Television ads aren't fun anymore. There's a sameness to them: the fast edits, the young bodies, the deep-voiced announcers who all sound alike. And, with the advent of TiVo and the DVR, most of them are just a blur to us as we fast-forward from the end of one scene to the beginning of another. You would have to go all the way back to the days just around the advent of the personal VCR to find entertaining commercials that featured characters and slogans that would stick in your brain.
Rebbecca Brown just went back to the '70s. By culling the parents' garage known as the Internet, Brown was able to put together 10 memorable ads from the decade of Watergate, leisure suits and the 8-track cassette. If you were around during that decade you will remember most, if not all, of the ads that Brown picked.
Featured are Mr. Whipple, the shop-owner who would not let his patrons squeeze the Charmin; Madge, who would go cheap and have her customers soak their hands in Palmolive because it softened hands while they did dishes; and the Chinese-laundry owner who would rip-off his customers by using Calgon to make their shirts so clean. Ancient Chinese secret indeed!
Out of the 10 ads that Rebecca features only one of them was unknown to me -- Ronco's Mr. Microphone. When you watch the ad look at how excited the people are hearing their voices on the radio when Mr. Microphone is hooked up. It's interesting to see this in today's world where anyone can be a star on the World Wide Web. We have come very far. Or, maybe not.[via digg]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-28-2008 @ 10:49AM
Jimmy said...
A great list, despite the absence of "Less Filling, Tastes Great!"
I still remember some of the Chun King jingles from my childhood too.
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4-28-2008 @ 11:04AM
Galley said...
The only thing Charmin is good for is to ensure that the dingleberry harvest will be plentiful.
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4-28-2008 @ 11:08AM
chgosaint said...
I would take out Fresh-Up gum. This product was forgettable and forgotten. For some reason when I think of the 70s and commercials, I always remember two things: K-Tel records (but not one in particular) and Popiel Pocket Fisherman. I never have had the urge to just pull over and fish and think "I wish I had a rod and reel" but I still think about the commerical.
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4-28-2008 @ 12:37PM
MERVE-THE-PERVE said...
I got a problem with her description of Lowenbrau. That is some good brew. And I agree with Jimmy, the Miller Lite ads were much more memorable and the Shitz Malt Liquor ads with the bull busting through the wall were classics. I even remember John Madden busting through a wall in a Miller Lite ad once.
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4-28-2008 @ 8:15PM
terry740 said...
I can't believe you didn't remember Mr Microphone! They were banned at ball parks because they would broadcast over the air if the user was close to the announcers booth. Caused a lot of FCC problems for stations.
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4-28-2008 @ 4:32PM
I miss my stars! said...
I can't believe she left out the "I can't believe I ate the whole thing!" ad for Alka Seltzer.
The beer ad that I immediately remember from that era is:
"Here comes the king. Here comes the big number 1...
boom boom boom boom
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