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The story of the Crazy Frog |
Lembo
Joined: Mar 13, 2004
Posts: > 500
From: East London
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from BBC website
The sight of a strange blue-grey frog with a helmet and goggles, revving up an imaginary motorbike while making an infuriating "ding ding dididing" noise, is familiar to much of the country. In fact to most of them it's too familiar... far, far too familiar.
Adverts for the Crazy Frog mobile phone ringtone have played hundreds of times on certain TV channels over the past few weeks; it has earned an estimated £10m, and according to the company selling it, is the most successful ringtone in the world. Now a dance mix has been recorded and played on Chris Moyles's Radio 1 breakfast show.
The frog is irritating to the point of distraction and back again. And yet at the same time, it's strangely compelling.
Weblogger Tim Ireland, who has written on his site Bloggerheads about Crazy Frog's development, is just one of those who is very clear about what this irritating creature does to his head.
"The world would be better off if this wasn't constantly played on its TV screens," he says.
But it's a frustration not completely shared by Daniel Malmedahl, a 24-year-old computer components salesman from Gothenburg, Sweden.
"It's driving people to distraction?" he says. "Is that a compliment?"
It was Daniel who, as a 17-year-old in 1997, sat down in front of his computer and recorded himself imitating his friends' souped-up mopeds. Although he didn't know it at the time, his funny little recording would one day become the Crazy Frog.
The world would be better off if this wasn't constantly played on its TV screens
Blogger Tim Ireland
"We had many laughs because it's so characteristic, this two-stroke engine sound. My friends found it funny when I started imitating it," he says.
"When we recorded it, we found it very, very funny. We laughed until we got tears."
Before long, an acquaintance of Daniel's had posted the recording on the web, where a researcher on Swedish TV found it and persuaded Daniel to perform the sound live on television.
Daniel Malmedahl: 'I don't know if I can apologise.'
From there, it was used on various websites, particularly on one called the Insanity Test, which had the sound playing alongside a picture of a racing car, with the challenge for people to listen without laughing.
In 2003, Daniel's fellow Swede, Erik Wernquist, drew the now familiar animated frog to go with the sound, christened it The Annoying Thing, and put it on his website for download.
Not rich
And then the final piece in the tale came late last year, when ringtone company Jamster contacted Erik and Daniel for permission to sell it as a download for phones.
The good news is that both men are making some money of their creation.
"Actually Jamster is making a hell of a lot of money," says Daniel. "It's one of the best-selling ringtones in the world. And yes, they give me a cut of it. But I don't think it's even a little percent of how much they are making from it."
"Will it make me rich? No," he laughs. "Actually that's none of your business, but no it's not going to make me rich."
He's more pleased at the attention his sound has got.
"I'm very, very, very stunned that it's gone so far, almost too far. It's such a little creation, it's less than a minute and I would guess that most people actually would have no idea that it's an imitation of a two stroke engine."
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Sutitan
Joined: Dec 23, 2003
Posts: 327
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Me, my bros, my fathers, and my friend glenn's ringtone..
Actually mine changed... |
Davo_169
Joined: Sep 06, 2004
Posts: > 500
From: perth/thredbo
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oh sweet, a two stroke moped, ive only heard of four stroke. imagine that, a moped hitting power band.
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govigov
Joined: Jul 30, 2004
Posts: > 500
From: Back home - Cochin
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Err..... I own a 150cc two stroke Scooter.
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Davo_169
Joined: Sep 06, 2004
Posts: > 500
From: perth/thredbo
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oh cool, in perth i think theres only four stroke. i doubt yours has powerband though.
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Topscooby
Joined: Dec 11, 2004
Posts: 414
From: The 'Sunny' South Coast, UK
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My Yammaha 50cc 'trial bike' was two-stroke.
It even had a seperate tank were you topped up the oil.
I loved that bike...here it is.
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govigov
Joined: Jul 30, 2004
Posts: > 500
From: Back home - Cochin
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Oh it has! It is Damn powerful. On a good day, it will give the same mileage as my dad's car! It has 3 gears and has a top speed of 80. I cant drive it at that speed. It feels like it is tearing itself to pieces. And it is 17 years old!
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FunkRabbit
Joined: Nov 01, 2004
Posts: 6
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Ooh, I had a 2 stroke 125cc which definitely had a powerband. If you hit it right it would out accelerate Porsches from traffic lights. Used to do 90mph on a good day! | |
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Posted: 2005-01-28 01:31
