Garden Bar Free (Say it fast three times!)

To All Television and Radio Advertisers: Be VERY careful about word placement in your commercials.

I don't know how widespread the commercial is, but in Indianapolis, Ruby Tuesdays is advertising a meal where you get a "Garden Bar Free". This is repeated at least three times during the commercial and I swear to God, all I can here is the nonsensical phrase "Gard 'n' Barf Free".

PLEASE make sure you read the commercial copy aloud to yourself, and to at least a couple of people who don't know what it says. Yes... This is on TV. Yes... The words appear on the screen. But my TV is set beside me. I look at my computer screen most of the time, especially during commercials. So I HEAR them, rather than see them most of the time.

I swear, the first time I heard the ad, I nearly got whiplash twisting my head to see what was being advertised! If that ever happens, I guess I know some people with deep pockets I can sue for pain, medical and emotional distress, huh? ;-)

-BS

MORE Annoying Commercials

Geiko - The one where the guy laughs and makes weird faces and noises on his webcam (original video that was edited into the commercial)? Then it goes to a mattress joust in a dorm hallway (original video). The voice-over says something about there being a better way to spend time on the internet. It's not that the commercial was annoying to start with... The problem is that they continue to air it, almost as often as they aired the caveman, to start with, before they created different ones. There are plenty of other viral videos out there they could find and use (except, I guess they'd have to pay the owners to use them...) Even so... I CANNOT be the only one who finds this one annoying.

Subway Scrabble - I can see at least three people who would and probably SHOULD have the crap beat out of them. 1) The guy walks out the door as a couple is walking in, and shakes wet off his head, all over the girl. Why did the boyfriend just stand there like a dufus? The guy SHOULD have at least been arrested for battery. 2) The guy sitting at the table who peals off the piece and throws his whole drink, TWICE, over the family sitting across the aisle from him ... AND THEY JUST SMILE at him! Their own meal's ruined with the liquid, and they have (most-likely) sugary, therefore STICKY, pop all over them. I REALLY doubt if this happened in real-life, they'd be smiling. 3) Just before they cut away from this scene, a lady in the foreground does the same to another family. These people would be KILLED IMMEDIATELY in some neighborhoods... If not killed outright, they'd have the shit beat out of them. And again, every single one of them should be arrested for battery, if not assault.

Oh... And Mercedes Benz Summer Love event - The song they play is the first part of Sam Cooke's "(I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons". Apparently, it was written with all the "I Love You's" in it, but Sam was the only person who recorded it to include it. While a once-in-a-blue-moon things would probably be ok, it's played at least 2-3 times a night... To be honest, that might be on different channels, but still... 1) It's the classic commercial overuse of a certain part of a song, making not only the commercial completely annoying, but simply because of the commercial, many will NOT like the artist - Is this unfair... Yes, but if you buy an album (Remember... I'm old - Ok... CD or DVD) it's on, would you REALLY want to hear the damn commercial every time you listen to it?; 2) Yes... It will help me remember Mercedes, however, it will just be another reason, (besides price) I would never want one!

KIA Spectra's "Save the Greenbacks" commercial is beginning to annoy me, too. Stupid. (click the screens to see short versions of the current commercials).

Enough for now... TTYL
-Bill

America's Got Talent and All-Bran Commercial

America's Got Talent

Thank GAWD the American public did NOT allow through some of those voted through from the early shows: Leonid (*GAK* Yes... He was back), Boy Shakira (*SHUDDER*) / Boy Brittany (*SHIVER*), and the dude they called "Ballywood" (OMG - strange dancing, probably better than I could, but nothing worth a million dollars!).

If you missed some of the episodes, here's a link to the AGT website
and to the two-minute recaps.

