its Women Riders web presence.Continue reading...