Tim Duncan will be bouncing all over the Northeast this week, but not on a basketball court.
The NBA All-Star is appearing in 30-second TV spots for the Tourism Department's Winter Campaign 2001, announced Pam Richards, acting Tourism commissioner (in the absence of Monique Sibilly-Hodge, who is off-island).
The spots were filmed off St. Croix's Buck Island in September this year by an off-island company, Fuel Inc., though they hired locals to assist, including all the extras. Deborah Quade of the newly formed Caribbean Film and Video Association Inc., said, "This was a unique opportunity—the big outfits rarely hire all local talent."
The association supplied some of the equipment as well as the talent, along with the Tourism Department and its then-commissioner, Rafael Jackson, who took an active part in filming.
The spot features Duncan snorkeling off a sailboat and getting the wrong size flippers, to the amusement of those on board the boat.
Richards said, "We are pleased and proud to have Tim as the focus of an advertisement promoting the territory. As one of our most prominent and popular celebrities … travelers will identify with the legendary NBA player." Duncan is doing the spots in return for Virgin Island tax benefits.
The ads start this week and run through Dec. 17. The Duncan ad is one of four airing at the same time. The other three represent each island, with St. Croix receiving double play. They will be seen in Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
Also included are spots on local cable systems in Boston and New York, such as The Travel Channel, Smart Traveler, Discovery Channel and A&E.
Radio spots are also included in the campaign targeting the East Coast during the same period. The radio ads will run in Cleveland, Detroit and Minneapolis/St. Paul and those cities also airing the TV spots. Atkinson said, "News, weather and traffic sponsorships have been secured in all markets, as well as tapping into leading African-American stations."
