The "Daddy-O of SpaghettiOs" -- former Campbell Soup marketing research director Donald E. Goerke -- has died at 83 of heart failure. In the early 1960s, Goerke's group considered different pasta shapes that would appeal to children, Sally A. Downey reports. Wanting to keep things simple, he decided to go with O's. Campbell president W.B. Murphy was so excited about the product that it was rolled out without a market test. Thanks in part to Jimmie Rodgers singing a catchy jingle ("The neat, round spaghetti you can eat with a spoon: Uh-oh, SpaghettiOs"), the product was a hit …

Gatorade has hired 10-year Nike executive Andrea Fairchild as its vp-brand marketing, Barry Janoff reports. She succeeds John Galloway, who left Gatorade last year. Fairchild's first task will be to help with the spring launch of the G Series, a line of products "intended to provide fuel, fluid and nutrients before, during and after activity." "Andrea's experience and leadership will help her hit the ground running as Gatorade continues to transform from a sports drink to a sports performance innovation company," says Gatorade CMO Sarah Robb O'Hagan. Fairchild also will help to "identify future innovation opportunities" as well …

David Welch writes that, quixotic as it may have seemed a couple of years ago, Volkswagen may very well succeed in its quest to replace Toyota as the world's biggest automaker. VW has closed the gap to less than 1.5 million cars annually, and actually produced more autos in November than its Japanese competitor. CEO Martin Winterkorn's most ambitious plans are in the U.S., where the company will run a Super Bowl spot for the first time in nine years, as Marketing Daily's Karl Greenberg reports this morning. But VW still sells fewer cars here …

Accenture is rolling out a global, multimedia marketing campaign this week that features creatures like an elephant, a chameleon and some frogs and fish. But no Tiger, of course. Emily Steel reports, however, that the new ads have a tone and feel similar to the ones featuring Woods that were yanked when the consultancy ended its six-year relationship with the golfer last month. An airport poster, for example, shows an elephant on a surfboard with the text reading, "Who says you can't be big and nimble?" An ad featuring a frog leaping over its amphibious brethren carries the tagline, …

Barnes & Noble is the top brand when it comes to the customer's experience, followed by Marriott Hotels & Resorts, Hampton Inn/Suites, Amazon.com and Holiday Inn Express, according to a Forrester Research survey of more than 4,600 U.S. consumers. Only 13 of the 113 firms listed in "Customer Experience Index, 2010" garnered an "excellent" customer experience rating, Elena Malykhina reports. Thirty-five received a "good" rating, 40 got "okay", and 45 received either a "poor" or "very poor" rating. Writing for Forbes CMO Network, Bruce D. Temkin, Forrester's vp and principal analyst, offers the firm's "Three …