Lemmings (advertisement)
Lemmings is the title of the television commercial that launched the "Macintosh Office" by Apple Computer in the United States, in January 1985, a year after the introduction of the Apple Macintosh in 1984. It was aired during the 1985 Super Bowl. Apple didn't air another commercial during the Super Bowl until the Hal commercial in 1999 and later, the Pepsi/iTunes "I fought the law" commercial in 2004. The Lemmings commercial was a large failure, and was widely seen as insulting to potential customers.
Summary
To the soundtrack of a whistled, discordant and down-tempo version of "Heigh-Ho", a long line of blindfolded businesspersons slowly makes its way through a dusty, windswept landscape to a cliff, where one by one they fall to their doom. A voiceover notes that the 'Macintosh Office' will soon be announced. The last businessperson in the line stops just at the brink, uncovers his eyes and takes in the situation, as the announcer suggests 'looking into it'. A second line of people is then shown, as the voice continues, saying "or you can go on with business as usual'.
Name
The advertisement's name refers to an urban legend that holds that lemmings periodically commit mass suicide. The legend alleges that the animals mindlessly jump from cliffs into a body of water and drown en masse.