Here are my choices for the finals, in order, top pick to bottom:

Terry Fator (Ventriloquist)

• Week 8
• Week 7

Cas Haley (Singer)

• Week 8
• Week 7
• Week 5
• Week 3

The Glamzons (Plus-size singing group - Burlesque-style dress)

• Week 8
• Week 6
• Week 4

Sideswipe (Martial Arts Dancing)

• Week 8 (with kids - not one of their better performances)
• Week 6
• Week 3

Butterscotch (Beat-Box singer)

• Week 8
• Week 7
• Week 6
• Week 3

Calypso Tumblers (uh... Tumblers)

• Week 8
• Week 7

If there were any other videos of them, I missed them.

All-Bran Commercial

OMG! Has anybody else noticed the explicit symbolism in the new All-Bran "10-Day to a Better You Challenge" commercial? (See it HERE). The one where the construction guy on a construction site descibes how it helped his constipation? In case you missed it, there's a beam in a narrow "window slit", and at the right moment, it is pushed through to the ground (our side of the wall). Then, he's standing with one leg up on something, and behind him, a truck dumps 55 gallon drums (or kegs?) ... The thing is, the level of the truck, and the way he's standing, it ... appears ... to be coming out his ass. Then, the finale, he's still extolling the virtures of All-Bran and how it helped, and a dump-truck dumps a load of bricks. This HAS to be one of THE MOST exlicit symbolism in American commercials today! (And I found out today, that it COULD have been WORSE! - Director's Cut (so to speak))

See ya soon.
WDS

Veterans Against the Iraq War

There's a new commercial playing around Indiana, and I'm sure, elsewhere, where Senators and House members have professed support for the presidents planned escalation surge.

It goes, "One the one hand... " listing those who've come out AGAINST the build-up - "2/3 of the American people", the bi-partisan majority in congress, the Iraq Study Group, and "veterans like us...". THEN, they show a veteran (apparently) who's lost an arm in the war. He says "On the other hand, there's George Bush...", as if ONLY he is for escalation.

There are a few things I don't like about it:

1. Where do they get the 2/3 number?
   • Those who don't approve of the job the President is doing? Not all of them are against the war. They more disapprove based on other foreign or domestic policies.
   • Those who voted in the last election? Dems won, but not by a 2/3 margin, by any stretch of the imagination, and while the idea of a "new direction" for certain policies was the platform and that voted on, has ANYONE seen ANYTHING but bitching and complaining about the war, drafting of referendums about the war and escalation, or almost anything else the president promotes? I haven't. If they REALLY wanted to take all they talked about before the election in a new direction, they need to work on IT, too. Hmmm?
2. It makes it seem that ONLY the president is FOR the escalation, and EVERYONE else is against it, which is not true. Otherwise, they why do they need the commercial, right?
3. The last line said by the one-armed vet: "If you support escalation, you don't support the troops." WRONG! That is just so patently wrong, I can't believe they're even using it.

It ends with another vet exhorting you to call your congressman (by name - apparently only those FOR the escalation) and tell him/her you're against it.

Now, I understand that there are vets against the war. I understand that the media reports (MUCH) more on those who are against the war than those vets FOR the war and why. (Showing wounded vets who believe we shouldn't be there... Remember, they shoot for ratings, and vets against the war is controversial and news.

But I also understand that many who have been there, many who are injured, some grievously, WANT TO RETURN. They BELIEVE in what the president and others are trying to do. The BELIEVE in their fellow soldiers. They BELIEVE in the Iraqis general population. They BELIEVE in what we/they are there for. For example:

Pete Herrick, 39, who was paralyzed from the neck down after three weeks in Iraq, says many members of the media won't talk to him because of their liberal slant, which doesn't mesh with his views."When they find out I don't want to bash the president," says Herrick, who lives in Fort White, "the interview's over."A political and military junkie, Herrick thinks that years of sectarian religious violence would have continued in the region without U.S. intervention.

[Source: http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061113/NEWS/611130408/1004/RSS&source=RSS]

I believe it is unconscionable for the US Press (I could almost understand the rest of the world doing it, but...) being totally unwilling to talk to ANY and ALL vets, and get their views, even if they don't want to "bash the President", "bash the war", or talk to those who've actually thought about it, especially those who have been there. It would be even worse if they DID talk to them, getting their views about wanting to return, then only reported about their injuries, including FULL interviews with only others who are against the war.

