# Anyone remember this 40+ year-old TV commercial? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** commercials-ads\ **Created:** [July 8, 2014, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595 "2014-07-08T00:55:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bizerta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@bizerta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizerta)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/1 "2014-07-08T00:55:47Z")
In another news group, four of us are trying to recall a 40+ year-old TV commercial. Can anyone tell me/us what this was a commercial for? We all agree on the following: It shows a man in his twenties hitchhiking on the side of the road. He is standing in snow and holding a sign that says “Miami Beach”. A (sports?) car pulls up next to him and a stunning woman rolls down the passenger window and says, “I’m (only) going as far as Fort Lauderdale”. At this point, the hitchhiker has an expression of despair, turns away from the woman, and faces the oncoming traffic in an effort to find a ride to his destination. \>One of us believes that there are two occupants of the car, a couple. The rest of us believe there is only one occupant (which we feel makes it funnier). \>One of us believes there is a sign with “Bangor” in the scene, leading us to believe this is taking place in Maine. \>Although we all agree that the sign said “Miami”, most of us are pretty sure it said, “Miami Beach” (which is the town just east of Miami). \>One person found a blog of a fellow who claims it was an advertisement for Alka Seltzer, but we’re all skeptical. I’ve gone through youtube Alka-Seltzer commercials and didn’t find it. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/2 "2014-07-08T01:00:05Z")
I doubt it makes any difference but there’s other Bangors, just off the top of my head, I know of one in Wisconsin and one in Michigan. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/3 "2014-07-08T01:49:18Z")
Moved to Cafe Society. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/4 "2014-07-08T03:43:13Z")
Depending on exactly how long ago, maybe a cigarette commercial? Some were kind of silly. Like Tareyton: “I’d rather fight than switch” showing beautiful women and cool looking guys sporting black eyes. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/5 "2014-07-08T03:57:41Z")
Remember, 40+ years ago only puts us in the late 60’s or early 70’s. Whether or not that’s actually what the OP meant, I don’t know. I suppose the two questions I have are 1. was this commercial from the 60’s/70’s or earlier like the 50’s? 2. was it in color or black and white? ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/6 "2014-07-08T04:09:12Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > I doubt it makes any difference but there’s other Bangors, just off the top of my head, I know of one in Wisconsin and one in Michigan. Pennsylvania, too, but road signs in commercials are nearly alll fakes, so it probably doesn’t matter. Ad agencies doing location shoots are very hesitant to use any scenes with identifiable features. If they put in a sign that said Bangor, you can bet that they wanted the viewer to assume the guy was in Maine. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/7 "2014-07-08T04:11:28Z")
This sounds awfully familiar, but I cannot remember the product. I recall it being in color, if that helps to narrow it down. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/8 "2014-07-08T04:41:08Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > I doubt it makes any difference but there’s other Bangors, just off the top of my head, I know of one in Wisconsin and one in Michigan. There is one in Pennsylvania where my roommate freshman year lived. Which made the Firesign Theatre line “From Bangor all the way to mighty Maine” especially funny. Don’t remember the commercial. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/9 "2014-07-08T06:05:21Z")
A search shows that some people think it was a commercial for Alka Seltzer Cold Relief. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/10 "2014-07-08T06:34:32Z")
Just for laughs, here’s what a search on the phrase “[I’m only going as far as Ft. Lauderdale](http://acimlounge.ning.com/forum/topics/june-4-holding-out-the-book-of-awakening-mark-nepo)” turns up. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/11 "2014-07-08T07:11:43Z")
It’s the commercial referenced here: > **[Historic Films: AS-572](https://www.historicfilms.com/tapes/22547)** > > ED SULLIVAN SHOW, REEL# 663. (6/15/69) Use the slider on the right to get down to 03:33:58. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2014, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/12 "2014-07-08T22:51:49Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > A search shows that some people think it was a commercial for Alka Seltzer Cold Relief. That’s how I remembered it. ---
**Author:** ![Yelnick\_McWawa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/839c29/32.png) [@Yelnick\_McWawa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yelnick_McWawa)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2022, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/13 "2022-02-08T18:41:29Z")
[![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/m2J38OAlwkk/hqdefault.jpg "16mm 1960s classic Alka-Seltzer and a few Bay Gasoline commercials") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2J38OAlwkk) Only one occupant of the car No signs for Bangor (or anywhere else) Miami, not Miami Beach It WAS Alka Seltzer shown in 1969. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2022, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-40-year-old-tv-commercial/692595/14 "2022-02-08T21:33:00Z")
Excellent job, Yelnick McWawa.