CBS is putting Survivor buffs, the stretchy bandanas the players wear, on landmarks around the country, including a Marilyn Monroe statue in Palm Springs and the Miles the Monster monument in Dover, Delaware.
The “Survivor Buff Takeover” campaign runs September 21 until September 27, when season 45 starts.
Getting a buff are the Green Giant statue in Blue Earth, Minnesota; the Make Way for Ducklings sculpture in Boston; Forever Marilyn in Palm Springs, California; Ripley’s Believe It or Not! in Hollywood; the Miles the Monster monument outside Dover Motor Speedway in Delaware; Gulfstream Park’s Pegasus and The Dragon statue in Hallandale Beach, Florida; the Tuska elephant statue at University of Alabama and Ralphie buffalo statue at University of Colorado in Boulder.
In a nod to Survivor’s torches, the Empire State Building in New York will be illuminated in yellow, blue and red on Tuesday, September 26, representing each tribe on season 45, and viewfinders on the 86th-floor observatory will be donning buffs as well.
The campaign also sees football mascots for the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks and college football’s Alabama Crimson Tide and Colorado Buffaloes wear Survivor buffs.
The largest buff, at 104 feet by 14 feet, belongs to Miles the Monster in Delaware. Second is the 66-by-11-foot buff sported by Pegasus.
CBS said each landmark symbolizes the concept of strength, a prerequisite to last on Survivor.
“This campaign honors the tremendous impact Survivor has had on American culture with 652 exciting episodes over its 23 years on CBS,” Mike Benson, president and chief marketing officer at CBS, said. “What better way to celebrate the 45th season of this great game — and arguably its biggest season yet — than by draping a group of giant landmarks throughout the country with the biggest Survivor buffs of all time and lighting the Empire State Building, a beloved beacon of the New York City skyline, with this Survivor season’s iconic tribe colors.”
The new season features 90-minute episodes for the first time.
The show is hosted by Jeff Probst. Mark Burnett, Probst, Matt VanWagenen, Kahaia Pearson and Jesse Jensen are executive producers for S.E.G. Holdco., LLC.
