mbanx ads were everywhere at the outset of 1997. Now defunct, it was the Bank of Montreal's first foray into virtual banking. The fact that Bob Dylan allowed his song, "The Times They Are a-Changin'," to sell a bank was a matter of some controversy. At the same time, Mike Harris' plan to amalgamate all the boroughs of Toronto into one megacity was generating heated debate -- which he was, in turn, trying to stifle. The below cartoon used the feel-good imagery of the ad campaign (a girl on a swing; a boy with his hand to his ear in a field) in one of Harris' own, to promote his monolithic mcity. "Maybe it's time for a new relationship with your city."

I just checked through my files, and low-and-behold, I still have some copies of the print ads, which included a hefty colour four-page insert. Set in the 90s archetypal font, Base, these ads seem almost quaint now. I found them irritatingly smarmy at the time. Note that the web site is almost buried -- odd for a pioneer in Internet banking.


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