Did you see CBS Friday Night Movie on April 17th? This was the date scheduled for the first showing of a 3-dimensional commercial completely programmed by a computer.
The 30-second commercial shows a 3-dimensional man using and explaining the features of the new Norelco cordless shaver. With this computer programmed figure, the computer draws the figure and animates all its movements in a fraction of the time it would take the many artists necessary when working in the traditional process of animation.
The TV use of a computer man spokesman was conceived by LaRoche, McCaffrey G McCall Inc, agency for Norelco shavers and personal care products. William Fetter of Newport Beach, Calif, used the animated figure data he created through arrangements with Computer Graphics Inc. Designed for use in man-machine interaction studies, the measurements of the man represent the mean measurement of 50% of Air Force pilots, based on anthropometric data.