Nationwide Survey Ranks Americans' "Extreme" Views

Market Wire, May, 2000

Americans have developed an insatiable taste for all things extreme. Consider extreme value stores. Remember five-and-dimes? Or how about extreme longevity. Remember senior citizens? Extreme faith now replaces being religious while extreme vacations take the place of old-fashioned R&R. There's even Extreme.com, a gateway to ber- extremeness. According to a new national study on larger-than-life personalities, activities and tastes, if you took the top survey answers in each category of extremeness, you might be able to paint the picture of Americans' extremist ideals as Howard Stern indulging in butter- drenched lobster before heli-skiing down a virtual reality mountain.

"The results of the 'BURGER KING X-Treme Survey' clearly prove that the '90s have-it-all mentality of career/family/social life/civic involvement has disappeared with the new Millennium," said Richard Monturo, executive vice president, managing director strategic services for the New York office of Lowe Lintas & Partners Worldwide. "Today, people pick and choose what matters most in their lives and then immerse themselves in those priorities in big, bold ways - to the extreme."

Howard Stern Rules

Among all those surveyed, Howard Stern comes out on top as the most extreme personality (33%) shock-jocking his way to five times more responses than Pamela Anderson Lee (6%) and her obviously extreme assets. Americans 18 to 49 smack down WWF's "The Rock" (18%) to second place behind Stern (38%) by a two-to-one margin. The verdict among Americans 50 and older is that Judge Judy narrowly edges out Stern (28% vs. 26%). And millionaire-maker Regis Philbin is the extremely final answer for 10% of all respondents.

Extreme Sports Take to the Sky

Sports, long heralded as the incubator for the trend in extreme, have come a long way according to the survey. Heli-skiing -- jumping from a helicopter on a pair of skis -- and sky-surfing -- jumping from a plane on a miniature surf board -- are extremely equal (31% and 29% respectively) as the most extreme sport. Stunt skateboarding, arguably the very first extreme sport, is now its grandfather. Only 5% view it as extreme. Extremes a Reality

Virtual reality comes away virtually unchallenged with nearly half of the overall responses (49%) for the most extreme technology. Even couch potatoes are going extreme, thanks to the introduction of HDTV (high definition television). Nine percent of men, but only 5% of women, cite HDTV as the most extreme. Wireless Internet connection devices (17%), MP3 players (5%) and palm-type personal assistants (4%) aren't perceived nearly as cutting edge as their manufacturers would probably like.

Space Shuttle Flight of Fancy

When asked about extreme fantasies, some Americans are extremely pie-in-the-sky while others are extremely grounded. Most (44%) consider a ride in the space shuttle as their most extreme fantasy. Next, 20% desire a fantasy closer to home - a week away without the kids - with women needing the break more than three times as much as men (78% vs. 22%). On the extreme flip side, of the 12% overall who dream about a "date with a supermodel" twice as many are men (67% vs. 33%).

X-ers Go Surf-n-Turf

Taste for the extreme also runs to taste buds. The butter-laden lobster dinner is the favorite indulgent meal (34%) among all respondents as well as the favorite among men (39%). The tables are turned, however, when the course becomes dessert. Although a rich, creamy chocolate dessert is the second most popular overall (25%), it ranks number one overall among women (32%). For younger palates, 18- to 24-years-old, the lobster clawed its way to the top over a piled- high pizza (33% vs. 28%). For generation X-ers 25 to 34, the lobster is in a heated cook- off with a thick, juicy cheeseburger (27% to 26%).

But Give Me a Burger

When the focus of the survey switches from immensely indulgent extremes to smaller, more realistic ones, Americans are loud and clear about their preference. When asked what small indulgences they have treated themselves to in the past month, a huge majority said "cheeseburger and fries" (55%). The cheeseburger ranks more than twice as popular as the runner up, "a night out without the kids" (21%), and five times higher than "a round of golf" (11%) or a massage (9%).

"Clearly Americans view fast food as an integral element to their lives," Derek Correia, director, product marketing, for Burger King Corporation, "and clearly they embrace living life to the extreme. But until we introduced the new X-Treme Double Cheeseburger -- an extremely indulgent sandwich with a half-pound of beef, four slices of cheese and topped with a zesty cheese sauce - no one would have considered fast food extreme. Now consumers who seek to maximize their dining experience without compromise in speed, taste, or price, can rely on the X-Treme Double Cheeseburger for both extreme taste and extreme satisfaction."