# 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:** 6
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2026, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/101 "2026-08-02T03:44:29Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > How long has it been since Cadillac was the Cadillac of cars? They have always been, by definition. > [@Smapti](#): > > Nothing will ever beat the out-of-touchness of giving an insurance mascot their own prime time sitcom. Geico also did a short mockumentary with the Gecko- _Legend of the Lizard._ > [@LSLGuy](#): > > Everything about how they’ve changed their field of membership eligibility and marketing is offensive to what they stood for when I signed up. Everything. Which is- how? > [@LSLGuy](#): > > If your kid was a boy you could have showed him this tone-deaf commercial. That was - kinda fun. 🤪 ---
**Author:** ![zbuzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e19b73/32.png) [@zbuzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zbuzz)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2026, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/102 "2026-08-02T03:47:53Z")
> [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](#): > > “Mercedes Benz. The Cadillac of cars.” Krusty the Clown: > I’m telling you, the Canyonero is the Cadillac of automobiles! That’s Canyonero!" Also, this bit from The Wire when Snoop needs advice on buying the best nail gun: > [Man said if you wanna shoot nails, this here’s the Cadillac, man. He mean Lexus, but he ain’t know it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDpvkwBBu6U). ---
**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 2, 2026, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/103 "2026-08-02T11:10:19Z")
> [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](#): > > I vaguely remember a bit from Mad Magazine sometime in the '70’s. Maybe it was “Ads we’d like to see” or some such… > > _“Mercedes Benz. The Cadillac of cars.”_ I thought it was “Cadillac, the Rolls Royce of automobiles.” ---
**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 2, 2026, 11:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/104 "2026-08-02T11:12:59Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > That was - kinda fun. 🤪 They made a bunch of them. YouTube has them all. Each campy in their own silly way. For awhile “The Swedish Bikini Team” was a widespread meme when that term didn’t exist yet. ---
**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 2, 2026, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/105 "2026-08-02T11:23:23Z")
Not to be confused with the 1995 Oldsmobile Silhouette, which is the “Cadillac of minivans”. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2026, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/106 "2026-08-02T12:16:02Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > They have always been, by definition. Just in case something was lost in translation. You used to be able to describe something of high quality by saying, “It’s the Cadillac of \_\_\_\_\_\_\_.” Like, “Swingline is the Cadillac of staplers.” ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2026, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/107 "2026-08-02T12:35:44Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > > [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](#): > > > > _“Mercedes Benz. The Cadillac of cars.”_ > > I thought it was “Cadillac, the Rolls Royce of automobiles.” “Pan Am - the American way to fly!” ---
**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 2, 2026, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/108 "2026-08-02T13:15:05Z")
> [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](#): > > “Pan Am - the American way to fly!” “Western Airlines—the _only_ way to fly!” [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/D0Ldq5zC6VI/hqdefault.jpg "Western Airlines 'Lion Tamer' Commercial (1975)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0Ldq5zC6VI) ---
**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 2, 2026, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/109 "2026-08-02T14:33:34Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > Ah yes, that was around the time that the Harkonnens assumed the governorship of Arrakis, wasn’t it? Does that mean the Catera, the Opel of Cadillacs, was a product of the Atreides? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2026, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/110 "2026-08-02T15:08:23Z")
The name pretty much tells you all you need to know: 1. Old 2. Milwaukee ---
**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 2, 2026, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/111 "2026-08-02T15:20:26Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > 1. Milwaukee There was a time, not all that long ago, when Milwaukee was synonymous with brewing beer. Many of the major U.S. beer companies, including Miller, Pabst, Schlitz, and Blatz, were all based in the city. (Old Milwaukee was originally Schlitz’s “value brand,” but by the time of the Swedish Bikini Team ads, the brand was owned and brewed by Stroh’s, which had bought Schlitz due to its financial issues.) People might sneer now, and say, “well, yeah, but that’s not _good_ beer,” but in the '60s, '70s, and '80s, before the era of microbreweries and craft brewing, those brands were still pretty dominant as far as sales. ---
**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 2, 2026, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/112 "2026-08-02T15:36:55Z")
It’s named after the city that means beer! Tastes as great as its name! ---
**Author:** ![Jaycat.again](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat.again/32/11525_2.png) [@Jaycat.again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaycat.again)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2026, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/113 "2026-08-02T16:52:42Z")
It was the beer that made Mel Famey walk us! ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2026, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/114 "2026-08-02T18:29:22Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > Just in case something was lost in translation. You used to be able to describe something of high quality by saying, “It’s the Cadillac of \_\_\_\_\_\_\_.” Like, “Swingline is the Cadillac of staplers.” Yes, true, and Cadillac is no longer the best luxury car. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2026, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/115 "2026-08-02T18:48:22Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > It’s named after the city that means beer! But every other beer from Milwaukee was ten times better. Old Milwaukee was a joke, but back in the '50s, Miller, Pabst, and Schlitz were decent beers\*. \*All pilsners, as I recall. I grew up on those “classic” beers, but got spoiled by craft beers. Then a bartender offered me a pilsner, and I said “Hey, growing up in Milwaukee, this is what every beer from my childhood tasted like!” ---
**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 2, 2026, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/116 "2026-08-02T18:56:02Z")
Milwaukee’s Best must be even better than Old Peawaukee. It’s right in the name. I know we’re drifting from the OP. So, Swedish Bikini Team! Woot! ---
**Author:** ![peedin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peedin/32/14095_2.png) [@peedin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peedin)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2026, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/117 "2026-08-02T19:08:50Z")
Never mind ---
**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 2, 2026, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/118 "2026-08-02T19:25:30Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > I know we’re drifting from the OP. So, Swedish Bikini Team! Woot! Not as far as you think: > While the campaign generated widespread interest, the advertisements were eventually dropped after protests by the [National Organization for Women](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Organization_for_Women "National Organization for Women") and female employees of the [Pabst Brewing Company](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pabst_Brewing_Company "Pabst Brewing Company"). > **[Swedish Bikini Team](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swedish_Bikini_Team)** > > The Swedish Bikini Team was a group of American female models who appeared in an advertising campaign for Old Milwaukee beer. These commercials ran for several months in 1991 in the United States, playing with American stereotypes of Scandinavian women being blonde and having big breasts. The premise of the commercials was that a group of bored or thirsty men were "saved" by the Swedish Bikini Team. Other commercials would focus on a group of men male bonding on a hunting trip and saying "Guys Wh... ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2026, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/119 "2026-08-02T19:59:18Z")
> [@digs](#): > > All pilsners, as I recall. I grew up on those “classic” beers, but got spoiled by craft beers. > Then a bartender offered me a pilsner, and I said “Hey, growing up in Milwaukee, this is what every beer from my childhood tasted like!” You drank beer regularly as a child? ---
**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 2, 2026, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017/120 "2026-08-02T20:00:02Z")
Milwaukee, I presume. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-tone-deaf-out-of-touch-commercials/1032017.md?page=7)