July 12, 2005
Brave New Ads: Body Billboards
Talking To Sellers Who Auctioned Body Space To Advertisers
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Expectant mother Amber Rainey was paid $4,000 for her billboard space. (CBS)
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Courtney Van Dunk (CBS)
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In The Spotlight The Odd Truth Strange but factual tales from around the world compiled by CBSNews.com.
Amber Rainey, an expectant mother in South Carolina, was surprised too.
"People can't help to look at a woman's pregnant belly," Rainey figured.
She offered her belly to the highest bidder. Her husband Ed Rainey was stunned.
"She's already that mom, who's already embarrassing her son before he's even born," he said.
Maybe, but an online casino paid her more than $4,000. The same company also bought a woman's chest and a boxer's back.
"We're doing something that people notice because its not traditional, because its outside of the normal," said Steve Baker, a spokesman for GoldenPalace.com.
In a media world where ads seem to be everywhere, body billboard could be the final frontier. For now, it may only be a fad, but it's making some a small fortune.
"A lot of people are still shocked about what I'm doing. So there's still novelty left to this," said Van Dunk.
Van Dunk received more than 70 bids when it was over. The winner, GoldenPalace.com, paid more than $7,000 for space on her skin.
"So far I've had numerous compliments on my innovativeness and my bravery actually," Van Dunk added.
It's a brave new world -- the birth of a new advertising age.
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Best-selling author Mitch Albom on his first nonfiction work since "Tuesdays with Morrie."
