# Is this the greatest commercial ever made? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 16, 2017, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760 "2017-08-16T05:09:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2017, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/41 "2017-08-18T19:44:05Z")
[Sears Optical](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZOeWFBy75A) 80s ad for [Philips Light Bulbs](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Gh0Q-BQXMQ) ---
**Author:** ![Wallaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/dc4da7/32.png) [@Wallaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallaby)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/42 "2017-08-19T03:40:08Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > Always has a soft spot for the [Tango](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bR1SEGyVVe0) commercials. It doesn’t include the [greatest Tango ad of all](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRbyTxIp10A). ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/43 "2017-08-19T14:32:21Z")
> [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](#): > > It was an add made ‘on spec’ and originally rejected, but it still may be the best: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJGeb4CbJsM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJGeb4CbJsM) WTF? How is that supposed to make you want to buy gym shoes? Is that supposed to be uplifting or something? Portraying a nursing home like it’s _One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest_ complete with a scowling Nurse Ratched? Locked facilities are locked for a reason. People with advanced Alzheimer’s will wander off, and get lost. People in nursing homes aren’t being kept for the sheer joy of being evil, or because they don’t fit “into a conformist society, maaan.” The doors are locked to keep them safe. Repulsive commercial, if you ask me. ---
**Author:** ![HyacinthBucket](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hyacinthbucket/32/3063_2.png) [@HyacinthBucket](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HyacinthBucket)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2017, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/44 "2017-08-19T23:01:31Z")
Not only does it get the product’s message across, but it was inspired by a Bugs Bunny cartoon. Snow Covered. [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_hjxfBhWzA) ---
**Author:** ![Trancephalic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trancephalic/32/380_2.png) [@Trancephalic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trancephalic)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2017, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/45 "2017-08-20T01:05:30Z")
[![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/XYqS4lHZqI8/hqdefault.jpg "Joust Commercial") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYqS4lHZqI8) ---
**Author:** ![Hanover\_Fist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Hanover\_Fist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hanover_Fist)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/46 "2017-11-29T16:31:39Z")
No, imo. My pick: [- YouTube](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=n-XABtUQFNw) ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/47 "2017-11-29T16:40:44Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Here’s an [ad](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-bBSudgKSs) for a product called Mr Beams Indoor Outdoor Solar Eclipse Lighting for Solar Eclipses. It’s a pretty obvious parody of the bad ads used to sell unnecessary products. > > So why is it perhaps the greatest commercial ever made? Because [Mr Beams](http://www.mrbeams.com/) is an actual company that sells real lighting. They made a parody ad of their own product. Nice ad for such a low budget. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/48 "2017-11-29T17:26:22Z")
I’m rather fond of this one, for GE: Brilliant direction, IMO. Notice all the little details linking one scene to another. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/49 "2017-11-29T18:07:01Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats](#): > > WTF? How is that supposed to make you want to buy gym shoes? Is that supposed to be uplifting or something? Portraying a nursing home like it’s _One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest_ complete with a scowling Nurse Ratched? > > Locked facilities are locked for a reason. People with advanced Alzheimer’s will wander off, and get lost. People in nursing homes aren’t being kept for the sheer joy of being evil, or because they don’t fit “into a conformist society, maaan.” The doors are locked to keep them safe. > > Repulsive commercial, if you ask me. Absolutely! If he’s in a locked facility, he’s there because he needs to be for his own safety…My friend’s elderly aunt, over 80, somehow broke out of her memory care unit, no one knows how. She was found 4 miles down a busy highway, in shredded bedroom slippers, with a filled up diaper leaking, and no idea in the world where she was or where she was going…People with Alzheimers want to ‘go home’ all the time, even if you take them back home, they don’t recognize the place. They could mean a childhood home or another place altogether. My mother didn’t recognize her own house before she went into a nursing home, she thought she was visiting someone else’s, and kept calling me to come pick her up and take her ‘home’! ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/50 "2017-11-29T18:08:58Z")
Aaron Burr. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/51 "2017-11-29T18:44:33Z")
[Little Baby’s Ice Cream](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUzHnFbRHLM) ---