What happened to reporters' objectivities? What happened to "fair and balanced" reporting, no matter what the reporter or their editors believe?

And, as far as that commercial goes, DO NOT EVER believe that "if you are FOR the escalation you are against the troops" crap in general. Being allowed to believe anything we want, no matter how right or wrong it is, is one of our freedoms. In other words, DO NOT EVER assume that those FOR the escalation ARE NOT for the troops.

You have the right to your opinion as much as the next guy. If you're against the war, you have the right to say so. Conversely, if you're for that war, you should also have the right to say so, too. BOTH cases should be reported by the media, especially an IMPARTIAL media.

Either way, DO NOT tell me I am "for" or "against" anything, based on my belief on the war.

Another Annoying Commercial & Voting

Ok... I'm sick and tired of the two General Insurance commercials we see fairly regularly on our local stations. If you haven't seen it, the commercial starts with ... a commercial ... more specifically, the end of a commercial, giving the number in a fast cadence: "Call 1-800-general NOW!" In one commercial, the guy is laying under his car, working on it, grabs the handy cordless phone laying by his side and calls. In the other, a cute girl is watching TV, picks up the phone, flips her long hair out of the way, and puts the phone to her ear. In both, they say they'd like to speak to "the general". The commercial goes on to describe some of the services offered, then a funky-looking animated general, driving a car toward the camera is displayed, and the phone number with cadence is repeated. Ok. so far, huh? Well, the in come the spouses. They both act somewhat suspicious, throwing their arms out, looking mad/disgusted/something like that, and say "[Honey] WHO ARE YOU TALKING TO?" (the male spouse says "Honey".) The person on the phone looks and smiles at the spouse, saying "The General!"

Why is this annoying? One - the cadence. I understand that it makes the number unforgettable. But even Gieko (sp?) has mixed up their commercials - the caveman, the gecko, and I think I've see even a different approach. I don't remember any other commercial for "the General". Safe Auto doesn't do an R Lee Ermey ("Mail Call") to DEMAND we call. Maybe the animated General logo is to soften the approach. But the other reason, REALLY gets on my nerves. Two - the spouses' attitudes when they ask who their significant other is calling. As I said, they act like "WHAT are you doing on the phone? Talking to your girl/boy-friend?" GEEZE! If I asked my wife (or she, me) that way, I doubt either of us would just smile and say "the General", and I don't know anyone else who would. Why is it that we would find this appealing? YES, all concerned are handsome/pretty young men and women, but those ATTITUDES...

On another note, before the election this past Tuesday, November 7, 2006, I wrote a piece I sent to a couple of papers (no response). It's about Politics - "Who's "best" for the position, the party, America? The dynamics of political ads, IMHO," and called Politics - Politicos and Parties. After I voted, I came home, and wrote a piece describing my experience (sent to the editors local newspaper - "The Lebanon (IN) Reporter") called Handicapped Voting at the National Guard Armory in Lebanon, Indiana. Check them out.

TTYL -BS

Sports, Politics, Etc.

Sports

We spent the day watching the Colts and NASCAR (two TVs going at the same time...) And I have a few observations:

Colts Win

The Indianapolis Colts beat the Tennessee Titans, 14-13. Why is it that everyone is making such a big deal of "the winless Titans" almost beating "the undefeated Colts"? On any given day, any NFL team, from the ones with the worst records to the ones with the best can win. This means that one team has to lose. Duh! Why can't anyone remember, in one of the Indianapolis Colts' worst seasons, in the 80s, (I always remembered it as the ONLY game they won, but they may have won a couple of others... Thought it was the Dolphins they beat, and they were after another undefeated season...), must have been in early-mid November, they beat a team that was undefeated to that point. (At least that's the way I remember it!) It can happen... And, as was proved last year, they can't "sit back" and "rest on their laurals(sp?), assuming they can beat teams having a tough time, and they can't "let the starters rest" in the final games of a season. They need to keep the momentum going for the finals. (I'll stop there... Don't wanna jinx anything!)

