Regulars at the East Village’s venerable Webster Hall are doing double takes at the new commercial for the Volkswagen Atlas.
Yes, the “dad” driving his “family” across America is none other than Gerard McNamee, longtime manager of the rock palace.
For years now, the dapper McNamee has been moonlighting — er, daylighting — as an actor.
The dewy-eyed, 90-second ad for the largest VW vehicle sold in America shows an older Irish woman fulfilling her late husband’s dream of seeing the USA with their son, daughter-in-law and four grandchildren.
“I guess I fit the bill,” says McNamee, whose own parents were born in Ireland (his dad, Gerard Sr., is a retired NYC transit cop). “I’m
single, so my mother laughed when I suddenly gave her the grandkids
she’d been waiting for!”
The 24-day shoot rambled across seven states. The end result, airing in eight versions, is said to be the most expensive commercial VW has ever produced.
Is it an effort to rebuild the company’s reputation after its $4.3 billion emissions scandal?
“That wasn’t explicitly stated,” said McNamee, “but it was intimated.”