'Allstate girl' gives the dirt on Kasey and the new spot

Everyone knows NASCAR drivers are notorious for producing some down right hilarious commercials. Kasey Kahne is no exception and is likely one of the more visible drivers, particularly with his new Bud sponsor.

The driver of the No. 9 has pulled a rabbit from his helmet for a Nextel spot and had his head shaved like Bozo the clown in a Gillette commercial. But Kahne being constantly objectified by those soccer moms in the Allstate commercials is by far my favorite.

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That is why I had to talk to Judy Fleming, the red-headed actress who crashes her Durango while drooling over Kahne throughout most of the advertising campaign. She and her gal pals are at it again this season as Allstate debuts a new spot Sunday during the Sprint Cup race in Vegas.

From her home in Los Angeles, Fleming filled me in on how she became one of the "Allstate Girls," the low down on the new commercial and some hysterical insight into the on-camera skills of Kahne.

The commercial is a 60-second spot titled Sponsorship. It features the three Allstate girls dining at a cafe, discussing how they will spend the "Safe Driving Bonus" check they just received from Allstate. One girl suggests a spa trip while the other wants to sponsor Kahne's car.

The spot slowly dissolves into a dream sequence detailing the sponsorship deal where the girls' faces adorn Kahne's No. 9 Dodge while the driver breaks out into a full-fledged dance routine reminiscent of the Backstreet Boys.

Kahne, our soft-spoken, blushing five-year Cup veteran, is gyrating to the Scorpions hit, Rock You Like a Hurricane. I nearly peed my pants and will never be able to look at Kahne again without blushing myself.

Fleming was equally hysterical, because she said while shooting the spot, Kahne would wander off alone at times and practice his moves in a corner.

OK Kasey, I've got to see some of these moves in Victory Lane.

"Practicing my dance moves for the Sponsorship spot helped me realize that I won't be leaving racing to pursue a career as a hip-hop dancer," Kahne said.

Maybe not, but Fleming said he is definitely Dancing with the Stars material.

And as for her, the spots have made Fleming a commercial actress star.

Before the Allstate campaign, she was working as a senior advertising account executive in Richmond, Va. She did some modeling and theater part-time as a hobby, but never imagined becoming a well-known commercial actress.

Bust a move

Kasey Kahne channels his boy-band persona in the newest spot featuring the "Allstate Girls" titled "Sponsorship."

• Watch the entire commercial

After her divorce, she moved from Richmond to Los Angeles and thought she'd try her hand on the small screen for a year, and fortunate for her, it has turned into a lucrative, full-time career.

Fleming landed her first commercial gig about 10 years ago and she has since done major spots for Wal-Mart, Publix, Johnsonville Bratwurst, Home Depot and Toyota.

It sounds like she needs to start swooning over Tony Stewart with sponsors like those, but Allstate has become her favorite gig.

"I enjoy the process, every bit of it ... the audition, the call back, waiting, everything," said Fleming who has really cherished the friendships she has made with her two other co-stars Dana Gilhooley and Jen Biederman.

Their careers together began three years ago when the ladies shot their first spot with Kahne in the Dodge parking lot where Fleming crashes into the pole that conveniently lands on top of another car. Fleming said she never had to actually hit the pole but driving around with cameras mounted to the Durango and directors shouting at her was intense.

She had yet to meet Kahne and had to swoon over a grip riding on a golf cart as opposed to the real Kahne.

"We saw a picture of him, we had to react to this long-haired fat guy riding in golf cart and I was like this guy is not hot. They told us to pretend he was George Clooney. And then when we finally saw Kasey we felt like pervs because he looked like he was 16."

The following year, the group reunited outside of Charlotte, N.C. to shoot the spot where the girls pose as police officers and pull Kahne over to check out his back side.

"He was such a good sport. I could really tell his acting was better. I told him the first time he was so stiff, so now we tease each other. He tells me how to act now," she said with a laugh.

And this year, the chemistry between Kahne and Fleming is even greater.

"Now we try to get personal information out of him," she said. "He's not as guarded."

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.