NASCAR

Talladega, October 8, 2006 - Dale Earnhardt Jr is leading in the last few laps. Jimmy Johnson and Brian Vickers (teammates) are directly behind, with Johnson waiting for the last (white flag) lap to get a run and try to pass Jr. The white flag falls... Johnson drops back to get the run, Vickers still behind him... They take off, Johnson drops below Jr, is about half-way past, and Vickers follows. But he was moving faster than Johnson by just that tick, taps Johnson's back end as he gets behind, which turns Johnson up into Jr's door, and wrecks them both. Vickers goes on to win.

My wife almost screamed out "He did that on purpose!", though you could see by the replays that it didn't appear to be so. She kept saying "Jr better be the winner!", though it was obvious that that was not going to be the case. Even Jr said nothing looked "purposeful" in the replay. Johnson, on the other hand, without seeing the replay, pretty much put the blame on Vickers, saying, without actually saying it, that he'd done it on purpose. I guess this will be up to NASCAR to figure out, but, again, it didn't happen at the finish line, so there's no way that Earnhardt or Johnson will be scored the winner.

Oh... Another "friendly arguement" I have with my wife has to do with certain other drivers. (I don't root for ONE driver... I root for a few, usually Stewart, Jr, and Jeff Gordon - probably because no one else likes him (I always like the underdog!)) What's strange is the illogic of TRUE NASCAR fans! (Apparently, I'm not one, because I see logic in a lot of places others don't.) Here's the point: If Jeff Gordon says anything in interviews about ANY favored driver (especially Jr!), my wife says he's whining. Where, if Jr says exactly the same thing about ANY other driver, he's NOT whining. What's the difference? Jr has a Southern accent, and Gordon's speech is nasally (therefore "whiney" to some). Hell, I even understand the fanaticism of race drivers.

I used to watch Wild World of Sports and loved the "Stock Car Races". I knew some of the drivers' names, and watched them go. I loved Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt (Sr), and others. Was I "fanatical" about it? No, but I did enjoy it, and usually decided sometime at the beginning of the race who I would root for. SOME fans, obviously, love THEIR drivers. I wish I could get that deep into it, but to me, it was just "fun". Now, it's even more "fun" to watch the race. My wife is a die-hard Earnhardt fan. She works nights, so tends to fall asleep during races, but if Jr's in the lead (or near) WATCH OUT!

The thing today? See, when Jeff (Gordon) went out of the race in a wreck (not caused by what he was complaining about), he said the "bump drafting" (where one car goes nose-to-tail with the car in front, literally "bumping" him forward, or raising the rear tires slightly off the pavement, where the lead car loses traction - sometimes causing a wreck, depending on where it happens), especially by JR (OMG!), which NASCAR said it was going to watch carefully, was really bad. My wife immediately goes "WAH! WAH WAH! Such a baby"... I kept trying to point out that if Jr said the same thing, she wouldn't have said that... She said "Jr never would"... BS! I've seen it with my own eyes! Everyone, but Jr, drives dirty, and everyone but Jr (and a few of the older drivers) is a baby! See the "logic" in this? I don't! GEEZE! (We were both grinning about the "arguements" we were making, so, no... no worries about that, but she was pretty adamant! LOL)

Politics

Oh, gawd! They're at it again... If you didn't know it, this is an election year (and if you don't, you need to get off the internet and watch TV more! ;-)

It seemed to start fairly nicely... Local prosecutor wanna-be put an ad on TV asking for your vote. Nothing negative there. Then (I can't remember who started it) one of them pointed out the other's record, then one pointed out the other's record (or lack thereof), and it's off to the races.

