I want answers, people.
Last night we found out that Elisa, Salma Hayek's character on 30 Rock, was hiding a dark secret.
That secret (which I won't reveal) was weird and unexpected. But seeing Salma wearing a "What the Frak?!" T-shirt – complete with the Battlestar Galactica logo on the back, I might add – on the show was even weirder and more unexpected.
It was also way cool, and probably the most random moment in an episode full of random moments (like that Brian Williams cameo). I loved it. It made me kooko for Choco Puffs. But can someone explain it to me?
Is Salma Hayek a big Battlestar nerd? Was she giving a shout-out to her In the Time of the Butterflies co-star Edward James Olmos? Was this some sort of NBC/Universal marketing ploy to sell more BSG and Caprica DVDs? Or did Tina Fey just think it would be funny to stick Salma in a "silly" tight, nerd-friendly T?
Whatever the reason (and I must know the reason), I hope it happens again. I haven't seen or heard the work "Frak" on TV, outside of BSG, since season three of Veronica Mars. I'm sure it's been uttered on other shows before, but I don't think the word has popped up on a show as popular as 30 Rock until now. I wonder if they'll make it a running gag on the show.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
4-24-2009 @ 11:18AM
xillip said...
Doesn't NBC own Sci-Fi (SYFY)? Looks like a shameless plug to me.
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4-24-2009 @ 11:19AM
Wii60 said...
I had a what the frak moment when that happened, which I think was the joke.
It was also Awesome^awesometh power
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4-24-2009 @ 11:25AM
MJL said...
Clearly one of the countless examples of self-plugging (I mean that in both possible interpretations).
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4-24-2009 @ 11:31AM
ProgGrrl said...
It's got to be one of the show writers. It's ALWAYS the writers who are the BSG fans.
OK, there's been a BSG reference on 30 ROCK. Now all I need is either Tina Fey, or Katee Sackhoff, to do a cameo on MAD MEN, and all will be right in my world. :-)
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4-24-2009 @ 11:45AM
Tony C said...
Shameless plug, corporate synergy, whatever poison you wanna name it...
Yes, SciFi (nee SyFy) is under the NBC Universal umbrella, and technically, so is House. Might be we see some reference to that lanky, ascerbic, cane-wielding diagnostician on 30 Rock or some other TV property?
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4-24-2009 @ 3:44PM
Jarrett C said...
I'm pretty sure they are both NBC Universal shows.
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4-24-2009 @ 11:57AM
CP said...
Normally I'd say corporate synergy, but they also threw out a reference to Mad Men ("My real name is Dick Whitman!") so I'm more inclined to side with "writers geeking out" as the explanation.
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4-24-2009 @ 12:19PM
Bob Mc said...
I said "What the frak?!" when I saw that shirt, too.
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4-24-2009 @ 12:45PM
Tom said...
If my memory serves correctly, hasn't Liz utterd "What the frak?" a few times in the show history? Perhaps she is a closet fan of the show.
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4-24-2009 @ 2:11PM
Zachary said...
I think you are mistaken. She usually says "what the what".
4-24-2009 @ 3:50PM
Tacocartguy said...
Yeah I remember Frank saying "What the frak dude?" sometime in season 1, although I don't remember when exactly
4-24-2009 @ 1:18PM
Anita said...
I agree it was a bit too much of a self-plug, particularly considering they only showed Salma Hayak in low cut seductress shirts previously. Although I understand the idea of big star/hot babe wearing the merchandise to help move it, it would've been more true to life if Liz had the shirt on and Salma indirectly snarked on her with a variation of the line.
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4-24-2009 @ 1:30PM
me said...
Considering the "slanket" had appeared in previous episodes, I assumed this episode was aired out of order and was originally intended to air the week of the BSG finale.
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4-24-2009 @ 2:55PM
Shark said...
If you watch the episode again, you will notice they are making fun of product placement throughout the episode, like with the slanket. Liz yells out "It's not an endorsement, I just like it." Not too long ago, the blogosphere accused 30 Rock of product placement with the McFlurry. So, I think this was a jab back from the writers.
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4-24-2009 @ 4:02PM
Astin said...
Corporate synergy, geeky writers, and Caprica coming out on DVD this week.
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4-24-2009 @ 8:10PM
Justin said...
The real question is where can you buy the shirt? The only What the Frak shirt on the NBC store is a lame WTF moniker.
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4-30-2009 @ 12:29AM
McD said...
Try www.thinkgeek.com... I know they had a few BSG shirts over there...
4-24-2009 @ 9:08PM
James said...
There was writing on that T-shirt?
... va-va-voom !!
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4-25-2009 @ 2:51PM
Teenormous T-shirts said...
We've actually seen a HUGE increase in frak T-shirt searches at Teenormous:
http://blog.teenormous.com/salma-hayek-and-30-rock-push-frak-t-shirt-searches-to-teenormous/
Thanks for clearing it up for us!
Reply
4-25-2009 @ 7:38PM
mel zonil said...
Frank said what the frak in the milf island episode
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