Why Kermit the Frog hung out in Bluffton with a Hilton Head tennis legend
If you look closely at Hilton Head Island resident and tennis legend Stan Smith’s newest shoe ad, you’ll catch a glimpse of the Lowcountry.
The ad, which features Adidas’ legendary Stan Smith shoe along with Smith himself and Disney’s Kermit the Frog, was filmed in Wright Family Park, a newly completed waterfront park along the May River in Old Town Bluffton.
While the shoe, Smith and Kermit are certainly more recognizable than the park, the Lowcountry forces united in the ad to promote the new Stan Smith Forever shoe from Adidas — a shoe made from recycled materials with a recycled rubber outsole.
Smith said he and a crew filmed the ad about a month ago on a freezing cold day in Wright Family Park.
“It turned out great, and it’s a nice little park,” Smith said. “And Kermit didn’t have to worry about (the cold).”
Stan Smith on Hilton Head
Smith was the No. 1 ranked tennis player in the world in 1971 and 1972. After being inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987, he was later named its president, overseeing the nominations each year at Wimbledon.
The Stan Smith Shoe launched shortly after the tennis great moved in 1971 to Hilton Head, where he has been on the board of directors of the Boys and Girls’ Club and a trustee of the Hilton Head Heritage Foundation.
The ad for the newest reincarnation of the shoe focuses on litter cleanups and sustainability while marketing the new shoe.
“They say every problem has a solution. You might wonder ‘Am I too small to change this whole world? Am I the only one pitching in?’” Kermit the Frog says in the ad, representing Disney’s involvement in the partnership.
The new line of Stan Smith shoes feature designs including Marvel’s the Hulk, Rex from Toy Story, Yoda from the Star Wars galaxy, Tinker Bell from Peter Pan, WALL-E from Pixar, Kermit the Frog of The Muppets, and Mike Wazowski from Monsters Inc., according to the shoe’s website.
In the ad, young people clean up litter in Wright Family Park, which opened in December.
The $1.6-million park features a large central lawn, parking spots, a bulkhead, historic signs and benches for people to relax and enjoy the waterfront views. A garage on the property was converted into public restrooms and a catering kitchen.
Kermit and Smith share a park bench looking out toward the water at the end of the ad.
“It’s not easy being green,” Kermit says.
“But nothing great ever is,” Smith adds.
This story was originally published April 5, 2021 at 3:49 PM.
