Characters are welcome at the Sleep Inn Hotels.
Sadness-he's on his last season- Tony Shalhoub - "Monk", the critically acclaimed original series starring Tony Shalhoub, premieres its eighth and final season on USA Network on Friday, August 7, 2009 at 9/8c. © Bob Charlotte / PR Photos
USA Network and Sleep Inn hotels have teamed up to launch USA Network’s first live-action original web series, Little Monk, a spinoff of the critically-acclaimed series "Monk" starring Emmy, Golden Globe and SAG award winner Tony Shalhoub.
The announcement was made today by Alexandra Shapiro, senior vice president, brand marketing and digital, USA Network.
Sadly, the long running and wildy successful sereis "Monk" is coming to a close this season, and to celebrate the entertaining effort, which premiered last Friday, USA teamed with Sleep Inn hotels and leveraged the longstanding hit series to unveil their new promotional campaign “Discover The Details.”
"Little Monk" will debut during an all-new episode of Monk on Friday, August 21 with a two-minute sneak peek to drive viewers online for the conclusion.
From USA:
Fans of USA’s hit series will get to “discover the details” of Monk’s childhood neurosis while learning about the many features offered by Sleep Inn hotels. Sleep Inn will also be integrated into a webisode as well as packaging for the web series. The sponsorship is part of a larger 360-degree campaign, which includes a Sleep Inn integration in the August 21 episode, “Mr. Monk and the UFO.”
New webisodes will premiere every week to coincide with new episodes of the television series. The Sleep Inn “Discover the Details” promotion officially launched on August 3.
“The relationship between Sleep Inn and MONK is an example of a truly creative marketing collaboration that utilizes the strengths of USA’s distinct characters to organically integrate our advertiser’s brand message in an entertaining way,” said Shapiro.
The Premise:
Exclusive to usanetwork.com - the 10 episode web series Little Monk takes viewers back to Monk’s childhood days as he and his friends navigate the socially awkward junior high school years. Each 3-4 minute webisode follows the adventures of the Monk brothers in school as they solve smaller crimes: missing bracelets, stolen money, graffiti, etc.
Fans will be able to unravel the mystery of why Monk is as neurotic and compulsive as he is when they get a glimpse of his childhood experiences. Newcomers Aaron Linker plays Little Adrian Monk and Christopher Lizardi plays Little Ambrose Monk. The webisodes are written by Monk executive producer/head writer Andy Breckman and are directed by Monk executive/directing producer Randy Zisk. This is the first digital production by Universal Cable Productions.
“Sleep Inn is a great option for travelers who are looking for consistent, restful, reliable and modern hotel accommodations all at a great value,’ said Chris Malone, chief marketing officer for Choice Hotels International, franchisor of the Sleep Inn brand. “The lead character of Monk is notorious for his obsessive cleanliness, and in turn, the “Discover the Details” reminds guests of how Sleep Inn delivers a consistent and reliable hotel stay across all of its franchised hotel locations.”
The Contest:
To support the web series USA created a “Little Monk” Microsite that includes the original live-action webisodes, and a Sleep Inn co-branded sweepstakes for a chance to win $25K and many other daily prizes. The partnership will be promoted via weekly on-air promos, online messaging and exposure across facebook, twitter and other compatible websites.
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