I was watching the Season 16 episode “A Star is Torn”, where Homer manages Lisa through an American Idol-esque contest. Backstage, Homer tries to strangle a character with licorice, because he brought her “Twizlers” instead of “Red Vines.” Afterwards, they show a picture of the “Red Vines” box, and Homer says, “Well, what do you know, they were ‘Red Vines’.”
I doubt this was a paid product placement, but it’s the only one I can ever recall seeing. Are there any other examples of this in other episodes?
(I’m guessing there has to be a “Butterfinger” placement, but I can’t recall…)
There’s one I recall, I don’t remember the context but they’re talking about Maggie growing up too fast or something and she starts doing a brittany spears dance and then holds out a can of pepsi.
When Lisa & Bart find the video “BARTSAD,” and realize it’s for “Bart’s Ad,” Bart remarks “I don’t remember doing a commercial,” then unwraps and bites into a Butterfinger candy bar.
Chief Wiggum, Eddie and Lou are at Krustyburger. Chief Wiggum says (paraphrased), “I was over in Shelbyville and they had this place called McDonalds. Instead of a Krusty Burger with cheese, they had a Quarter Pounder with cheese.”
Lou: “You mean no Krusty brand non dairy frozen drink product?”
Wiggum: “They had them, but they called them shakes”
At least three times they’ve done outright ads for products:
The whole family singing “I feel like chicken tonight, chicken tonight!” just like the commercial (I can’t remember the product name though).
Bart and Lisa singing the Armor Hot Dogs song (complete with a sign that says “BUY ARMOR HOT DOGS”).
The Critic, Bart and Lisa singing the Oscar Meyer song.
Also, Squeaky-Voiced Teen once had a Stridex pad for some reason (“I’m in pizza face paradise!”).
Bart was still shilling for Butterfingers at this time. Apparently, the joke must have pissed Nestle off, as an episode later that season featured as a chalkboard gag “I will not bite the hand that feeds me Butterfingers.”
Maggie’s Britney-dance ended with her holding a can of the fictional “Buzz Cola”, not Pepsi.
“We bought a wicker basket from Pier One, and he was passed out inside.” - Milhouse, explaining the origins of his new pet monkey, which subsequently spread lice to Bart and (apparantly) malaria to Milhouse himself. Subsequent broadcasts changed the store to the more generic “Trader Pete”, so I’d assume Pier One was not amused.
Less offensively, Lisa one remarked about a search of the waterfront: “We’ve searched all the piers, from pier one to that Pier One by pier seventeen.”
Arby’s has been the target of several less-than-flattering jabs.
The product, Ragu Chicken Tonight, no longer exists. The commercials, famous in their day, featured people dancing like chickens while a jingle “I feel like Chicken Tonight” played.
Just saw the episode with the return of Uncle Herb (First Annual …).
The family played Monopoly (not the only time) and a Sorry box is also shown. (Also had a reference to Mickey Mouse and Disney. Not an actual product placement, but it reminds me of the show where they go to Epcot center for the Teacher of the Year thing.)
Another recent rerun referred to a motel as being a Best Western.
They also showed TVs by Panaphonics, Magnetbox and Sorny!
Lou: I went to the McDonalds over in Shelbyville the other day.
Chief Wiggum: The Mc-what?
Lou: Yeah, I never heard of it either but they say they have over 2000
locations in this state alone.
Eddie: Hmm…Must’ve sprung up over night.
Lou: But you know, its the little differences.
Chief Wiggum: Example?
Lou: Well at a McDonalds you can get a Krusty Burger with cheese. But they
don’t call it a Krusty Burger with cheese.
Chief Wiggum: Get out! What do they call it?
Lou: A quarter pounder with cheese.
Chief Wiggum: Quarter pounder with cheese…well I can see the cheese but?
Hey, do they have Krusty’s Partially Gelatinated Gum-Based beverages?
Lou: Yeah, they call them ‘shakes.’
Eddie: Pfft ‘Shakes.’ You don’t know what you’re gettin’.