I understand. The saying is "If you can't find something nice to say about someone, don't say anything." However, in Politics, it's "If you can't find dirt on someone (or make some up) you will lose." The "make some up" part is not strictly true. They find ANYTHING they can make negative comments about and put it on. No wonder people don't want to be politicians any more... Even if you make it, you are up for more and more and more scrutiny. There aren't a lot of people out there that want EVERYTHING in their past (from when they were about 12 or so on) detailed in public! Even if it built their values to be those others would respect.

BTW: Various political ads report the opponent voted AGAINST various legislation apparently desired by those who would vote for that person. Think about this: MANY, MANY times, desirable legislation is added to - usually items that favor one small area (as in "pork barrel" projects) - and the only way to keep the "pork" out is to vote against the desirable legislation. Who knows? It COULD even be a strategy of certain parties (individuals or the whole group) to add this "pork" in, knowing certain congressmen will vote against it, thereby giving them "fodder" for these political ads. By the same token, if the desirable legislation is voted FOR by the opponent, THEN they could say they voted FOR various pork barrel projects.

Politics is a nasty business. Actually, politics, itself, may not be nasty, but the tactics used in political ads DEFINITELY is.

Other Stuff

Bad Ads

Some of the ones previously discussed are still out there (or trotted out for occassional play). Thank GOD it's not as often as before. There are others... I can't think of them at the moment... Apparently, I just "put them out of my head" as soon as I see them. (Defeats the purpose, doesn't it!)

Infomercials

Looks like a new crop of infomercials have arrived at Discovery and History Channels. Some are new versions for many I've already researched at www.orangefrogproductions.com (Scams, Shams and More Flim-Flams button.) Some are new things. Soon as I get the following up and running CORRECTLY, I will have to get on to researching them.

Orange Frog Productions

Version 2 will be out soon. I have not made major changes to OFP since it went up in 2003. This revamping will (hopefully):

• I am dividing it into three logical sections - Main; Owner; and Scams, Shams and More Flim-Flams (scams = various types of scams, shams = Infomercials, Flim-Flams = Rumors = Trivia lists, Urban Legends, etc.; and it includes information on Spam.) There are probably other ways that I SHOULD have done it, but it works for me, for now.
• I am making it more "accessible" (the print is designed to enlarge - or shrink - if you wish) - The sidebar buttons will currently overlap the content area, but it will work.
• I am adding buttons to all external links, allowing users to open that link in the current or a new window)
• I am adding definitions (glossary entries and tool tips)
• The background is a bit lighter, so the contrast will make it easier to read
• I'm trying to be more careful, so it works in both IE and Firefox. I know there are other browsers out there, but they seem to follow the lead of those two. I've already found and fixed some things. Hopefully there are few others. Most have had to do with the styles used to format things.

While it's not completely done, I believe it's ready to debut as OFP's main site. I have also included a Sitemap for the new site, and a Sitemap from the old site that links to the new pages.

A little more work (want to use Google Sitemap to let Google know there are changes, and have to make sure the old links will go to new pages via .htaccess file), and I will republish the site.

Keep an eye on it. www.orangefrogproductions.com. The new version is currently at www.orangefrogproductions.com/ofp2/index.html, but will be moved "down", soon. Let me know what you think.

That should do it for now.

TTYL

BigDaddyBS (Bill S)

Odds & Ends II (Croc Hunter, Commercials, VR)

The Crocodile Hunter (Steve Irwin) (Discovery's site, Australian Zoo (Home of the Crocodile Hunter))

NOTE: The Australian Zoo site, above, was still being slammed Tuesday night.

In case you've been under a rock, Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, was killed, Monday, September 4, 2006, morning, when a stingray barb apparently pierced his chest and heart (freakish accident), and he pulled it out. They are assuming that the stingray's poison, not normally fatal, direct to his heart, did it. (He could have bled to death, but those there said he died within a minute, and a small hole in the heart would have taken longer, I believe.)

I know, some people may not give a shit, but those of us into TV, who at least occasionally watch the Animal Planet, who have seen Steve Irwin on the many talk-show appearances he's made, and who have actually seen his movie, are going to miss him.

