# What was the last iconic commercial? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 21, 2018, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278 "2018-10-21T08:45:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/1 "2018-10-21T08:45:50Z")
I was looking at a list of famous Super Bowl commercials and it’s list of notable commercials is… puzzling to say the least… (Look at the expandable list at the bottom) > **[Super Bowl commercials](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Bowl_commercials)** > > Super Bowl commercials, colloquially known as Super Bowl ads, are high-profile television commercials featured in the U.S. television broadcast of the Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). Super Bowl commercials have become a cultural phenomenon of their own alongside the game itself, as many viewers only watch the game to see the commercials. Many Super Bowl advertisements have become well known because of their cinematographic quality, unpredictability, sur... Only one commercial from the entire 2000’s is notable but the 2010’s already has **NINE** “notable” commercials? Despite the fact none of them really had much buzz beyond the Super Bowl? The last commercial I’d say was notable on that list is the one from the 2000’s, the Old Spice ad since I remember people talking about it was recently as last year. So in your mind, what was the last “iconic” commercial? For my definition of iconic, I’d say any advertisement that hit the pop culture and people referenced beyond the short time nowadays almost anything gets buzz for. For example, has anyone else talked about that “The 80’s Called” Radio Shack ad except for all those listicles that popped out about it to explain all the references the next day? But you still see people occasionally bust out a “I’m on a horse” randomly on a podcast. Also commercials people bring up to mock don’t really count either since they’re iconic for the wrong reason, like the Cop Pepsi ad. For my money, the last ad I remember taking the world by storm was those [FreeCreditReport.com](http://FreeCreditReport.com) commercials from 2009, the ones with the band singing out their bad credit. Those were so popular they had a total of 9 of them, followed by a spin-off, then a revival. I remember TV shows would bring it up at the time as a joke. ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/2 "2018-10-21T15:50:22Z")
“Bud”“weise”“er”? “Watsaaaaap”? “Who are the Chefs?” ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/3 "2018-10-21T16:11:00Z")
Where’s the beef? I know it’s nowhere near the last one, but it’s the first one I distinctly remember. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/4 "2018-10-21T16:11:18Z")
“It’s Jake. From State Farm.” ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/5 "2018-10-21T16:25:07Z")
Verizon’s “Can You Here Me Now?” Guy. The Geico “Gecko”; Flo from Progressive. J.G. Wentworth “877-CASH-NOW” singing commercials. I’m also fond of this Progressive commercial: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXYA89Axqoc](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXYA89Axqoc) ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/6 "2018-10-21T16:46:05Z")
It wasn’t a single commercial, but the “Dude, you’re gettin’ a Dell” campaign made a media sensation of actor Ben Curtis, until he was arrested trying to buy marijuana. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/7 "2018-10-21T17:08:31Z")
The Mayhem commercials maybe? ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/8 "2018-10-21T17:15:03Z")
From 1998 the Guiness Surfer commercial. “And the fat drummer hit the beat with all his heart…” Even older, the Levi’s laundry advert. With the incomparable Marvin Gaye. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/9 "2018-10-21T17:43:34Z")
The Most Interesting Man in the World. ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/10 "2018-10-21T18:35:47Z")
[I CAN’T READ!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UqsvosPHAE) ---
**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:** [October 21, 2018, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/11 "2018-10-21T19:07:09Z")
The afore-mentioned wazuuuup? series is a possibility. Also the “[priceless](http://www.ebaumsworld.com/pictures/hilarious-mastercards-priceless-ads/248337/)” series. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2018, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/12 "2018-10-21T19:40:52Z")
> [@glee](#): > > From 1998 the Guiness Surfer commercial. > “And the fat drummer hit the beat with all his heart…” > > Even older, the Levi’s laundry advert. > With the incomparable Marvin Gaye. See, those are well done ads, maybe even great commercials, but by no means “iconic”. ---
**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:** [October 21, 2018, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/13 "2018-10-21T23:13:48Z")
I love the Delta faucet commercial with The Count singing: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/G_RuXU_1vg8/hqdefault.jpg "Delta Faucet "Hands" TV Ad") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_RuXU_1vg8) ---
**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:** [October 21, 2018, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/14 "2018-10-21T23:29:28Z")
“I’ve fallen, and I can’t get up!” ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2018, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/15 "2018-10-22T00:16:31Z")
> [@Projammer](#): > > Where’s the beef? > > I know it’s nowhere near the last one, but it’s the first one I distinctly remember. Yep, when I saw the phrase “iconic commercial,” that is _exactly_ the first one I thought of. Of course, I grew up in the 80s, so there’s that. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2018, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/16 "2018-10-22T00:21:06Z")
Now that I have been cable-free and commercial free for almost 10 years, I haven’t seen any ads for years. Except for watching a few Super Bowl ads on Youtube and so forth. Anyway, I would say for me, it was this ad from McDonalds: [Give me back that Filet O’Fish](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csrPT9ClVUc) My wife and I still sing it anytime we see one of those talking fish or anyone mentions the Filet O’Fish(a sandwich I hate, by the way). ---
**Author:** ![Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/5e9695/32.png) [@Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Licentious_Ectomorph)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2018, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/17 "2018-10-22T00:28:06Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > Now that I have been cable-free and commercial free for almost 10 years, I haven’t seen any ads for years. :rolleyes: There’s always one, in every television- or commercial-related thread. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2018, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/18 "2018-10-22T00:31:20Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > See, those are well done ads, maybe even great commercials, but by no means “iconic”. Agreed. I don’t recognize them from the description, so they’re not iconic. IMHO, “iconic” means that if you refer to them or parody them, “everyone” will get the reference. And, Progressive’s Flo and the Geico Gecko are iconic _characters_, but that’s not the same as the _commercials_ they’re in being iconic. Is there anything they’re known for doing or saying, the way there is for, say, Mr. Whipple or the Energizer Bunny? ---
**Author:** ![P-man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/p-man/32/3606_2.png) [@P-man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/P-man)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2018, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/19 "2018-10-22T01:02:09Z")
> [@Paintcharge](#): > > “Bud”“weise”“er”? > > “Watsaaaaap”? > > “Who are the Chefs?” " Who are the Chefs? " is probably my favorite from the past 30 years or so. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2018, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278/20 "2018-10-22T01:06:52Z")
> [@Licentious\_Ectomorph](#): > > :rolleyes: > > There’s always one, in every television- or commercial-related thread. Didn’t mean it in a pretensious way. I still watch tons of TV, probably more than when it had ads. I just meant that I don’t see commercials anymore and am unfamiliar with them. [I’m not this guy.](https://www.theonion.com/area-man-constantly-mentioning-he-doesnt-own-a-televisi-1819565469) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-last-iconic-commercial/823278.md?page=2)