Have you ever noticed how Apple seems just a little hesitant to hire celebrity spokespersons to hawk their products? Oh, sure, in recent times we've had iMac commercials starring Jeff Goldblum, and the "Think Different" campaign recruited a ton of big names (some deceased, some obscure, some both) to promote the Apple brand, but we're talking about more of a traditional and guts-level endorsement. Something like hiring a famous and beloved Macophile like, say, Drew Carey, and having him say how much he loves his Mac in a thirty-second commercial. It's that kind of thing we just don't see too often; no offense meant to Mr. Goldblum-- he's a fine actor and plenty famous-- but we think Apple should at least consider the possibility of hiring an absolutely huge, completely and immediately recognizable international megastar to push their goods.

And wouldn't you know it? We were just about to tell them to go do that when, lo and behold, they went ahead and did it without us. And when Apple decided to hire a megastar, they went after the biggest of the big-- and got her. According to an Apple press release, virtual celebrity Lara Croft has been signed on to push Mac OS 8.5 to the masses. Not that we should have to tell you, but just in case you've been stumbling through life with your eyes shut, your fingers in your ears, and keeping at least 500 feet from all TVs and other informational appliances, Lara Croft is the lithesome heroine of the spectacularly successful Tomb Raider series of games, which we doubt would be nearly so popular if it weren't for Lara's, uh, "special charms." This new promotional offer gives everyone who buys a copy of Mac OS 8.5 between now and April 30th a coupon good for a free copy of either Tomb Raider II or Tomb Raider Gold-- Lara's first two smash successes. (Her latest triumph, Tomb Raider III, is unfortunately not yet available on our favorite platform, though we hope that one day it'll be coming to a Mac near you. Or, more accurately, near us.)

It's great to see such a huge star pushing Apple software, but we can't help feeling just a little let down that Apple isn't having her promote some products that are targeted at a wider cross-section of the consumer spectrum. After all, the retail version of Mac OS 8.5 is only worth buying to existing Mac users, and not to the average man in the street. With such a ton of star power at their disposal, we sort of wish Apple would start up a "Buy an iMac, Get Tomb Raider Free" promotion as well. Still, even the Mac OS 8.5 promotion is a big step in the right direction.