I haven't watched his show that much, recently, but do know I liked him (strange as he seemed). While I don't condone it, I even understood what he was saying about "teaching his children" about crocs and wildlife, a couple of years ago, when he held his baby while doing a show with a croc at his zoo. (However, I DO believe the child was MUCH too young to understand what was being ... "taught".) I loved his passion, his knowledge, his daredevilism (idiocy, to me, at times), his mission and his loves. Terri, his wife, and kids have lost one of the good ones. He was as, if not more, passionate about his family as he was about his conservationism and animal protection.

He brought us closer (sometimes TOO close for comfort - ours AND his, or, I'm sure, at least Terri's) to the many wild animals (especially crocs and snakes) he loved. His enthusiasm for wildlife helped MAKE Discovery's Animal Planet, and spawned hundreds upon hundreds of "wanna be" imitators (more than any Mutual Of Omaha's "Wild Kingdom", or Disney's "True Life Adventures" wildlife movies), and made people aware of the plight of many animals.

He will be missed.

Commercials I HATE!

NEW! - OMG! I thought it was one of those PSAs (Public Service Announcements), and his kid was hurt. Nope! ATT - Phone call at 3-4AM waking man and woman up. He says "What?"... She says, "Who is it?"... He says, "Are you sure it's him?" (looking very worried)... " She says, "What is it?" ... He gets out of bed, goes to his computer, turns it on (DAMN that computer's FAST), and says "Johnson pulled a quad... He's out this week..." The screen shows a football player as the man says "No... You were right to call" and it goes to the ATT service being advertised. THIS IS BY FAR one of the nastiest "misdirection" commercials I've seen in quite some time. I HATE IT!

Oh, yeah! Subway's "Fat Wallet" campaign. What kinda crap is this? They spend years telling us how to LOSE weight by eating their stuff, now they want our wallets to get FAT? Besides THAT, the commercial is stoopid to the max. Apparently, Jared is too busy making personal appearances (or working at a REAL job) to do their commercials any more. I saw one before the fat wallet thing, but nothing since. FAT WALLET? Gosh... They're saying that SPENDING MONEY will make your wallet fat. Never EVER did that for me!

Oh, there are plenty more... Mercifully, they go right out of my head when the show starts back up, so aren't as memorable. Also, thankfully, they haven't been repeated into the ground, yet.

VR & Me

I have a "plan review" with VR coming up next week. For those that don't know what I'm talking about, see my 5/24, 7/23, 7/27 and 8/19 posts.

By their rules, they own the stuff installed on my van, and my scooter, now, until I find a job and hold it for 90 days... What this means is if they drop me, they have the right to "reposses" everything or demand payment for it... OR, it MIGHT be possible that I can be listed as a "homemaker", which, technically, I guess I am, since I don't work (SS Disability) and my wife does.

Now, remember... This has been going on for THREE FREAKIN' YEARS. If the van had been taken care of immediately, I MAY not have screwed up my knee, and might be able to walk more. I'd have also been able to keep looking for a job, and may have been able to get my business up and running without help.

Yes, I also tried to set up a business through them, but it seems that it HAS to be a money-maker, right away, or they aren't interested. (They also only supply money for certain items... If I could make money like that THAT fast, I wouldn't be on disability, now would I?) My other point is that gas was CHEAP (relative to today's costs) back when all this started. While it appears to be coming down, it ain't cheap now! The business I had come up with would require driving around the county, at least, spreading out to other counties as this one is done. I can think of something else that could/should be done, genealogically, and that could make some money, but to do it RIGHT would require a bunch of up-front money, and then some time to gather the info, arrange it so all could read it, and publish it so it could be sold. I believe either is something that would be right up the state historical and genealogical societies would be interested in. And the first would also interest the DNR. However, if I got any of them involved, I probably wouldn't be able to SELL the information. Hell, it could also be used as "learning" experiences by numerous Jr/Sr High School classes and clubs. (No more clues... It's still my idea!) Let's just say it involves high-res digital imaging (cameras and/or large-format/book scanners), databases/tables, research, programming for the database entry and retrieval, data entry, probable artwork, local and state history, and a buncha other work, especially organizational.

