A Michael Bay-Directed Commercial Launched One Of The '90s' Biggest Ad Campaigns

As a longtime director, Michael Bay has one of the more impressive resumes you'll find in Hollywood. From "Bad Boys" and "The Rock" to the entire "Transformers" cinematic franchise, Bay has had a hand in bringing some of the more exciting and action-packed films to the big screen. In fact, there's even an ongoing debate about how much money the damage depicted in Michael Bay movies would cost in real life, and that figure is probably well into the trillions by now.

What's less well-known, however, is that Bay had a pivotal role in launching one of the more iconic ad campaigns in history. Before making the jump to movies, Bay cut his teeth as a director of music videos and commercials. And back in 1993, Bay was the man who filmed the very first "Got Milk" TV ad. In doing so, Bay helped launch an award-winning ad campaign that lasted for over two decades.

In an interview with GQ a few years ago, Bay discussed how the iconic "Got Milk" ad came to be. Interestingly enough, Bay wasn't entirely thrilled about the project when it was first offered to him. Looking back, Bay said that filming a commercial for milk, of all things, simply wasn't that exciting. Bay, however, agreed to do the project. And impressively, Bay managed to make a commercial for milk engaging, funny, and more importantly, memorable. If you're old enough to remember the commercial airing, you'll likely recall it being a huge topic of conversation at the time.

The ad is titled "Got Milk: Aaron Burr" and it's basically a comedic piece. The commercial starts off with a man making a peanut butter sandwich while listening to the radio. Based on the decor in his room, it's abundantly clear that he is a history buff. As he listens to the radio, we learn that there's an on-air trivia contest. If a listener can say who shot Alexander Hamilton, they'll win a $10,000 cash prize. As the camera pans around the room, we learn that the man has a painting of Hamilton getting shot by Aaron Burr. And while that piece of trivia may be well known today thanks to the success of the musical "Hamilton," it wasn't exactly common knowledge back in the early '90s.

Anyhow, the man is eating his peanut butter sandwich when the phone rings. It's the radio station. He now has the chance to win $10,000 cash. The problem, though, is that he's mid-bite. His mouth is filled with peanut butter and is impossibly dry. He tries to shout "Aaron Burr," but it's all in vain as the radio host can't make out what he's saying. He tries to drink a glass of milk to wash down the peanut butter but his glass is essentially empty. He desperately needs more milk but there's none to be found. Time runs out and he misses out on a chance to win the prize.

Then the screen cuts to the title card "Got Milk?" And from there, the era of the "Got Milk" ad campaign began. The original "Got Milk" ad directed by Bay won the Grand Prix Clio for Commercial of the Year.