A Look Behind Local Commercials, Pt. 1: Russell “Cashman” Oliver

Whether you find him annoying or amusing, you could safely bet that most Torontonians have no problem recognizing Russell Oliver.

The kitschy, low-budget television commercials featuring Oliver shouting at the camera dressed as the Eglinton Avenue cowboy the Loan Arranger, emerging from a telephone booth as the portly retail superhero Cashman, or singing and waving cash to synthesized music flanked by scantily-clad women have made the jeweller one of the city’s best known personalities.

 “I, in fact, started my very first television commercial on Citytv in the summer, in June of 1995,” he said.

The jeweller’s local fame was evident as we spoke outside  Oliver Jewellery on Eglinton Avenue West when a driver in a passing car shouted “Cashman!”

While some may find his approach over-the-top Oliver said when it comes to his commercials, what you see is what you get.

“Oh, I’m just like that, you know,” he told CityNews.ca. “I like being called the Cashman or the Loan Arranger and it is definitely my personality – very outgoing and fun-loving.”

Oliver has been buying and selling gold and silver watches, rings, necklaces and the like since he was a young man studying at York University. He came to Canada from South Africa in the 1960s, attended Forest Hill Collegiate and bought his own jewellery business as he pursued his post-secondary education.

Oliver standing in front of his Eglinton Avenue store.

Oliver’s advertising antics landed him in some hot water in the late 1990s when DC Comics, a subsidiary of Time Warner Entertainment, slapped him with a $300,000 lawsuit for copyright and trademark violations. The company claimed Oliver’s original Cashman spot, which featured him emerging from a telephone booth clad in blue leotards with a dollar sign emblem on his chest and a red cape, depreciated the value of Superman.

Watch the video below to see Citytv‘s story on the lawsuit.

The case was thrown out before it made it to court, Oliver said, and he decided to ditch the tights and cape, but he kept the Cashman moniker and his catch phrase “Oh Yeah!”

Not surprisingly, Oliver takes a Do-It-Yourself approach to creating ads and said the “homegrown and down-to-earth” TV spots he writes and stars in create a lot of traffic in his store.

“You’re talking 13, 14 years of doing the same simple commercials, the same message over and over again and it does work, people do come in, people do respond to the commercials,” he said.

While Oliver touts his loud and repetitive approach to advertising, Lisa Greenberg, partner and creative director of Toronto’s GJP Advertising and Design, said that tactic repels potential customers.

“I think people say it is a success, but I think at the end of the day, are [potential customers] going to act on it? Probably not,” she told CityNews.ca.

“You better be Ellen Barkin or Sharon Stone if they’re going to star in their own ad, otherwise I find them insincere or irritating.”

Her colleague, GJP creative director Trevor Schoenfeld, used the term “million dollar hammer” to describe the simple and repetitive approach used in many ads.

“If they play the ad over and over and over again it’s going to have that little space in your head that goes: Oh, I know who you are and I hate your ads, or I know who you are and I’m not coming any where near you because you’re insulting me,” he said.

Oliver claims his light-hearted approach is a success and believes the key is making people laugh.

“No matter what they say we get between 50 and 100 people a day coming here form all over Ontario … obviously the commercials have been working,” he argued.

The businessman said he made about a dozen commercials that just feature him sitting calmly at a desk talking and said “they don’t bring in much traffic.” He also still runs ads from the 1990s.

“They’re classics,” he said.

Greenberg believes creating a sense of accessibility and friendliness is important in local advertising, but she said you have to be very aware of the kind of audience you’re targeting.

“I think there’s something to be said about approachability and … I think it can go a long way in disarming … the depths of difference, but it depends on your audience,” she explained. “Sometimes it’s required, most times it’s irritating, but maybe that’s because it’s not being aimed at me or aimed at Trevor. So there might be a comfort in it because it feels approachable.”

She believes Ikea does a good job at achieving that fine balance in its humorous TV ads.

Oliver says he believes his low-budget spots have a similar effect.

“It’s light-hearted, it’s not serious,” he said. “If anyone wants to be serious and heavy – that’s not my shtick, my shtick is totally fun, enjoyment.”

• The jeweller says the inspiration for his catch-phrase came from Kramer on “Seinfeld”. He wanted to say “Oh Yesss” but the Citytv producer who worked on his first ad suggested he stick with “Oh Yeah!”  “It’s become an identity with me. It’s branding, it’s all branding,” he said.

While some people find showy and low-budget local advertising annoying, others find it very entertaining.

A commercial made by Montgomery, Ala. furniture store owner Sammy Stephens hit the international stage last year after it caught the attention of talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, who played it on her show and invited the flashy pitchman to appear on stage. Jay Leno and Maury Povich also took notice.

The ad, which features the businessman dancing and rapping about the dinettes, living room and bedroom sets offered at Flea Market Montgomery, has received nearly three million views on YouTube. He, too, is known for his catchphrase: “It’s just like a mini-mall!”

shawne.mckeown@citynews.rogers.com