Misplaced Pages

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 31.72.187.27 (talk) at 06:55, 23 December 2018 (Wsss). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Crazy Frog
Crazy Frog at the Australian tour in 2005
Background information
Origin	Gothenburg, Sweden
Genres	Techno
Years active	2003–2012
Labels	Ministry of Sound Mach 1 Records GmbH Universal Warner

Crazy Frog, originally known as The Annoying Thing, is a Swedish CGI-animated character created in 2003 by actor and playwright Erik Wernquist. Marketed by the ringtone provider Jamba! (later known as Jamster), he was originally created to accompany a sound effect produced by Daniel Malmedahl in 1997 while attempting to imitate the sound of a two-stroke engine.

The Crazy Frog spawned a worldwide hit single with a remix of "Axel F", which reached the number one spot in Turkey, New Zealand, Australia and most of Europe. The subsequent album Crazy Frog Presents Crazy Hits and second single "Popcorn" also enjoyed worldwide chart success, and a second album entitled Crazy Frog Presents More Crazy Hits was released in 2006. The Crazy Frog has also spawned a range of merchandise and toys, and two video games.

Sir Elton Hercules John CBE (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight, 25 March 1947) is an English singer, pianist, and composer. He has worked with lyricist Bernie Taupin as his songwriting partner since 1967; they have collaborated on more than 30 albums. John has sold more than 300 million records, making him one of the best-selling music artists in the world. He has more than fifty Top 40 hits, including seven consecutive number one albums in the U.S., 58 Billboard Top 40 singles, 27 Top 10, four which reached number two and nine which reached number one. His tribute single "Candle in the Wind 1997", rewritten in dedication to Diana, Princess of Wales, sold over 33 million copies worldwide and is the best-selling single in the history of the UK and U.S. singles charts. He has also composed music, produced records, and has occasionally acted in films.

Sir Elton John CBE Elton John 2011 Shankbone 2.JPG John at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival Born Reginald Kenneth Dwight 25 March 1947 (age 71) Pinner, Middlesex, England Occupation Musician singer-songwriter composer Years active 1962–present Spouse(s) Renate Blauel (m. 1984; div. 1988) David Furnish (m. 2014) Children 2 Musical career Genres Rock pop rock glam rock soft rock rhythm and blues Instruments Vocals piano keyboards guitar Labels Philips Congress DJM Uni Paramount MCA Geffen Rocket Island Mercury Island Def Jam Associated acts Bernie Taupin Eric Clapton Tim Rice John Lennon Kiki Dee Billy Joel George Michael Stevie Wonder Website eltonjohn.com Raised in the Pinner area of London, John learned to play piano at an early age, and by 1962 had formed Bluesology. John met his songwriting partner, Bernie Taupin, in 1967, after they had both answered an advert for songwriters. For two years they wrote songs for other artists, including Lulu, and John also worked as a session musician for artists such as the Hollies and the Scaffold. In 1969 his debut album, Empty Sky, was released. In 1970. John's first hit single "Your Song", from his second album, Elton John, reached the top ten in the UK and the U.S. After decades of chart success, John has also achieved success in musical films and theatre, composing the music for The Lion King and its stage adaptation, Aida and Billy Elliot the Musical.

He has received five Grammy Awards, five Brit Awards – winning two awards for Outstanding Contribution to Music and the first Brits Icon in 2013 for his "lasting impact on British culture", an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Tony Award, a Disney Legends award, and the Kennedy Center Honors in 2004. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked him Number 49 on its list of 100 influential musicians of the rock and roll era. In 2013, Billboard ranked him the most successful male solo artist on the Billboard Hot 100 Top All-Time Artists (third overall behind the Beatles and Madonna). He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, is an inductee into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and is a fellow of the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors. He was knighted by Elizabeth II for "services to music and charitable services" in 1998. John has performed at a number of royal events, such as the funeral of Princess Diana at Westminster Abbey in 1997, the Party at the Palace in 2002 and the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Concert outside Buckingham Palace in 2012.

He has been heavily involved in the fight against AIDS since the late 1980s. In 1992, he established the Elton John AIDS Foundation and a year later began hosting the annual Academy Award Party, which has since become one of the highest-profile Oscar parties in the Hollywood film industry. Since its inception, the foundation has raised over US$200 million. John, who announced he was bisexual in 1976 and has been openly gay since 1988, entered into a civil partnership with David Furnish on 21 December 2005, and after same-sex marriage became legal in England and Wales in 2014, wed Furnish on 21 December 2014. On 24 January 2018, it was announced that John would be retiring from touring and would soon embark on a three-year farewell tour, which

Other media

On 1 July 2005, UK-based publishers Digital Jesters announced that they had acquired the rights to the video game licence for the Crazy Frog. Crazy Frog Racer (featuring The Annoying Thing), released in December 2005 on PlayStation 2 and PC as a racing game. A year later in 2006 a sequel was released, entitled Crazy Frog Racer 2. Both were extremely panned by critics.

