I speak of the ad where the guy is about to go to sleep, but first says goodnight -- to virtually every major office stereotype in existence.

"Good night, guy who likes to come into my office and gab for hours" (a big grin, a "click!" noise, and the pointed index finger of recognition from the guy).

"Good night, new guy -- Dan or Jason, or whatever your name is" ("It's ... Jason," squeaks out the nervous kid sitting scrunched up on the floor).

"Good night, flirty girl from Receivables" (She wriggles and smiles seductively).

"Good night, IT guy, who's never around when I need him" (Hair in pony tail, a PDA in one hand and a cellphone in the other, he nods back, looking harried but cool).

"Good night, overly cheerful HR lady" (hesitates, then big, nervous laugh).

"Good night, nobody-knows-exactly-what-you-do guy" (he's briefly visible in the bathroom, appearing awkward, paranoid and possibly a bit hostile, before disappearing into what is likely the bathtub).

All those characters are perfectly cast and, considering it's a 30-second commercial, they nail their parts.

Amazingly, I couldn't find the commercial on the Holiday Inn website (which, of course, shouldn't be taken as definitive proof that it isn't there). Nor could I find it on Youtube or IFilm (anybody got a link?).

And while it approaches the TV commercial equivalent of literature for what it says about office personalities, the ad content may well overshadow the brand message rather than reinforce it, which is not a good thing.

I had to watch it several times before the fact it was a Holiday Inn commercial stuck with me (but again, maybe that's just me).

As always, I welcome the thoughts of anyone who trips over this post and has an opinion on the thoughts contained therein.

Addendum (Jan. 13, 2007)

A kind soul sent me an actual QuickTime Movie of the ad. (thanks, Naomi!)