The GEICO Gecko

The company's ads sometimes focus on its reptilian mascot, the GEICO Gecko, an anthropomorphic day gecko, who was created by the Martin Agency. The character was modified in November 2005 to a CGI character by animation director David Hulin and his team at Framestore. The gecko first appeared on August 26, 1999, during the Screen Actors Guild strike that prevented the use of live actors.[11] The original commercial features a gecko voiced by actor Kelsey Grammer who climbs onto a microphone on a podium and utters, "This is my final plea: I am a gecko, not to be confused with GEICO, which could save you hundreds on car insurance. So, stop calling me." Later "wrong number" ads used Dave Kelly as the voice of the gecko. In the subsequent commercials with British actor Jake Wood, the gecko speaks with an English Cockney accent.[12][13] Steve Bassett, creative director at The Martin Agency: As computer animation got better and as we got to know the character better, we did a few things. We wanted to make him a little more guy-next-door. And he looks a lot more real than he's looked before.[11] Chelsea Clinton, daughter of former president Bill Clinton and then-Secretary of State and 2016 Democratic Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, interviewed the GEICO Gecko in April 2013.[14] He had since become GEICO's longest-running mascot, appearing in more than 150 commercials as of 2017.[citation needed]