History Main / FaceOnTheCover

* Many advertisements make use of people to sell their products. They will usually smile at the camera, because this gives the audience confidence. To double emphasize this, celebrities will be used to pose with said product.

[[AC:ComicStrips]]
* Virtually all comic strip albums will show the main character(s) on the album cover.

[[AC:{{Film}}]]
* Done with most movie posters. They will usually show the main actor(s) prominently, especially if they are A-list actors.

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]
* Authors of non-fiction tend to be shown on the cover of their books often. Especially if it's a media celebrity.

[[AC:Western Animation]]
* Done with most DVD covers of animated films and series where the main characters or just one of them will be shown prominently on the foreground.

* Music/StevieWonder: His face is seen on the album cover of ''Music/SongsInTheKeyOfLife'', but as a drawing, surrounded by circles.

* Music/FrankZappa: Zappa did this sometimes. Albums like ''Music/AbsolutelyFree'', ''Music/ChungasRevenge'', ''Music/{{Apostrophe}}'', ''Music/SheikYerbouti'', ''Music/JoesGarage'', ''Shut Up 'N' Play Yer Guitar'', ''Music/JazzFromHell'' and ''Guitar'' just picture his face. The album cover of the second volume of ''Music/LondonSymphonicOrchestra'' features a picture of Zappa and his black cat.

* Music/LouReed: He is shown in close-up and full frontal on the album cover of ''Music/{{Transformer}}''. He is also shown on the album cover of ''Music/{{Berlin}}'', though less clearly visible and in a smaller image.

* Music/TheDoors: ''[[Music/TheDoorsAlbum The Doors]]'' shows a picture of the band, with Jim Morrison's face in close-up and the other musicians behind him.

* Music/TheBeachBoys: They are featured on the album covers of ''Music/PetSounds'' and ''Music/{{Friends}}''.

* Music/{{Bjork}}: On ''Music/{{Debut}}'', ''Music/{{Post}}'', ''Music/{{Homogenic}}'' and ''Médulla'' her face and upper torso are shown. ''Volta'' is a more distant shot, with Bjork's face sticking out of a bizarre costume.

* Music/JoeCocker: Shown in the center of the image of ''Film/MadDogsAndEnglishmen''.

* Music/FrankZappa: Zappa did this sometimes. Albums like ''Music/AbsolutelyFree'', ''Music/ChungasRevenge'', ''Music/{{Apostrophe}}'', ''Music/SheikYerbouti'', ''Music/JoesGarage'', ''Shut Up 'N' Play Yer Guitar'', ''Music/JazzFromHell'' and ''Guitar'' just picture his face.

* Music/FrankZappa: Zappa did this sometimes. Albums like ''Music/AbsolutelyFree'', ''Music/ChungasRevenge'', ''Music/{{Apostrophe}}'', ''Music/SheikYerbouti'', ''Music/JoesGarage'', ''Shut Up 'N' Play Yer Guitar'', ''Jazz From Hell'' and ''Guitar'' just picture his face.

* Music/{{Bjork}}: On ''Music/{{Debut}}'', ''Music/{{Post}}'', ''Music/{{Homogenic}}'' and ''Médulla'' her face and upper torso are shown.
* Music/DavidBowie: Appears on most of his album covers in close-up, most notably ''Music/HunkyDory'', ''Music/DiamondDogs'', ''Music/YoungAmericans'', ''[[Music/LowDavidBowieAlbum Low]], ''Music/{{Heroes}}'' and ''Music/ScaryMonstersAndSuperCreeps''. His face can also be seen on ''Music/TheManWhoSoldTheWorld'', ''Music/TheRiseAndFallOfZiggyStardustAndTheSpidersFromMars'', ''Music/StationToStation'' and ''Music/LetsDance'', but from a distance.

* Music/TheWho: On ''Music/TheWhoSellOut'' Pete Townsend and John Entwistle pose with products.

