Space tourism in the early 21st century remained the province of the fantastically rich (or, theoretically, the winners of Super Bowl ad contests from Volvo and Axe), although this minute-long Young & Rubicam New York spot for Sony’s line of camcorders downplays the deep pockets of our hero, a retired gent with an itch to flee the bounds of our atmosphere. A montage shows Space Gramps working out and making the long journey to Russia, where he’ll blast off in a Roscosmos rocket. The kicker, finally acknowledging the ticket price: “When your kids ask you where the money went, show them the tape.” 

Director Joe Pytka has lensed more than 80 Super Bowl commercials and has haunted the upper reaches of USA Today’s Ad Meter since the paper first began tracking the spots (though "The Trip" landed a relatively modest, for Pytka, 14th place). Warner Bros. used Pytka’s Nike spot “Hare Jordan” as a jumping-off point for its 1996 theatrical “Space Jam.” His other big-game ads include Gatorade's "23 vs. 39" and Pepsi's "Goldfish."

Production company: Pytka. Producers: Karen Chen, Vincent Joliet.

Creative director/art director: Jamie Ambler. Creative director/copywriter: Mark D'Arcy. Agency music producer: Josh Rabinowitz. Agency executive producer: Ken Yagoda. 

Editorial: Go Robot! Editor: Adam Liebowitz.

BRAND: Sony

YEAR: 2003

AGENCY: Young & Rubicam

SUPERBOWL: XXXVII

QUARTER AIRED: Q4