# Again with the annoying commercials! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** commercials-ads\ **Created:** [June 28, 2017, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089 "2017-06-28T22:06:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 147
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2926 "2021-09-30T12:40:05Z")
I think it’s _supposed_ to creep you out. Works on me too. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2927 "2021-09-30T13:13:58Z")
Yes, I can’t quite put my finger on it. The concept of a (seemingly) prudish, older lady getting a boost of, erm, sexual energy from the smell of her laundry doesn’t in and of itself doesn’t creep me out, but it’s as if they _styled_ her to be extra creepy. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2928 "2021-09-30T13:42:18Z")
I think it’s the lip curl/ sneer at the beginning that scares me the most. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2929 "2021-09-30T14:03:23Z")
It definitely doesn’t help. My attention always seems to go to her frumpy yet clingy skirt. Not trying to fat shame the actress in any way; just that I can’t tell if they’re trying to illustrate her normal, older lady body or emphasize it for comedic effect. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2930 "2021-09-30T14:07:49Z")
BTW, do people really _want_ all of their laundry to smell like lavender (or whatever artificial scent is in those Gain detergent products)? Apparently so, as they’re selling lots of these products but it’s not something that ever appealed to me. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2931 "2021-09-30T14:08:54Z")
Laundry sniffing is creepy. Unless you really need to know whether you can get one more day’s wear out of a pair of pants. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2932 "2021-09-30T14:15:40Z")
As long as I can remember, laundry detergent and fabric softeners have had scents. And I don’t mean just that they weren’t unscented, but that they had specific scents , like Downy April Fresh. What’s different now is 1) there’s a whole selection of products with the same scent - you can get scent beads and fabric softener with the same scent 2) Scent beads are new and the scent lasts much longer than detergent/fabric softener. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2933 "2021-09-30T14:21:46Z")
The scent beads are useful for things like towels and athletic clothing, as they can develop a funk after a short while, and you do not want to use fabric softener on those. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2934 "2021-09-30T14:44:20Z")
I’m vaguely remembering a similar commercial featuring a weird looking school principal (?) sniffing the clothes of her students. I get that they try to show “regular” people sometimes, but they don’t have to go crazy with it. There are plenty of normal, attractive actors that they really don’t need to feature the freaks. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2935 "2021-09-30T19:06:04Z")
It’s not as bad as the first one, with a school administrator or teacher, strutting down the school halls and the students sniffing her, [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPV4O20jQzE) ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2936 "2021-09-30T19:38:15Z")
I don’t get it. What does it gain the advertiser to have their products associated with a bunch of freaky looking characters? ---
**Author:** ![mikecurtis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikecurtis/32/3284_2.png) [@mikecurtis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mikecurtis)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2937 "2021-09-30T19:48:35Z")
It’s called _oddvertising_ and it’s surprisingly effective. > **[Oddvertising - Oddly Successful Advertising | Blog | adHOME](https://adhomecreative.com/vibe/our-blog/oddvertising-oddly-successful-advertising/)** > > Ever watch an advertisement that made you second guess what you just saw? Sounds like you just experienced an Oddvertisement. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2938 "2021-09-30T20:14:03Z")
> I don’t get it. What does it gain the advertiser to have their products associated with a bunch of freaky looking characters? Ask Joe Sedelmeier. He built a whole career on it. “Where’s the beef?” didn’t hurt Wendy’s [(oh, and do watch their Soviet Fashion Show!)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CaMUfxVJVQ&list=PL0sYgsgbBBA8J_xF9AkJGdxz9oBGb5bPB&index=30). FedEx, Godfather’s Pizza, Subaru, and [Alaska Airlines did well with Joel’s freaky people.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSiibkSBTME) Sedelmeier would grab odd-looking people off the street, and one story I heard was him looking up at a guy on a ladder in downtown Chicago and asking “You happy up there? Would you rather come with me to a TV studio and make a few thousand dollars this morning?” Ahh, just found part of a documentary that starts with clips of a lot of his “uglies, as people called them”. [https://allarts.org/programs/art-design-in-chicago/tv-commercials-joe-sedelmaier-vusrc7/](https://allarts.org/programs/art-design-in-chicago/tv-commercials-joe-sedelmaier-vusrc7/) ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2021, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2939 "2021-09-30T22:11:34Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > Laundry sniffing is creepy. Maybe they should change the music to _Arnold Layne_ ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2940 "2021-10-01T01:21:56Z")
If they did, I would totally buy some Gain. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2941 "2021-10-01T03:02:42Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > I would totally buy some Gain. And I would be creepin’ round your washing line ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2942 "2021-10-01T13:28:52Z")
Those see-through baby blues would suit you fine. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2943 "2021-10-01T14:52:37Z")
Oh how I hate the [shingles commercials…](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RLM4iTnQdc) ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2944 "2021-10-01T15:31:09Z")
Yeah, but the first one has my favorite commercial actor in it. I forget his name, but always like to see him! [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/NX94ee61mOo/maxresdefault.jpg "Shingles Can Be What Commercial (2020)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NX94ee61mOo) ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2021, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089/2945 "2021-10-01T19:36:07Z")
WHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTT??? Ugh. I hate it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089.md?page=146) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/again-with-the-annoying-commercials/790089.md?page=148)