Neil Patrick Harris puts the "spice" in the new Old Spice campaign

Which is far better than putting the "old" in Old Spice, right?

Yes, out actor Neil Patrick Harris has been selected as the new pitchman for tried-and-true Old Spice deodorant. In recent years the musky underarm product (from Procter & Gamble) has been trying to reinvent itself as being more hip and current and less "boat on a bottle" by enlisting comic actors like Will Ferrell and Bruce Campbell as pitchmen, and NPH is the latest.

In the print ad (there are rumors that a TV spot is in the works, too), Harris references his best-known role, Doogie Howser, as he demostrates that his experience playing a doctor on television makes him specially qualified to recommend deodorant.

Given the overall campaign of finding funny men who send up their own image to sell the product, it's not surprising to see the company reach out to Harris. But if you step back and look at the big picture, it's really pretty awesome: this is an openly gay man being hired to sell a product traditionally marketed to families, wives, and kids looking for the perfect Father's Day gift.

I would say that this would be enough to get me to switch to Old Spice, but I actually already use it. My secret's out! (The ad is currently running in Entertainment Weekly's 1000th issue.)