* Music/TheRamones: Done on ''Music/{{Ramones}}, where the band can be seen posing against a wall.

* Music/TheEraserheads: A group shot is shown on ''Music/{{Ultramagneticpop}}''.

* Music/LaurynHill: Her face is featured in the center of ''Music/TheMiseducationOfLaurynHill'.

* Music/TheRollingStones: ''Music/TheRollingStones1964'', ''Music/TheRollingStonesNo2'', ''Music/OutOfOurHeads'', ''Music/{{Aftermath}}'', ''Music/TheirSatanicMajestiesRequest'', ''Music/BetweenTheButtons'', ''Music/GoatHeadSoup'', ''Music/ItsOnlyRockNRoll'', ''Music/BlackAndBlue'', ''Music/DirtyWork'', ... The cover of ''Music/{{Undercover}}'' is a subversion, as the band is shown twice, but very small and in the form of a sticker. The cover of ''Music/SomeGirls'' is also a subversion, as the band wasn't originally intended to be portrayed on it. Originally they showed photos of famous celebrity actresses and models, done without asking permission. Some sued and as a result the cover was quickly changed by having band members' faces in place of some of the women's faces.

--> ''Vogue'' - Music/{{Madonna}}

* Music/{{Madonna}}: Madonna does his always, with only ''Music/LikeAPrayer'' showing only a picture of her hand adjusting her belt.

* Music/PinkFloyd: The album cover of ''Music/{{Ummagumma}}'' shows the band in a DrosteImage.

* Music/JohnnyCash: ''Music/AtFolsomPrison''.

* Music/JohnnyCash: Appears in close-up on the album cover of ''Music/AtFolsomPrison'', shot from a lower angle.

* Music/{{Kiss}}: The band does this with most of their covers, especially ''Music/{{Dynasty}}'' and ''Music/CreaturesOfTheNight''.

-> ''[[Creator/MarleneDietrich Dietrich]] and [[UsefulNotes/JoeDiMaggio Di Maggio]]''

ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin. One of the oldest tricks in advertising is using the face of a celebrity to sell your product. Films, cartoons, comic books, video games and TV series will put the main actors or characters on the posters, ads or DVD covers. Novels and non-fiction books the author or a main character. Music albums will just show a photograph of the band or the lead singer.

Compare with FaceOfTheBand (when one person of a group is featured more prominently than the others) and WolverinePublicity (when one person is always put on the cover, despite hardly being in it or on it half of the time).

* Many advertisements make use of people to sell their products. They will usually smile at the camera, because this gives the audience confidence. To double emphasize this celebrities will be used to pose with said product.

** Aunt Jemima on ''Aunt Jemima''.
** Bibendum for ''Michelin''.
** Captain Birdseye for ''Captain Birdseye fishsticks''.
** Chef Boyardee for ''Chef Boyardee'' pizza.
** The Burger King on ''Burger King''.
** Mr. Clean on ''Mr. Clean'' cleaning products.
** Rich Uncle Pennybags is featured prominently on the box of every ''Monopoly'' game.
** Colonel Sanders on ''Kentucky Fried Chicken''.
** The Laughing Cow on ''La Vache Qui Rit'' cheese.
** Alfred E. Neuman appears on the front of ever Magazine/MadMagazine cover.
** Uncle Ben on ''Uncle Ben's'' rice.

* Authors of non-fiction tend to be shown on the cover of their books often. Especially if its a media celebrity.

* ''Series/SesameStreet'' actually has an unwritten rule that no matter how little he may be involved in the product, Elmo has to be featured on the covers of books and [=DVDs=], otherwise they won't sell. Case in point: when the 25th anniversary edition of ''Film/SesameStreetPresentsFollowThatBird'' was released, Elmo was included on the DVD cover art, despite Elmo only appearing in a ''very'' brief cameo toward the end of the movie [[note]]and this pre-dates Kevin Clash's Elmo at that[[/note]]. Similarly, the direct-to-DVD special, ''A Sesame Street Christmas Carol'' also has Elmo on the cover, though the special is about Oscar, and Elmo only appears in flashback clips.