A string of Crazy Frog merchandise was released in the UK.

In 2005, the German production company The League of Good People was in talks with broadcasters about a TV series based on Crazy Frog.

The Crazy Frog toured Australia in late 2005, beginning in Perth on 4 December and continuing through other major capital cities. He made appearances at numerous shopping centres and major hospitals around the country.

In 2007, the Animation World Network wrote in connection with "The Annoying Thing" that there was a "planned feature film" to "be completed by the end of next year" into an animated feature film.

In 2017, a documentary called "The Not So Crazy Frog" was released, originally made in 2012.

In 2018, a trademark claim by Kaktus Films, the original owners alongside Erik Wernquist, that had music listed as one of many rights.

Discography

The Crazy Frog was broadcast for the first time on Belgian Television in mid-2004, though was named "The Annoying Thing" There it was marketed as Albert Motàr.

"Axel F" (a remix of the 1980s Harold Faltermeyer song produced by the German band Resource), was released on 23 May 2005 and became one of the most successful singles of the year 2005. The single debuted at number one in the UK, remaining there for four weeks, and it was released on the debut album Crazy Frog Presents Crazy Hits.

Albums

Singles

Commercial controversies

In February 2005, viewers submitted a number of complaints to the United Kingdom's Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) regarding Jamster!'s advertising campaign, complaining that Crazy Frog appeared to have a visible penis and scrotum. Some parents complained that this made inappropriate viewing for children. There were also complaints regarding the frequency with which the advertisement appeared on television, reportedly up to twice an hour across most of the day, with some channels showing it more than once per commercial break.

The ASA did not uphold the complaints, pointing out that the advert was already classified as inappropriate for airing during children's television programmes as it contained a premium rate telephone number, and that it was the broadcasters' decision how often an advertisement should be shown. Jamster! voluntarily censored the character's genital area (via pixelization) in later broadcasts of its advertisements. Similar action occurred in Australia, with similar results.

In April 2005, television viewers complained about misleading advertisements produced by Jamba!, trading as Jamster! and RingtoneKing. Viewers felt that it was not made sufficiently clear that they were subscribing to a service, rather than paying a one-time fee for their ringtone. The complaints were upheld; the full adjudication (PDF) is available online.

In May 2005, viewers inundated the ASA with new complaints regarding the continuous airing of the latest Crazy Frog advertisements. The intensity of the advertising was unprecedented in British television history. According to The Guardian, Jamster bought 73,716 spots across all TV channels in May alone — an average of nearly 2,378 slots daily — at a cost of about £8 million, just under half of which was spent on ITV. 87% of the population saw the Crazy Frog adverts an average of 26 times, 15% of the adverts appeared twice during the same advertising break and 66% were in consecutive ad breaks. An estimated 10% of the population saw the advert more than 60 times. This led to many members of the population finding the Crazy Frog, as its original name suggests, immensely irritating.

As the authority had already adjudicated on the matter and confirmed the matter was not within its remit, the unusual step was taken of adding a notice to the ASA's online and telephone complaints system informing viewers that Jamster!-related complaints should be directed towards the broadcaster or the regulator, Ofcom.

On 21 September 2005, the ASA ruled that the Crazy Frog, along with other Jamba ringtone advertisements, could not be shown before 9 pm. This adjudication was revised on 25 January 2006, maintaining the 'upheld' decision but revising the wording of one of the points.

In March 2005, anti-virus vendors discovered the "W32/Crog.worm" computer virus (a contraction of Crazy Frog), which spreads through file-sharing networks and MSN Messenger, exploiting the Crazy Frog's notoriety with a promise of an animation depicting his demise.

See also

• Giancarlo Meo
• Gummibär
• Holly Dolly
• Mickael Turtle
• Schnappi
• Schnuffel

Citations

Notes

• A In some territories, "Jingle Bells" was released as a double A-side single with a cover of MC Hammer's "U Can't Touch This", whereas in others it was released as a double A-side single with "Last Christmas": the latter was later released as a single in its own right.

