Amazon’s latest promotion for its Emmy-nominated comedy The Marvellous Mrs. Maisel — dialling back prices around Los Angeles to reflect the show’s 1959 setting — proved so popular that police had to temporarily shut it down Thursday, according to a local ABC affiliate.
Santa Monica Police suspend an Amazon Prime promotion offering gas for 30 cents a gallon. Traffic issues are the big concern. Details coming up at 11am on ABC7. #maiselday pic.twitter.com/sJHQLcDUaK
— John Gregory (@abc7johngregory) August 15, 2019
Turns out, offering gas at 10 cents ($0.15) per litre in a state where it regularly costs close to $US1.5 ($2) can create quite a stir. Customers came in droves to snag the deal, resulting in traffic delays severe enough to prompt Santa Monica police to intervene.
Several officers arrived at a local gas station to temporarily suspend the promotion and look slightly ridiculous next to all the hot pink The Marvellous Mrs. Maisel displays and advertisements. The department issued a warning about the backup on its Twitter that afternoon, and the campaign resumed shortly afterward.
Gizmodo reached out to Amazon about the incident and didn’t receive an immediate response, though I suspect the company’s not complaining too much about the incident. After all, this police intervention did drum up a lot of free press for its Emmy frontrunner in the final weeks of the campaign season.
Plus, it distracts from the other piece of Amazon news going viral today: the company’s 100 per cent human and not at all creepy “FC Ambassador” accounts.
The great deal on gas is back on, but be prepared to wait in traffic to get it. #MaiselDay @ABC7 pic.twitter.com/wosy0oR7s3
— John Gregory (@abc7johngregory) August 15, 2019
Other one-day “Maisel Day” deals (that, based on the lack of police reports, I’m assuming people are snagging in a more orderly fashion) include movie tickets for 51 cents ($0.75), manicures for $US2 ($3), and cupcakes for a quarter.
With the period comedy up for a whopping 20 Emmys this year — second only to the decidedly less funny Game of Thrones — Amazon has been doubling down on the show’s advertising campaign ahead of next month’s awards.
Earlier this year, the e-commerce giant sent a bright pink Carnegie Deli food truck around New York City to sell snacks themed to the show. Another food-themed stunt in June had Amazon teaming up with Postmates to offer a meal pack that included some of Midge Maisel’s favourites.