Mars Blackmon is a fictional character in the film '' She's Gotta Have It'' (

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

), played by the film's writer/director,

Spike Lee Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and author. His work has continually explored race relations, issues within the black community, the role of media in contemporary ...

. In the film, he is a "Brooklyn-loving" fan of the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

, sports, and

Air Jordan Air Jordan is a line of basketball and sportswear shoes produced by Nike, Inc. Related apparel and accessories are marketed under Jordan Brand. The first Air Jordan shoe was produced for basketball player Michael Jordan during his time with t ...

s (the basketball shoes worn by

Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player, who is currently a minority owner of the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Ass ...

). This led to late 1980s and early 1990s appearances in Nike

commercials alongside Jordan and Mars becoming well known for his use of the phrase, "It's gotta be da shoes." The ad campaign with Lee as Mars has been credited as a landmark in the evolution of sneakers into massively profitable items of fashion. When Lee was first approached to co-star with Michael Jordan for Nike, Lee thought the offer was a prank from his friends. The Jordan Mars shoe line is named in honor of the Mars Blackmon character, with Spike Lee's son, Jackson Lewis Lee, being the designer of the Jordan Mars 270. In the April 30, 2010 episode of the genealogy television show '' Who Do You Think You Are?'' that focused on Spike Lee's search for his mother's ancestors, Lee said that he had called his grandmother to ask for a name for the character. His grandmother gave him the name "Mars". In the episode, Lee's research finds that Mars was the name of his great-great-grandfather (his grandmother's grandfather). In March 2015 a

Capital One Capital One Financial Corporation is an American bank holding company founded on July 21, 1994, and specializing in credit cards, auto loans, banking, and savings accounts, headquartered in Tysons, Virginia, with operations primarily in the ...

Quicksilver credit card television commercial features Samuel L. Jackson,

Charles Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player who is a television analyst on NBA on TNT, TNT and CBS Sports. Nicknamed "Sir Charles", "the Bread Truck", and "the Round Mound of Rebound", ...

and Lee. During the commercial's hotel check-in, Lee uses the pseudonym Mars Blackmon to register his room. Nike used the character for its Jordan Spiz'ike line of shoes. For the 2017 Netflix comedy-drama series TV remake, Mars is played by Anthony Ramos. In episode #OhJudoKnow?, it is revealed that Mars' father is Mookie from '' Do the Right Thing'', a character also portrayed by Spike Lee in the film from 1989.

References

See also