Surveys reveal that there is an ever increasing number of people who regret having tattooed themselves and are so unhappy with their tattoos, that they are willing to go to any extent to see them disappear from their bodies.  One can understand the desperation of those infatuated lovers, who tattooed their beloved’s name on their torso, and now having fallen out with them want to remove the incriminating evidence as soon as possible.

Even more to be pitied and sympathized with are the “human billboards” who had company logos or names tattooed on their bodies for quick cash. They have, as an article about them said, been “Branded For Life.”

Skinvertising, as it was called, became a popular fad in the mid-2000s. Amongst the first advertising space for skinvertising was sold by Jim Nelson, who allowed the use of the back of his head for $7000, for a tattooed ad that he would have to keep for at least 5 years.

The fad became even more popular and somewhat acceptable when boxer Bernard Hopkins allowed his back to be used for such marketing. In September 2011, an online casino paid him $100,000 to wear an impermanent tattoo on his back during a championship bout.

One of the most notorious pieces of such advertising was when a Utah mother, claiming that she needed money for bringing up her children allowed GoldenPalace.com to tattoo her forehead for $10,000. Marketers believed that such gimmickry ads were unique and the forehead-ad garnered considerable press for both Williams and Golden Palace.

Facebook photos show that the tattoo is still on her forehead, even though it is slightly faded. Worse, it is a stigma that has forced her to move into the basement of her father’s house.

The problem is that many of those who allowed their bodies to be blemished find that the companies they promoted do not exist any more, but the tattoos are very much there.

Many years ago Joe Tamargo a resident of Rochester, New York, auctioned off space on his arms, converting himself into a human billboard. His arms are tattooed with ads of more than a dozen different websites. He says that people view the names and when they visit the website find that they are now defunct.

One of Tamorgo’s tattoos implores people to save Martha indicted for a securities fraud, by logging on to SaveMartha.com to keep her out of prison. Martha is a free woman but poor Tamargo continues to be shackled by the chains of the eternal tattoo.

Tamargo is no longer just a moving advertisement; he’s a mobile billboard for businesses that have long since disappeared. Sadly, he is not the only one; there are hundreds of people out there with domain names of defunct websites, imprinted distinctly and indelibly on their skin – walking debris of buildings long collapsed.

US professional basket ball player Rasheed Wallace mulled over a lucrative offer from an advertising firm to advertise their product. He however, declined after being told that such a move could have him suspended from the team. Cheerleaders for Lincoln Lightning’s High Voltage Dance Team wore 2-inch by 4-inch temporary advertising tattoos on their bare midriffs.

It is sad that people who fell victim to such gross examples of consumerism that allowed even the skin on a person’s back to be put up for sale, are now regretting their crazy and somewhat irrational decisions.

Surveys reveal that there is an ever increasing number of people who regret having tattooed themselves and are so unhappy with their tattoos, that they are willing to go to any extent to see them disappear from their bodies.  One can understand the desperation of those infatuated lovers, who tattooed their beloved’s name on their torso, and now having fallen out with them want to remove the incriminating evidence as soon as possible.

Even more to be pitied and sympathized with are the “human billboards” who had company logos or names tattooed on their bodies for quick cash. They have, as an article about them said, been “Branded For Life.”

Skinvertising, as it was called, became a popular fad in the mid-2000s. Amongst the first advertising space for skinvertising was sold by Jim Nelson, who allowed the use of the back of his head for $7000, for a tattooed ad that he would have to keep for at least 5 years.

The fad became even more popular and somewhat acceptable when boxer Bernard Hopkins allowed his back to be used for such marketing. In September 2011, an online casino paid him $100,000 to wear an impermanent tattoo on his back during a championship bout.

One of the most notorious pieces of such advertising was when a Utah mother, claiming that she needed money for bringing up her children allowed GoldenPalace.com to tattoo her forehead for $10,000. Marketers believed that such gimmickry ads were unique and the forehead-ad garnered considerable press for both Williams and Golden Palace.

Facebook photos show that the tattoo is still on her forehead, even though it is slightly faded. Worse, it is a stigma that has forced her to move into the basement of her father’s house.

The problem is that many of those who allowed their bodies to be blemished find that the companies they promoted do not exist any more, but the tattoos are very much there.

Many years ago Joe Tamargo a resident of Rochester, New York, auctioned off space on his arms, converting himself into a human billboard. His arms are tattooed with ads of more than a dozen different websites. He says that people view the names and when they visit the website find that they are now defunct.

One of Tamorgo’s tattoos implores people to save Martha indicted for a securities fraud, by logging on to SaveMartha.com to keep her out of prison. Martha is a free woman but poor Tamargo continues to be shackled by the chains of the eternal tattoo.

Tamargo is no longer just a moving advertisement; he’s a mobile billboard for businesses that have long since disappeared. Sadly, he is not the only one; there are hundreds of people out there with domain names of defunct websites, imprinted distinctly and indelibly on their skin – walking debris of buildings long collapsed.

US professional basket ball player Rasheed Wallace mulled over a lucrative offer from an advertising firm to advertise their product. He however, declined after being told that such a move could have him suspended from the team. Cheerleaders for Lincoln Lightning’s High Voltage Dance Team wore 2-inch by 4-inch temporary advertising tattoos on their bare midriffs.

It is sad that people who fell victim to such gross examples of consumerism that allowed even the skin on a person’s back to be put up for sale, are now regretting their crazy and somewhat irrational decisions.