Sexy Pin-Ups* Model Coffins for Funeral Home 


　　Death is hardly something to look forward to, but one Italian funeral home is trying to make the afterlife a tad more tempting by using bikini-clad women to sell its coffins. On its site www.cofanifunebri.it, the Rome-based funeral home and coffin factory Cisa features its hand-crafted caskets alongside models sipping champagne or reclining seductively on the lids. "We wanted to make the whole idea of picking your coffin less serious, maybe even make people laugh a bit," Giuseppe Tenara, one of the partners, said. Near-naked women are used to sell everything in Italy from computers to chocolate bars, but Cisa has taken the advertising ploy to new limits. "Unfortunately the site hasn't helped sales much, because we mostly get calls from faraway places like Greece and Spain instead of Rome," Tenara told reporters. That hasn't stopped Cisa from creating an online "sexy calendar" with yet more temptresses frolicking among the coffins. Still, not all clients have been charmed. "Some people are scandalized, but we just explain that we're trying to make people laugh," Tenara said. 


　　*pin-up：漂亮女人。


　　死亡不是什么值得期待的东西，不过意大利一家殡仪馆却在尝试给死后的生活增加一点吸引力，其方法是用比基尼女郎来促销棺材。位于罗马的殡仪馆及棺材厂希萨公司在其网站www.cofanifunebri.it上展示手工制作的棺材，旁边是正在啜饮香槟或者挑逗地斜倚在棺盖上的模特。公司合伙人之一吉乌斯皮-特纳拉说：“我们想让挑选棺材这整件事情显得不那么沉重，甚至能让人们笑一笑。”在意大利，从电脑到巧克力棒的各种产品都用几近赤裸的女人来促销，而希萨公司使这种广告策略达到了新境界。“不幸的是，网站的促销效果并不明显，因为我们接到的大部分电话都不是来自罗马，而是来自像希腊和西班牙那样的遥远地方。”特纳拉对记者说。尽管如此，希萨公司还是在网上推出了“性感日历”，其中有更多的香艳女郎在棺材之间嬉戏。当然，不是所有客户都为此着迷。特纳拉说：“有些人对此表示反感，我们只能向他们解释说这是为了让人们乐一乐。”


　　Remarks：这个创意倒是可以用来告诫男子不可贪恋女色，所谓“温柔乡是英雄冢”是也。

来源：《英语学习》