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Lincoln Park High Coach Stars in 'Scrubbing Bubbles' National Commercial

By Justin Breen | March 10, 2014 7:49am
 Lincoln Park High School field hockey and girls lacrosse coach Megan Brown is the star of a "Scrubbing Bubbles Mega Shower Foamer" TV commercial. The commercial, which began airing this month, was filmed in November at the high school and neighboring Oz Park. It features seven student-athletes from the high school as well.
Lincoln Park High School commercial
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LINCOLN PARK — Megan Brown never knew she was this popular.

Brown, the girls lacrosse and field hockey coach at Lincoln Park High School, is the star of a Scrubbing Bubbles Mega Shower Foamer TV commercial that began airing this month. Since the commercial's debut, Brown has been bombarded with text messages and phone calls from people she hadn't heard from in years.

"I think it's hysterical that people from all over the country I haven't necessarily talked to on a regular basis are reconnecting with me now," said Brown, of Lincoln Park.

The commercial, which has been played more than 220 times during programs like "Late Show with David Letterman" and "48 Hours," also features seven Lincoln Park High School field hockey players, although their faces aren't shown. Brown first saw herself on TV during a commercial break on "Duck Dynasty" while she was at home with her husband and five children.

 Lincoln Park High School field hockey players (from l.) Malia Brown, Brooke Doyle and Sara O'Donoghue are shown with "Scrubby" during a filming session of a national commercial for Scrubbing Bubbles Mega Shower Foamer.
Lincoln Park High School field hockey players (from l.) Malia Brown, Brooke Doyle and Sara O'Donoghue are shown with "Scrubby" during a filming session of a national commercial for Scrubbing Bubbles Mega Shower Foamer.
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Megan Brown

"It popped up, and my 4-year-old [Beckham] said, 'Is that my mom?'" Brown said.

The commercial, directed by Andrew Walton, was taped in November at the high school and neighboring Oz Park, where the field hockey and lacrosse teams practice. The 30-second spot shows Brown coaching her team in muddy conditions, then cleaning up the high school's locker room with the foamer after a "Bubble Car" comes to her rescue.

"The day we shot, it was extremely cold and windy. We actually had to thaw the field out with warm water in order to make mud," said Walton, of New York City, who has directed dozens of films and commercials.

"But the girls and Coach Brown got out there and did their thing," Walton added. "In the end, the scene looked very muddy and active. Exactly what I wanted. It was a great group. They all had incredible attitudes. And Coach Brown is extremely committed to them."

Walton estimated it took a crew of 30 to 40 people — which included production/lighting personnel and a team of stunt drivers for the "Bubble Cars" — to film the commercial.

"It's a bit like the circus coming to town when we shoot," Walton said. "People are always amazed at how much it takes to create 30 seconds of advertising. And we were a small crew by comparison."

Brown's daughter, Lincoln Park junior field hockey player Brooke Doyle, said the commercial has given the program, which was founded in 2011, a ton of great publicity.

"It's been great to get that support and get the word out about our team," said Brooke, 17, who was one of the seven players in the commercial. "I think it's awesome that they found us and got to do this with our school."

Brooke's classmate and teammate Francesca Moya, who also was in the spot, said she was blown away by "the effort and time" that went into its planning and execution.

"Now I know what it takes to make a national commercial," said Francesca, 17, of Old Irving Park. "I look at commercials and movies with a whole different perspective now."

Francesca said Brown, an All-American field hockey player as an undergrad at Temple, and the players received no direction during the outdoor filming, other than "we were just told to play, and we did." The commercial was part of the "Let's Bubble" campaign, where people go online to "nominate places in their community most deserving a clean-up," according to a news release.

Brown, who was contacted by a casting agent for Ogilvy & Mather before the shoot to see if she would be interested in testing for a commercial, kept everything top secret because she didn't know if she would even appear in the final product.

"I had no idea what they were looking for," said Brown, who said she and the players received a "small stipend" for their work.

The foamer has come in handy with practice for the lacrosse season beginning. Brown still has a lot of the Scrubbing Bubbles cleaner, and when the mud-covered players enter the high school from Oz Park, she makes full use of it.

"After we make a mess, we spray down the equipment," Brown said. "We're the one team at the high school that kind of wreaks havoc, so I make sure we clean up after ourselves."