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Why no matches in the FedEx box?
FedEx parody commercial makes deliberate decision not to help provide fire to its own castaway.
January 27, 2003: 1:49 PM EST

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - It's not a coincidence or an oversight that there were no matches or lighters in the FedEx package.

The box in this shot includes everything a castaway needs other than matches or a lighter.  
The box in this shot includes everything a castaway needs other than matches or a lighter.

The express delivery company had a satirical spot during Sunday's Super Bowl, taking off on the movie "Castaway." In the film Tom Hanks plays a FedEx executive who survived being stranded on a uncharted desert island. The movie ends, and Sunday's commercial begins, with the character delivering a FedEx package that washed up on the island and that he brought back with him.

But the commercial goes a step further, with the FedEx castaway asking the package's recipient what's in the box.

"Nothing really," says the recipient, opening the package. "Just a satellite phone, GPS locator, fishing rod, water purifier and some seeds. Just silly stuff."

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Which ad was the best one aired during the Super Bowl?
  The FedEx ad spoofing "Castaway"
  The Budweiser ad spoofing instant replay
  The Reebok ad with the "office linebacker"
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Of course, a lighter or matches would have been even greater help than the seeds, assuming the phone and Global Positioning Satellite locator helped provide for a relatively quick rescue.

But FedEx spokesman Jess Bunn says the company's rules against shipping either of those items nixed them from making this list of items in the commercial.

"There was some discussion about including those items, but those are prohibited items, so it wouldn't be true to form," said Bunn.

Bunn said FedEx got permission from the makers of "Castaway" for the parody spot, which wasn't hard given the package delivery company's cooperation in the making of the movie.  Top of page




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Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.