**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:** [November 29, 2017, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/52 "2017-11-29T18:55:47Z")
I still dream of the Woolite commercials featuring sweater girls coming down the escalator. Va Va and also Voom. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/53 "2017-11-29T20:02:32Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > I still dream of the Woolite commercials featuring sweater girls coming down the escalator. Va Va and also Voom. Linky? ---
**Author:** ![Kiber](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kiber/32/317_2.png) [@Kiber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiber)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/54 "2017-11-29T20:31:10Z")
[Terry Tate Officer Linebacker](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzToNo7A-94) ---
**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:** [November 29, 2017, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/55 "2017-11-29T21:00:58Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > Stan Freberg’s [Gino’s Pizza Rolls](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SE-NdrzfFOo) has never been topped. It’s a bit dated, but anyone at the time got all the references (notably to a commercial for Lark Cigarettes where people asked to show their pack of cigarettes and which used the same music). My favorite also. So good that Johnny Carson showed it as part of his program, not just as an add. Also in Freberg’s boxed set, along with a Sunsweet Prune ad featuring Ray Bradbury. For even more meta, when I lived in Louisiana there was an ad for a car dealer, I think, that was a parody of a political ad, including a bull “outstanding in his field” - out standing in a field. The close said the ad was sponsored by the bull in scene 4. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/56 "2017-11-29T21:27:38Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > People with Alzheimers want to ‘go home’ all the time, even if you take them back home, they don’t recognize the place. They could mean a childhood home or another place altogether. My grandmother once had to spend a few weeks in a geriatric mental hospital for severe depression. That facility was locked, and it definitely needed to be. I remember in particular this pair of old women who were convinced that they were leaving work for the day, would say goodbye to every one, would be confused about why the door wouldn’t open, would ask people to help them with the door because they had to get home to their families, would after a few minutes wander off and forget it, and a half-hour or so later would do the same damn routine again. Some times an old man would join them and fiddle with the door trying to get it open for them. The first time I saw him, he was asking everyone if they had a gun that he could borrow. In another case, my next-door neighbor’s mother was in a nursing home, in a wheel chair. She was on the outside sidewalk of the place unattended or poorly attended, and the place is on a _very_ steep incline. So of course the wheelchair rolled down hill, picking up a considerable speed and throwing her off when it hit some sort of barrier, killing her. So yes, there are damn good reasons to keep those doors locked. On a lighter note, [two](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbDZHMGHC1k) [other](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oEhxd16f0A) candidates for best commercial. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/57 "2017-11-29T22:18:04Z")
> [@Bumbazine](#): > > A collection of [Trunk monkey](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XW8iAVwt_Yc) commercials. Big seconding for the Trunk Monkey!! [Use condoms!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nojWJ6-XmeQ) ---
**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:** [November 30, 2017, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/58 "2017-11-30T00:45:22Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Linky? I wish 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2017, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/59 "2017-11-30T01:58:55Z")
I’ve liked many of the gap commercials over the years. This year’s [You’ve Got What I Need](https://www.ispot.tv/ad/wjyH/gap-to-perfect-harmony-featuring-janelle-mone) fits the bill - I get a kick out of the straight-laced blond boy in front. From 1999: [Dress You Up with My Love](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mb3n9yU1LDo). Rashida Jones is the 4th singer! The blond pig-tail girl who blinks uncontrollably at the end is funny. About the same time: [Mellow Yellow](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4Hu6up9Xng), with the same group of people, along with [I Just Can’t Get Enough](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOMkkgrNyPo). Probably my favorite gap commercial is [Summer Breeze](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2SGIZBnAKA) with Bridget Hall taking off layers of tank tops. There’s just pure sensuality there. Then again there are the Jennifer Love Hewitt [Levi Colors Jeans](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ig7ENh9UGUI) commercials from 1990 (the link has the two commercials back-to-back). All I can say is most people aren’t looking at her jeans. I don’t think they could or would show it today. I don’t know if they’re the best commercials, but they’re certainly memorable! ---
**Author:** ![si\_blakely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@si\_blakely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/si_blakely)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2017, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760/60 "2017-11-30T04:27:48Z")
The video is a bit poor, being from the 70s, but this [kiwi classic](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3laBRBPfQ4) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-greatest-commercial-ever-made/793760.md?page=4)