There was an ad with a gorilla playing drums to “in the air tonight” about ten years ago. I never cared for it, so maybe that’s why I can’t remember what it was advertising. A lot of people seemed to enjoy it, but I don’t recall them ever mentioning what it was for either.
I have a (very) vague memory of a commercial I saw some decades ago. I think it was during the 1976 Olympics. The scene opened in an old fashioned post office, the clerk was leaning against the window, there was a spider web between him and the window frame. He was muttering, “Only two thousand five hundred and seventy three days to retirement.” The ad was for some sort of express delivery service, but I absolutely cannot remember which one. The commercial has stuck in my mind for decades, but I have no idea what was actually being advertised.
EDS (Wiki Link) was one of those companies that your average consumer isn’t going to do any business with. It’s kind of like seeing an ad for Workday or Salesforce. These are businesses that don’t cater to consumers they cater to other businesses. Unless you were in IT or owned a business that could make use of their services EDS never would have been on your radar.
I just learned something… The “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” commercials were originally for LifeCall. Now there is a slight variation and used for Life Alert. I never knew the company for the original ones, but I do know Life Alert.
And I don’t know what they were advertising in those commercials when they showed someone in an office setting and then a football player tackles them and starts yelling at them. Something like Larry the office linebacker.
I remember a cool commercial with a pretty girl dancing seductively around a BMW e10 to some groovy music, but no idea what they were selling. It wasn’t BMW’s, I know that.
The 1964 LBJ campaign’s “Daisy” ad was a bit ambiguous.
The Cadbury Gorilla, from 2007
Perhaps “1982 Federal Express Overnight Commercial”?
slightly longer version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzjBEYiZrLMOh Jeebus. There’s a guy in my office that still uses this stupid garbage phrase every goddam Wednesday and pauses in joyous anticipation for anyone to join in and celebrate this delightfully witty occasion. I really want to smack him but he’s my boss…
at least 40 years ago.
Male college student hitchhiking while standing in snow. He’s holding a sign that says, “Miami” or “Miami Beach”. A hot babe stops and says, “I’m going as far as Ft. Lauderdale.” at which point the fellow begrudgingly rejects the offer and sticks out his thumb for the next car.
I posted this about five years ago. Someone claimed it was an ad for Alka Seltzer, but I fail to see the connection and am unable to find it in any online Alka Seltzer advertisement (there are scores and scores of online ads for A.S.
Candidates for a brain transit time of milliseconds:
- just about any cellphone/ Internet provider ad; totally forgettable
- most beers ads; beer sloshing into a glass? Take your pick from dozens
- car ads are increasingly similar, if you don’t recognize the make anyway
- most proprietary medicines
That Godawful Puppy-Monkey-Baby thing from the Super Bowl a few years ago. I was too busy running for the remote and yelling about who the hell would buy anything from a mascot that creepy to pay any attention to the product it was selling.
That’s Terry Tate: Office Linebacker, and man, I just thought they were funny ESPN commercials.
I just looked it up and they were Reebok commercials. Wiki goes on to quote: “Though successful in attracting viewers and attention, the ads’ ability to increase recognition of the Reebok brand has been questioned, with only 55% of respondents on an on-line poll indicating they realized the ad was affiliated with the company”
I love those commercials.
There was an advertisement in the mid to late 1980s with a voiceover that kept repeating in a whispering voice, “hot news! Hot news! Hot hot! Hot news! Hot news! Hot hot!” I think it was for an electric kettle or maybe a popcorn popper, but my Google search comes up empty (other than this thread that I started in 2011).
Are you conflating this with the one with Mike the Camel? The term hump day has been around for years but I don’t remember anyone ever just shouting “Hump Day!!” 
“That’s the beauty of it. It doesn’t do anything…”
[quote=“Wallet, post:28, topic:844152”]
Perhaps “1982 Federal Express Overnight Commercial”?
slightly longer version[/QUOTE]I guess that must be it. It doesn’t exactly match my memory, but that’s memory for you.
Alka-Seltzer featured the “Mama Mia, Thats a Spicy Meatball” ad in 1969 and was a popular meme at the time. It actually reduced sales of the product.
(the sad part of all of this is that, when searching google for references, several sites have to explain where the phrase came from to these young whipper-snappers)
The ad where the guy is teaching his dog to drive. It was for Carfax
I love that one. I still say “mother of pearl!” from time to time.
Also, loved the Terry Tate ads. “If you kill the joe, you make some mo!”