References

1. Crazy Frog Racer 2 video game Review by British Gaming Television Presenter Wesley Lock. Blisteredthumbs.net. Retrieved on 6 July 2011.
2. Crazy Frog – Ringtones, Music, Posters, Games, T-Shirts and more!. www.crazyfrog.co.uk. Retrieved on 6 July 2011.
3. Grant, Jules (17 October 2005). "Crazy Frog hops on to small screen". C21 Media. Archived from the original on 4 January 2011. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
4. Cashmere, Paul. "Crazy Frog Tour Dates". undercover.com.au. Archived from the original on 25 August 2007. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
5. Cartoon Movie 2007: Sneak Peeks European Animated Features. Mag.awn.com (14 March 2007). Retrieved on 6 July 2011.
6. . www.youtube.com (22 December 2017).
7. . US Trademark Search (24 May 2018).
8. Fligstein, Neil (2008). Euroclash: The EU, European Identity, and the Future of Europe. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-164794-9. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
9. "Crazy Frog – Historia". Archived from the original on 30 April 2008. Retrieved 28 October 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
10. "Crazy Frog profile on Discogs.com". Retrieved 24 January 2012.
11. Seenan, Gerard (25 May 2005). "Crazy Frog ringtone outsells Coldplay". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
12. ^ "Discography Crazy Frog". swedishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
13. ^ "Discography Crazy Frog". australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 16 July 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
14. "Crazy Frog – Chart History: Canadian Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
15. ^ "Discographie Crazy Frog". lescharts.com (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
16. "Chartverfolgung / Crazy Frog / Longplay". musicline.de (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
17. ^ "Discography Crazy Frog". irish-charts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 14 January 2016. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
18. ^ "Discography Crazy Frog". charts.org.nz. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 25 August 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
19. ^ "Discography Crazy Frog". swisscharts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 28 April 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
20. ^ "Crazy Frog". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
21. "Crazy Frog – Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
22. ^ "(Guld & Platina) ÅR 2005" [(Gold & Platinum) Year 2005] (PDF) (in Swedish). International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. p. 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 July 2014. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
23. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2005 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 21 December 2008. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
24. ^ "BPI Certified Awards Search". British Phonographic Industry. Archived from the original (insert "Crazy Frog" into the "Search" box, and then select "Go") on 11 January 2013. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
25. ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Crazy Frog)". swisscharts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 21 April 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
26. "Gold and Platinum Search (Crazy Frog)". Music Canada. Archived from the original on 2 February 2014. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
27. "Top 40 Albums Chart: Chart #1494 (Monday 9 January 2006)". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Archived from the original on 21 May 2013. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
28. "Certifications Albums Or – année 2005". disqueenfrance.com (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on 26 September 2012. Retrieved 16 April 2015. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
29. "Discografie Crazy Frog". ultratop.be (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 July 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
30. "Chartverfolgung / Crazy Frog / Single". musicline.de (in German). Media Control Charts. Retrieved 17 July 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
31. "Crazy Frog Album & Song Chart History: Hot 100". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
32. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2005 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 16 March 2009. Retrieved 17 July 2012. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
33. "Goud En Platina – Singles – 2005". ultratop.be (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 July 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
34. "Gold & Platinum: Crazy Frog". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
35. "Top 40 Singles Chart: Chart #1478 (Monday 19 September 2005)". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Archived from the original on 21 May 2013. Retrieved 17 July 2012. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
36. ^ "Certifications Singles Diamant – année 2005" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on 23 January 2013. Retrieved 17 July 2012. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
37. "Top 40 Singles Chart: Chart #1500 (Monday 20 February 2006)". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Archived from the original on 21 May 2013. Retrieved 17 July 2012. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
38. "Top 40 Singles Chart: Chart #1491 (Monday 19 December 2005)". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Archived from the original on 21 May 2013. Retrieved 17 July 2012. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
39. "Goud En Platina – Singles – 2006". ultratop.be (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 July 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
40. "Certifications Singles Or – année 2006" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on 22 January 2013. Retrieved 17 July 2012. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
41. "Crazy Frog can keep his ding-ding di-di-ding ASA says – Brand Republic News". Brandrepublic.com. 2 February 2005. Retrieved 8 May 2012.
42. Scotsman.com News. The Scotsman. Retrieved on 6 July 2011.
43. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 November 2008. Retrieved 27 February 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
44. "Advertising Standards Board: Ref 18/05" (PDF). Advertising Standards Board. 17 February 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 June 2005. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
45. "Broadcast Advertising Adjucations". Archived from the original on 11 August 2011.
46. (source: Media Guardian, 20 June 2005)
47. Rae, Charles (20 May 2005). "Frog drives viewers crazy". The Sun. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
48. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 October 2008. Retrieved 27 February 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
49. "ASA stamps on Crazy Frog TV ads". The Register. Archived from the original on 1 October 2005.
50. W32/Crog.worm. Vil.nai.com. Retrieved on 6 July 2011.
51. W32.Serflog.A – Symantec.com. Securityresponse.symantec.com. Retrieved on 6 July 2011.

External links

• BBC article: The Crazy Frog sound? That's my fault. Includes an interview with the creator of the sound, Daniel Malmedahl.
• The Times: Crazy Frog turns into a real prince.
• ASA: A Frog's Tale that spawned viewer outrage.
• Erik Wernquist interview
• Interview, HitQuarters Oct 2005

• Fictional characters introduced in 2003
• Advertising characters
• Frog mascots
• Internet memes
• Internet humor
• 2000s fads and trends
• Swedish Eurodance groups
• Fictional frogs and toads
• Obscenity controversies in music