I've seen several episodes of "Unwrapped" on The Food Network. It's generally entertaining and low brainpower television.
But, I've always thought that the spots on "Unwrapped" were paid for. Meaning that the featured companies purchased the exposure and maybe even some of the always-glowing comments from host Marc Summers. Who, honeslty, does a pretty good if not sometimes "cheesy" job. Yet, there's so much product and logo placement during the show that I had to wonder. Honestly it doesn't bother me, but that was my hunch.
Seems, though, that my hunch is wrong. This month, Milwaukee's own Palermo's Pizza makes its national television debut on the show. The episode, titled "The Big Chill," airs at 8 p.m. on Sept. 14 and gives audiences a peek inside Palermo Villa, the company's facility in the Menomonee Valley.
The segment was filmed in February, and officials at the local pizza company assure me that Palermo's and other companies don't pay to be on the show.
"We (through Branigan Communications) pitched the producers of the show this winter, and then they pitched the Food Network their ideas. Luckily, they saw something unique in Palermo's and came out for a film shoot in February," said Chris Dresselhuys, Palermo's director of marketing.
I guess that makes sense. Setting up film operations inside food production areas can disrupt processes and takes a great deal of time and coordination. So, companies that agree to the exposure and possible disruption often get quality logo and face time on shows like "Unwrapped." Yet, Dresselhuys assured me that "the (Palermo's) plant didn't miss a beat" during the filming.
"The crew came to town and spent a day on the production floor. They filmed everything and were very comprehensive," said Dresselhuys. The crew filmed the entire creation process of a Palermo's Primo Thin Supreme.
Palermo's hasn't seen the final version of the show, but does have internal viewing parties scheduled. "We're just hoping that people around the country see the level of quality that goes into a Palermo's pizza," said Dresselhuys.
Personally, I'm a huge Palermo's fan and am happy for its upcoming national exposure. Set those DVRs.
A life-long and passionate community leader and Milwaukeean, Jeff Sherman is a co-founder of OnMilwaukee.
He grew up in Wauwatosa and graduated from Marquette University, as a Warrior. He holds an MBA from Cardinal Stritch University, and is the founding president of Young Professionals of Milwaukee (YPM)/Fuel Milwaukee.
Early in his career, Sherman was one of youngest members of the Greater Milwaukee Committee, and currently is involved in numerous civic and community groups - including board positions at The Wisconsin Center District, Wisconsin Club and Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. He's honored to have been named to The Business Journal's "30 under 30" and Milwaukee Magazine's "35 under 35" lists.
He owns a condo in Downtown and lives in greater Milwaukee with his wife Stephanie, his son, Jake, and daughter Pierce. He's a political, music, sports and news junkie and thinks, for what it's worth, that all new movies should be released in theaters, on demand, online and on DVD simultaneously.
He also thinks you should read OnMilwaukee each and every day.