If any TRUE "venture capitalists", philanthropic organizations, or businessmen who can tell me what and how to do what I want, and/or those who may be interested in history or genealogy in Indiana, and possible ties to education, are out there, and want to know what my ideas are, contact me. (This will not be a blog or email "meeting"... It will be face-to-face, so I know it's for real, and you know I'm for real.)

Don't get me wrong, I REALLY DO appreciate VR'ss help in getting me SS Disability, my scooter and my van mods, I just would have appreciated it more in 2003!

We'll find out next week what's up, here.

UPDATE: Annoying Commercials

Looks like Ford (and/or Taylor Hicks' agents) got the idea, from the numerous blog entries and messages I saw when verifying the brand for Hicks' commercial. They haven't been playing the whole "singing" commercial all the time, now. They play the band under the announcer, and at the end of the commercial, cut to Taylor singing, "All that I can see... Possibilities". Man, it's MUCH easier to take now. As a tag, I like it. As the main commercial, after the first time in the evening, it was ok. But it was too much to have it on almost every break.

As for the comments about Jon Lovitz... I STILL like Lovitz... Have since he was the "liar" on SNL ("Yeah, yeah... That's it!") But, Subway needs to alternate Jared and the others into the rotation. You see Lovitz on every break, and it's time to visit Quiznos!

Speaking of Quiznoes, whatever happened to Baby Bob? - or Bobette (heard the baby was really a girl). Guess she grew too old for the spots, huh? (Thank you, aging!)

Oh, and as far as the sub commercials go, (and pizza, and...) You ever notice that the food looks SOOO much better (and the sandwiches so much thicker) on the commercials than they do in real-life?

There's a new batch of commercials for Geiko. A "faded/fading" celeb sits beside a "normal" person who tells about how Geiko is so great, "translating" it into their style (not necessarily what was said, but...). Charro ("hoochie coochie!" looking VERY hot for her age) does the "Spanish" thing (excited, like she always has been), Little Richard "Woo Hoos" everything (I can't really understand either), and Burt Bacharach plays piano and sings Geiko's virtures. It's nice that they have someone else doing it besides the Aussie-accented Gecko, and something other than the damn cavemen having lost his appetite after his friend ordered "roast duck". HOWEVER, while I can believe they managed to get Charro and Little Richard (both commercials are extremely annoying when seen too many times), I cannot BELIEVE they got Burt Bacharach to sit there and do this. I always thought he was too classy for this type of thing. (Apparently, not... Then again, he WAS always able to make fun of himself, if I recall). DAMN, though... Typical overplay. (Maybe we can ANNOY them into buying our stuff!)

Hey, and Brian Williams (NBC Nightly News) did a story on Head On. And said the same thing I did! THEY GIVE YOU A HEADACHE! (Hey Brian, did you get that from my blog? LOL)

Annoying Commercials

I'm sure I'm not the only one annoyed by certain commercials on TV. The late-night and weekend infomercials are annoying enough (considering they play certain ones almost nightly for months), but I'm talking about those 30-60 second "spots" played on most channels, especially networks, all the time.

It's to the point where a half-hour show is closer to 20 minutes, an hour show is more like 40 minutes in length, and a movie, that's 90 minutes on the DVD takes TWO FULL HOURS to play on most non-movie or pay-per-view channels. This is bad enough, but then we're subjected to certain EXTREMELY ANNOYING commercials.

Sometimes the annoyance is the commercial itself. (And how they got past test-panels, I'll NEVER know!) Sometimes the annoyance is the number of times a commercial is shown on any given day.

