• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, March 24, 2019

Just in time for World Puppetry Day, which was last Thursday, Slingy The Puppet debuted as OTT service Sling TV’s new spokespuppet in a new digital ad campaign created by The Martin Agency.

Former Muppeteer Tim Clarke was enlisted to create Slingy, an enthusiastic little carrot top that pops up unexpectedly in the new ads to explain how the Sling TV service works.

Clarke worked for The Jim Henson Company during the 1980s. His credits include creature design and fabrication supervision for the Mystics characters that appeared in the Henson Productions/ITC Entertainment film "Dark Crystal."

Sample the new work here and here.

The new campaign is the latest in a series of offbeat efforts that Martin has devised for Sling over the past year. Last summer, celebrity sex therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer helped couples get the most out of slinging.

Last fall, comedic power duo Nick Offerman (“Parks And Recreation”) and Megan Mullally (“Will And Grace”) bowed in a campaign called “Meet The Slingers.”

Guess we’ll see if Sling’s pivot to an animated mascot has legs. TMA has some experience in helping ad mascots stay the course. It helped GEICO launch its iconic gecko back in 1999 and he’s still going strong.