# Most tone-deaf/out of touch commercials? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** commercials-ads\ **Created:** [July 30, 2026, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017 "2026-07-30T11:04:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/201 "2026-08-05T11:50:27Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > Also in east-central Minnesota, 1991: Returning from a canoe trip in the Boundary Waters Was this in Alexandria, by any chance? ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/202 "2026-08-05T11:52:51Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > She’s somehow examining their used toilet paper before they flush it. I thought it was because the kids had scraps of TP stuck to their bottoms. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/203 "2026-08-05T11:55:42Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > 1. Twin Cities, late 1970s, where my junior high band went for a trip, and that’s where we ate before attending a live theater performance. One of my friends summed it up this way: “That was the fanciest McDonald’s I’ve ever seen.” IIRC, they had chandeliers and (probably plastic) ivy all over the place. There’s a McDonald’s in Tacoma with a Chihuly sculpture hanging inside. Let’s see the Twin Cities top that. Tacoma, Washington, is Dale Chihuly’s hometown. People who say it’s Seattle are wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/204 "2026-08-05T12:48:34Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > “Now imagine being a million miles away!” > > Yeah. Imagine choking and dying in the cold loneliness of space. 🤨 On Earth, that would be a little under 4,000 miles away from your starting point. It just takes you longer to get there. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/205 "2026-08-05T14:44:34Z")
The cold loneliness of space only starts about 62 miles away. Mind you, if you aren’t still moving away at that point, you will soon be heating up rapidly again. ---
**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:** [August 5, 2026, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/206 "2026-08-05T14:59:12Z")
This current Facebook ad is no “I’d hit it”, but it’s pretty cringe. [![](https://i.ibb.co/z1zZHv9/Screenshot-20260805-105122.jpg) ](https://i.ibb.co/z1zZHv9/Screenshot-20260805-105122.jpg) ---
**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:** [August 5, 2026, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/207 "2026-08-05T15:03:45Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > > [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > > > She’s somehow examining their used toilet paper before they flush it. > > I thought it was because the kids had scraps of TP stuck to their bottoms. All of the Charmin commercials with the bears are weird. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/208 "2026-08-05T15:05:17Z")
I suppose if one had a poop fetish, going into the TP biz, or the TP-advertising biz, would be sort of a natural. ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/209 "2026-08-05T15:08:02Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > This current Facebook ad is no “I’d hit it”, but it’s pretty cringe. What’s so cringe about it? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/210 "2026-08-05T15:13:42Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > All of the Charmin commercials with the bears are weird. The Charmin Bears sort of evolved out of a one-shot ad, which was literally based on the term “does a bear shit in the woods?” [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCgxFgYKveg](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCgxFgYKveg) Even stranger, now, there are three different “bear families,” which are used for different types of ads, though most of the ads focus on the last two: - The brown bears are used for general advertising for the Charmin brand (which there is not a lot of) - The blue bears advertise Charmin Ultra Soft (with ads focusing on the benefit of super-soft TP for sensitive heinies) - The red bears advertise Charmin Ultra Strong (with ads focusing on the need for TP that won’t fall apart when you use it) [![](https://preview.redd.it/im-pretty-sure-this-is-just-me-but-i-hate-how-the-charmin-v0-34h6ty9tzfg61.png?width=640&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=401ccff516d32f2dbdb3102741226a4bfda5f00e) ](https://preview.redd.it/im-pretty-sure-this-is-just-me-but-i-hate-how-the-charmin-v0-34h6ty9tzfg61.png?width=640&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=401ccff516d32f2dbdb3102741226a4bfda5f00e) ---
**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:** [August 5, 2026, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/211 "2026-08-05T15:16:41Z")
> [@Dorjan](#): > > What’s so cringe about it? The attempt at hip lingo, man. ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/212 "2026-08-05T15:53:51Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Even stranger, now, there are three different “bear families,” which are used for different types of ads I’ve always thought those bears were creepy, and also that they were different colors, but never realized that each color family was pushing a slightly different product. From the very start, though, those commercials made me think of the joke of the bear and rabbit walking through the woods… ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/213 "2026-08-05T15:59:44Z")
Literally, that is! ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/214 "2026-08-05T16:00:53Z")
I wonder if the soft weak woke bears being blue and the big manly strong bears being red is an accident / coincidence, a subtle attempt to subliminally sell along partisan lines, or a blatant attempt to suck up to RW sensibilities. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/215 "2026-08-05T18:55:43Z")
Sometimes a red bear is just a red bear. ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/216 "2026-08-05T19:11:35Z")
Never seen a red bear, but I have seen pink elephants! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/217 "2026-08-05T19:16:37Z")
Speaking of Charming, does anyone remember Mr. Whipple and his squeezing fetish? ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/218 "2026-08-05T19:20:46Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Mr. Whipple I actually MET Mr. Whipple! He was the next door neighbor to a co-worker’s bride, and apparently he and his wife were like a second set of grandparents to the bride and her sisters. During the bride’s speech, she introduced them as family friends (by their real names, not Mr. and Mrs. Whipple), and Mr. Whipple got up, went to the mike, and delivered about 10 minutes of impromptu stand-up, most of which was about the bride and her family. It was hilarious, made even more funny when we learned that it was completely unplanned. He really seemed like a nice guy IRL. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/219 "2026-08-05T20:03:26Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > - The brown bears are used for general advertising for the Charmin brand (which there is not a lot of) Primarily [Essentials](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ij6ZP8mUa0) these days, AFAIK. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2026, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/220 "2026-08-05T20:32:45Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > All of the Charmin commercials with the bears are weird. I mean, if your goal is to advertise toilet paper, there aren’t really any good options. Weird is probably about the best you can hope for. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017.md?page=12)