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15 Greatest Footwear Commercials of All Time
#15 Tie Ked’s Basketball Shoe: Kolonel Keds & The Bell Rocket Belt 1965
Long before Michael Jordan took flight in Nike’s, Kolonel Keds was taking to the sky –literally- in Keds. Played by Bell Aerosystem’s pilot Bob Croder in the sky and actor Bob Harder on the ground, this character was flying via a real rocket pack that had been developed by Bell for the US Army. While there’s no denying that some of the claims made about Ked’s shoe’s in the commercial were a tad far fetched, the overall concept and execution were pretty dope.
Add to the fact that Michael Jordan sported Keds while playing for the McDonalds All American Highschool Basketball Team -and that maybe, just maybe shows the Kolonel served as inspiration for Nike’s famous Flight campaign- and well you have number 15.
Honorable Mention -Tie Reebok Answer V: Jadakiss Freestyle 2001
“The young boss of the cross for four quarters. And from three point land, he’s all water”. The A5 was a dope shoe no doubt, but it was the commercial that took it center stage. In 2001, Steve Stoute linked Reebok with Jadakiss –who in 2001 was having a really big year- & Trackmasters for a commercial that further solidified AI’s reputation as (in Jadakiss’s words) “a hood legend that made it”. It would go on to inspire a follow up commercial for the duo in 2002 for the A6 -with Iverson himself spitting a few bars on the track, and a special edition Reebok Question release in 2016 inspired by this classic 2001 commercial. It was also one of the few commercial’s I’ve witnessed several times being blasted from car radio’s, which adds up to one of the greatest footwear commercials of all time.
