Dove forced to cancel new deodorant ad calling New Jersey the 'Armpit of America'

Dove has been forced to cancel an upcoming billboard ad directed at New Jersey women - and their armpits - in light of an angry backlash from consumers and residents of the Garden State.

The billboard ad, which was previewed last Thursday and was set to launch this July, reads: 'Dear New Jersey, when people call you the "Armpit of America," take it as a compliment, sincerely, Dove.'

Consumers took to Dove's Facebook page to boycott Dove products altogether as a result of the ad, and after a weekend of silence from Unilever, Dove's parent company, a representative revealed it would not be going ahead with the ad after all..'

The ad, which promotes Dove's new Advanced Care line, features a confident looking blonde, one of Dove's quintessential 'real women,' proudly displaying her flawlessly smooth - and very clearly Photoshopped - underarm.

The message, according to senior marketing director Matthew McCarthy, is meant to be positive: 'The armpit is not a bad thing,' he told The New York Times last Thursday, 'and we stand for caring for the armpit.'

But many have slammed the ad for its tasteless nature and insensitive timing, given New Jersey's recent bout of misfortune - most notably the Bridgegate scandal last September and the state's continuing struggles following Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

Eighty-one-year-old Joan Gazello, a lifelong New Jersey resident was less than impressed. She told CBS 2: 'It’s insulting. That we stink? We don’t stink. We’re a great state. In fact, everyone wants to live in this state.'

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LOL.  NJ does seem to get a lot of mockery.  A bit silly of a firm to risk that, though.

I remember an old ad for "Old Spice" deodorant:  "Make your armpits your charmpits".  That was at least amusing.