Whoopi Wants an AmEx Ad

If Whoopi Goldberg has her way, she'll be appearing in the next American Express commercial. And why not? She claims to carry every one of the client's credit cards, including the exclusive Black AmEx, which she says "is only for black people."

Goldberg made her case Feb. 23 at the AmEx Blue for Save the Music event. She was the emcee for Blue's sponsorship of the Grammys viewing party at Madison Square Garden's Paramount Theater, where 3,000 people watched the awards show on giant screens. Goldberg came out during the commercial breaks to crack jokes and introduce musical guests, including Wyclef Jean, who opened the show, and Coldplay, which closed it.

"You should all know that this is my audition for AmEx," she told the crowd. "Because you notice [Jerry] Seinfeld's ass isn't up here. They didn't ask Tiger Woods to do this shit," she continued, referring to two celebrities long associated with AmEx advertising. The crowd cheered, egging her on. "I got all the cards," she said. "So lobby AmEx. Write to them. Tell them you want to see me."

The Blue for Save the Music program raises money for music education in public schools. Momentum, the event marketing arm of McCann-Erickson WorldGroup, conceived the program and is implementing it. But Ogilvy & Mather, which creates advertising for AmEx's various cards, is the agency Whoopi needs to convince. An executive there declined comment. AmEx rep Judy Tenzer would only say of Goldberg's suggestion, "We had a lot of fun on Sunday night [at the event]. Who knows what we might do in the future."