Examples:

1. Head On (one I just saw).
   This is the OTC (Over-The-Counter) "stick" headache medication that you don't take internally, you spread (like deodorant) on your forehead. EVERY commercial I've seen for it, repeats a 5-10 word sentence THREE TIMES before they get to the actual commercial. I figured out, today, why they do that - The constant repetition GIVES you a headache, and immediately, they tell you how to "make it better."
2. Ford (Taylor Hicks) - "Possibilities"
   You know... I've seen Taylor on a BUNCH of shows since his American Idol win. I really do like the guy. I also like the commercial for Ford with Taylor singing and dancing on a round, Plexiglas stage with the cameras zooming in and out... I KNOW you've all seen it more than once. The problem I have is how OFTEN it's played. Once or twice a day (and separated by more than a 5-minute show segment) is MORE than enough. I also realized last night that the edit they used of the song has Taylor (an American Idol!) singing FOUR OR FIVE FREAKIN' NOTES OVER AND OVER. It''s just one of the "Possibilities" that when Taylor FINALLY releases his first album (old-folk-talk for CD, kids), and the first single is "Possibilities" that it will tank. And, if all the other songs on the album sound the same... He's history.
3. Daimler-Chrysler (Dr Z Series)
   The number of times these commercials are repeated are annoying, too. They have 3-4 of them, but seem to use the same one or two on any given night (or he's in EVERY DAMN commercial break). Why can't they alternate them more? As with Taylor's commercial, Dr Z is likeable, but how many of you want to see him smash that car and look at least as (if not more) disheveled as the "reporter" in the car? Or one of those kids actually pull his mustache as he's asked if it's real? At least he gets his "comeuppance" in the one where the more recognizable "Hemi Kid" (not the one that says "Sweet") is the director ("ACTORS!")
4. Nationwide ("Life comes at you fast" - Kid on a Swing)
   How many want that kid (when he's grown, of course) to fall off the swing and hurt HIMSELF? The first couple of times, it was cute. A couple of times to figure out and verify "How they did that" (When the dad pushes the little kid the second time, he steps forward, someone catches the little kid off camera to keep him from swinging back, and someone else drops the big kid, aimed perfectly at the Dad after he steps up.) After that... I want Dad to go flying WAY off the screen and the kid to break the branch on which the swing is hung. Don't you?
5. Mazda CX7 ("This guy is the man")
   Now, to be honest, I like the "Zoom-Zoom-Zoom" Mazda commercials. But this one has been repeated WAY too many times! (Two guys walking downtown, one points the SUV out to the other, pointing to the "leather seats" and other nice things, saying "This guy is the MAN", as a pretty girl comes out, presses the button to unlock the car ("beep beep"), gets in and drives away.) And the "Listen and Learn" on (hikers come on a road, one says "What's that", smarty says "Listen and learn", lays his ear on the ground, describes the vehicle coming, and says "Sports Car" at the end as the SUV goes by) is getting on my nerves, too!
6. Hardees' Milkshakes (My Milkshake Is Better than Yours)
   Two guys shaking cows, making their udders ... "shake" to make "milkshake"... Get it? This is just strange. They're using a song that's EXTREMELY sexual in nature (Kelis sings it, apparently), and her "Milkshake" AIN'T cows' milk! And some of the cuts in the commercial are ... disturbing... As in the first one (one guy, one cow, "Shake That Thing" - again, a strong sexual reference song), there's at least one shot of the guys behind the cows, hands on the cows' ... hips ... and a swat to the cow's ass... The guys are so close to the cows ... Uh ... That's enough on that one. I think you catch my meaning. The songs aren't that bad, but the sight of those guys shaking those cows... Eouw!

Now, I graduated about 30 years ago from Purdue with a degree in Mass Communication/Radio-TV, and understand the theories behind all of these. But, if you make something annoying, it can backfire on you. Rather than being "memorable" it becomes something to avoid. And, if you avoid the commercial, you avoid what the advertiser WANTED you to see over and over. You may also NOT purchase something because you hate the commercial so much.

I thought they had test-panels for these things. They should add playing it over and over again. (I've also begun to hate - at least for a while - certain "older" songs I used to love, because the commercials they're in are overplayed. I HATE THAT!)

Anyway, that's my take on just SOME of the annoying commercials out there.

Which ones annoy you?

Bill Sanders