Dopers in the southwestern states have probably seen a Pacific Bell commercial–which may air in other parts of the country in different versions, for all I know.
Scene; Kid’s room. Eleven-year-old boy seated at computer, playing computer game. Father appears at door.
Father: Jimmy, are you going to do your homework?
Jimmy (annoyed): What for?
Father: Jimmy, your grandmother is on the phone.
Jimmy (really snotty): She’s your mother!
This continues for a few more questions, until the viewer is presumably really pissed off at the kid’s arrogance and insolence. Then someone throws a telephone book at the kid, hitting him in the head and knocking him to the floor. A close-up of the open page shows the category guide-words “Military School,” which is apparently what it takes to get this kid to shape up.
I for one and really delighted at this way of making a point to a really snotty kid.
My mother, however, said I shouldn’t consider it funny, or even satisfying, that the kid gets struck like that.
Could I have a consensus about this commercial, from other Dopers?
Not funny. I bet they get more protests than sympathy for running it.
Freaking hilarious.
Can’t people take a joke? :rolleyes:
BTW, I saw it a couple of times at Mammarasta & Papparasta’s house (here in central IL), but they had a satellite.
I think it funny as well. You know america is getting bad, when a phone book can’t be chucked a kids head without the abuse groups going crazy…:rolleyes:
I’d like to shove a [edited] into the [edited] of people who are offended by that.
They’re (if you’re one of them, then you’re) the ‘sensitive’ people who are ‘friends’ to their kids and end up raising piece of [edited] monsters like them. [edited] that.
–Tim
[Everyone-try to remember that this is NOT the Pit, o.k.?-slythe]
[Edited by slythe on 10-14-2000 at 08:59 PM]
That particular one is very funny and I have seen a couple of others also. The three guys sitting around in a room playing some kind of role playing game and the book gets thrown at them showing the page for dating services. The there is the one where the poor guys has to dress in a chicken suit and deliver food to a couple of really cute girls and he is horrified and then has to sings to them, when the book is thrown at him it’s open to career counseling.
Whoever came up with those commercials is very creative and funny.
Yo, Homer.
I’d consider my parents friends of a sort. I have a very give-and-take relationship with them. Not equal footing, of course, but they’ve never had to hit me or discipline me severly at all (I think I got a few time-outs as a kid that I remember).
Am I a piece of [edited] monster to you too?
[Please try to comment on the commercial, not each other, o.k.?-slythe]
[Edited by slythe on 10-14-2000 at 09:01 PM]
Sorry about that, Slythe. His comment just got to me personally.
Homer, if you’d e-mail me or perhaps open a seperate thread where you might be able to explain your comment, I’d appreciate it. Thanks.
I’ve never seen it, but it sounds funny.
It’s a commercial, fer chrissake. Does anyone think that viewing a commercial is going to make a parent think, “Yeah, that’s a good idea. Next time I’ll wallop the kid with the phone book.”?
Probably not.
Geez. What’s up with the pieces of [edited] monsters here? I don’t think we have any.
About this commercial- for once i feel i’m missing out on something by inhabiting New York! Wish they would broadcast it here.
I don’t think its offensive at all. You guys mentioned 2 other ones, right? Role playing guys getting hit, and a guy w/ a nerdy job, and no one got mad about that. I mean, what, you show someone who is obviously a kid getting hurt and it’s suddenly a crime against nature? For all we know, that kid could’ve been a fifty year old midget. Hmmm. I just think that its not worth getting upset about. If the kid had been nice, friendly, and sweet…like SpeakerfortheDead, maybe, and had gotten assaulted anyway, maybe I’d see cause for alarm, but come on, who among us hasn’t wanted to drop kick an annoying obnoxious kid in the arse?
I saw the commercial for the first time the other day and I think it’s frickkin’ hilarious!
The kid is so obviously abusive to his parent that getting whacked upside the noggin with a directory should be the least of his worries.
As to all the wailing of child abuse and whatsuch drivel, I direct you to the tasty little hijack that follows:
[tasty little hijack]
This reminds me very little of a situation in a WC Fields movie. Fields had a passionate hatred for Baby Leroy (the child character). Whenever Fields was supposed to kiss the baby, the kid would bite Fields on the schnozolla. (Do remember that Fields had quite the swollen proboscis to begin with.) In retribution, Fields would routinely spike the kid’s baby bottle with liquor. (He over-did it once and actually sent the kid to the hospital, but that’s grist for another thread.)
More importantly, in one of his films where Baby Leroy was being the usual pest, Fields planted a foot squarely in the kid’s backside and pushed him down. The film review board was outraged and hauled up Fields to defend himself on charges of encouraging child abuse. WC stood his ground maintaining that, “There isn’t a man alive that hasn’t wanted to do that at some point in his life.” The scene was allowed to remain.
[/tasty little hijack]
I think that what we have here is a modern day equivalent of the Fields movie situation. I find it difficult to believe that most people over thirty who view that commercial aren’t ready to give the kid a shellacking at the drop of a hat. I know I would.
“Talk to the hand, 'cause the face ain’t listening.”
Rhully…
[tangent]Zenster, the only thing disturbing about W. C. Fields in this connection (and I make no bones about the fact that I cannot stand Fields) is the quotation about (not by Fields, by Leo Rosten (creator of HYMAN KAPLA*N): “Any man who hates children and dogs can’t be all bad.” The disturbing thought is that Mr. Rosten should certainly have known better–inasmuch as he was Jewish, and–well, we all know what happened to Anne Frank. 
[/tangent]