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| SUPERWHEEL DETERGENT BAR, with Elizabeth Ramsey as "Cleopatra (1976) Screen grab from 'Superwheel Classic Philippine commercial (1976) by ADman 1909. |
From the 50s to the early 70s, the powdered detergents, led
by Tide and Breeze, reigned supreme in Philippine households, used by millions
of women to keep their laundry clean, white and fresh-smelling. Sure, there
were coconut-oil based bars like Perla and Luto (by Philippine Manufacturing
Co.), but powders were preferred for their cleaning ability.
WATCH SUPERWHEEL "CLEOPATRA" TVC HERE:
(Credits: Jojo Bailon, VOT3)
Philippjne Refining Co. (PRC) had a soap bar as early as
1952, known as Wheel. It would take twenty two more years before the company
could introduce the first non-soap detergent in the country, which would
revolutionize the laundry industry and install PRC as Procter & Gamble
PMC’s staunchest competitor.
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| Screen grab from 'Superwheel Classic Philippine commercial (1976) by ADman 1909. |
The new product was the SUPERWHEEL DETERGENT BAR, introduced
to the market in 1974. The synthetic detergent bar had compressed power
cleansers that had superior cleaning ability, and could wash more loads of
clothes. It lasted longer, as the amount of detergent used could be controlled by hand-scrubbing, thus
it was more economical than powder.
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| MARISSA DELGADO as Lady Guinever, Superwheel TVC 1976 Screen grab from 'Superwheel Classic Philippine commercial by ADman 1909. |
J. Walter Thompson conceived of a massive campaign on TV
that did away with real housewives and their problematic washing problems.
WATCH SUPERWHEEL "GUINEVERE"
TVC 30s here:
The commercials had outlandish characters
spoofed from well-known historical and literary women figures —from Cleopatra,
Lady Guinevere and later, in the 80s, Starzan and Barok.
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| LILY MIRAFLOR, always appeared at the right time with a Superwheel bar, to save the day for women with laundry problems. |
These characters
shared a common laundry problem that was solved by the omni-present Lily
Miraflor, who appeared magically nearby as the women contemplated on their
problems. “Konting kuskos, ayos!”, she says as she saves the day for the
ladies with a bar of SUPERWHEEL.
The anachronistic scenes were memorably campy, the acting
over-the-top. The ads were among the most popular and most recalled from the
70s era. Most of the punchlines are still known today—most notably, the Cleopatra
version (1976) starring the irrepressible Elizabeth Ramsey who, despondent over
her washing challenges, declared—“Magapatuka na lang ako sa ahas!” (Might as
well have myself bitten by a snake!). A novelty song was even recorded by
Ramsey to capitalize on the catchphrase’s popularity.
LISTEN TO "Magapatuka Na Lang Ako sa Ahas"
and WATCH snippets of the "CLEOPATRA" TVC
starring ELIZABETH RAMSEY
The “The King & I” version showing Gloria Romero as Anna, shining the
bald head of the Siamese King (played by Aurelio Estanislao) while exclaiming
“Konting kuskos, ayos!” , resulted in a diplomatic row that resulted in the
pull-out of the TVC in 1978. The Thai
Embassy had complained that the scene was an affront to their King’s memory as
it is forbidden to touch the head of the royalty.
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| BARBIE, MAID IN THE PHILIPPINES, a movie character originated by Joey de Leon, was borrowed by Superwheel for a 1989 commercial. |
All through the 80s, the SUPERWHEEL campaign was updated with popular characters from the period, like Starzan, Barok, and Barbie--Maid in the Philippines.
WATCH THE 'STARZAN' SUPERWHEEL TVC (1989) here:
The SUPERWHEEL campaign catapulted the PRC brand to great heights. By 1975, the non-soap
market had grown rapidly, until it overtook the declining powder market. The
age of the synthetic detergent bars had arrived—and when Procter & Gamble
introduced its Mr. Clean Detergnet Bar
in 1977 to square off with SUPERWHEEL, the Great Detergent War was on.