* This is basically how all magazines sell their product. They put the face of a celebrity on it.
* ''Magazine/MadMagazine''. You'll always know you're looking at a Mad Magazine issue, because Alfred E. Neuman's face is nearly always visibly present.

* Music/{{Heart}}: Their debut LP ''Dreamboat Annie'' featured Ann and Nancy Wilson sitting back-to-back, apparently topless (the picture was cropped apparently for modesty reasons, but other unreleased photos from the same shoot revealed they were wearing towel wraps). This backfired on them when an unscrupulous record company deliberately circulated false rumours that the sisters were not only [[BiTheWay bi-curious]], they had experimented with ''each other''. Contracts were severed shortly afterwards by the furious and humiliated sisters, and the first single for their new label was ''Barracuda'', a scathing TakeThat at Mushroom Records.

* Music/TalkingHeads did a few variations on this. ''More Songs About Buildings and Food'' was a montage of small photos of specific body parts (a hand, one eye, a mouth, etc.) arranged to form a portrait of the whole band. ''Music/RemainInLight'' had head shots of each band member, but with their faces obscured by digital blotches of red ink. (Allegedly, they also considered a cover with producer Music/BrianEno's face pasted over each of theirs.) And ''Film/StopMakingSense'' (both the film and the soundtrack album) was a picture of David Byrne in the iconic big, white suit--but with his head out of frame.

* Music/FrankZappa: Zappa did this sometimes. Albums like ''Music/AbsolutelyFree'', ''Music/ChungasRevenge'', ''Music/{{Apostrophe}}'', ''Music/SheikYerbouti'', ''Music/JoesGarage'', ''Shut Up 'N' Play Yer Guitar'', ''Jazz From Hell'', ''Guitar'' just picture his face.

* Music/TheBeatles. The album covers of ''Music/WithTheBeatles'', ''Music/AHardDaysNight'', ''Music/BeatlesForSale'', ''Music/RubberSoul'' and ''Music/LetItBe'' just show pictures of the band members' faces in full close-up. On ''Music/{{Revolver}}'' their huge faces are shown in a field of smaller images. On ''Music/{{Help}}!'' and ''Music/MagicalMysteryTour'' they are shown from a distance and in different clothing, but in an empty background that does not distract from the viewer watching at them. ''Music/AbbeyRoad'' shows them crossing a street, again from a distance, but they are clearly on the foreground.
* Music/{{Bjork}}: On ''Music/{{Debut}}'', ''Music/{{Post}}'', ''Homogenic'' and ''Médulla'' her face and upper torso are shown.
* Music/DavidBowie: Appears on most of his album covers in close-up, most notably ''Music/HunkyDory'', ''Music/DiamondDogs'', ''[[Music/LowDavidBowieAlbum Low]] and ''Music/{{Heroes}}''.

* Music/BobDylan: Nearly all of his albums show a picture of his face in close-up. The exception is ''Music/TheFreewheelinBobDylan'' where he and his girlfriend are shown from a distance, but still in the middle of an empty street.

* Music/LouReed: He is shown in close-up and full frontal on the album cover of ''Music/{{Transformer}}''.
* Music/TheRollingStones: ''Music/TheirSatanicMajestiesRequest'', ''Music/BetweenTheButtons'', ''Music/ItsOnlyRockNRoll'', ''Music/BlackAndBlue'', ...

* Music/TheWhiteStripes: The band is shown from a distance, full frontal, but still in the center of attention.

* Music/TheStooges: All three albums, ''Music/TheStoogesAlbum The Stooges]], Music/FunHouse'' and ''Music/RawPower'' have the band and/or Iggy Pop on the album cover.

* Music/AmyWinehouse: The cover of ''Music/BackInBlack'' shows her sitting on a chair against an empty background.