Author Topic: Talking Heads ~ Three Day Wonders (Read 50737 times)

BooksAdmin · « **on:** September 30, 2010, 09:44:59 PM »

Talking Heads #11

"It occurred to me that nothing is more interesting than opinion when opinion is interesting..."
Herbert Bayard Swope, creator of the Op-Ed page.

A forum for opinions on anything in print: magazines, newspaper articles, online:
bring your ideas and let's discuss.

Our Eleventh Topic:

3 DAY WONDERS - topics and articles provided every three days by YOU, our readers.

First topic: Today's Commercials - Which attract you? Which do not?

"COMMERCIALS: GRINS OR GROANS" (Time Magazine)

"Good Commercial Bad Commercial"

Geico caveman

Contact: Babi - (Head Honcho)

Babi · « **Reply #1 on:** October 01, 2010, 08:24:17 AM »

Hi, folks. Our first three-day discussion, suggested by ELLA, is about
commercials. What is your favorite; which one do you really dislike?
What do you think make a good commercial, or a bad one?

My favorite is the Irish dancers in the Folger's commercial. Those
magical dancing feet, with the early morning light through the window
making it appear as though the dancers are in soft, golden mist. Now
that is a commercial worth pausing to watch.
I'll get into my least favorite in my next post.

Ella Gibbons · « **Reply #2 on:** October 01, 2010, 09:22:48 AM »

I hate that Geico caveman, so ugly, he truly turns me off. But the Geico, with the little green worm (lizard) is cute and I like the humor in it. I remember humor. Interesting article, BABI, in the heading - I'll quote just a line from it:

"According to a surprising study to be published in the Journal of Consumer Research, commercial interruptions often enhance enjoyment of television, at least for younger viewers. How could that possibly be true? "

Repetitive commercials get rather boring, such as the Progresso young woman, although she does change customers now and then.

Babies!!! No, No, No. Obscene to use children in this way. I'll be interested in what others have to ay.

Ella Gibbons · « **Reply #3 on:** October 01, 2010, 09:30:29 AM »

BABI, I have never seen the Folgers commercial. I wonder if it is on the web?

pedln · « **Reply #4 on:** October 01, 2010, 10:59:13 AM »

Quote

I'll get into my least favorite in my next post.

Any commercial that shows people brushing their teeth or eating with an open mouth. Yuck.

And The Great American Pizza Company -- I will never visit them. The message they send is that you can't have fun at a picnic in the park with Mom and Dad; you have to spend megabucks at the Great . . .

And lastly, The Scooter Store. It gives senior citizens a bad name. (Whiny voice), "And it didn't cost me one red cent. Medicare paid it all."

I don't mean to be offensive. I'm all for Medicare paying for durable equipment, but I think there is another to present this product.

ANNIE · « **Reply #5 on:** October 01, 2010, 11:03:43 AM »

We always enjoy the Geico commercials with the Gekko (neither worm or lizard, Ella hahaha) My favorite of those is the one with the bobble headed gekkos and then the big blow up one.

I also used to get a real laugh out of the one with Goose, wandering around shouting AFLAK about catastrophe insurance. They were really funny. And the guy who was always in them, looking askance at the goose! OMGosh!

What about the beer commercial, where the truckers take back the beer that they represent? Also funny!

CallieOK · « **Reply #6 on:** October 01, 2010, 11:08:41 AM »

Interesting article from Time magazine. Not sure I agree with it, though.

The most annoying commercials are those for car dealers that YELL at you! I heard a news story last night that reported a protest against commercials with volumes louder than the program in which they're inserted. Yay!!!!!!

Another Gripe is multiple commercials bunched together for what seems like hours - but probably lasts a minute or so.

Favorites? I like the Geico gecko and a state banking commercial featuring various Oklahoma towns from founding to current day. I don't know what the technique is called -but what look like sketches in motion fade in the development. Very well done.
However, most of the time I either mute the commercial and work on a crossword puzzle or go "powder my nose"/replenish my glass of iced tea.

I appreciate commercial free performance programs ("Live At Lincoln Center", for instance).

MarjV · « **Reply #7 on:** October 01, 2010, 11:28:13 AM »

I am also a fan of the Geiko ads. Always watch when they come on.

And when the Budweiser beer ads with the Clysdale horses are shown --- watch them every time.
Here's the dream one on Youtube that is so precious....there are other listed on the right hand side to watch.

Enjoy!

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4258794138972547179#

MarjV · « **Reply #8 on:** October 01, 2010, 11:31:54 AM »

Here are some Geiko commercials on Youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ip5VOv92bC8&feature=related

JoanP · « **Reply #9 on:** October 01, 2010, 12:12:28 PM »

Callie, yeah, commercial free programming is great! But you don't get that often enough. Someone has to pay for them.
Oh, I love those ghecko ads, Marj - thank you for the youtube links...I love his accent - a stroke of genius. Can you imagine him without the British accent?

I'll tell you which ones I really dislike - those that I don't get - that I have to ask whoever is in the room with me what it meant! It makes me feel - out of it. I'm going to think of one that I've seen recently and try to find it - maybe you can explain it to me!

pedln · « **Reply #10 on:** October 01, 2010, 12:36:27 PM »

Whatever happened to the energizer bunny? Is he still around?

Tomereader1 · « **Reply #11 on:** October 01, 2010, 12:59:46 PM »

Automobile commercials, one after another. Most hated is the new one for Nissan, where the guy uses a chop saw to cut into the vehicles, as if to show us the mechanics of the car. Blechhh! I also don't like any of them with barely swimsuited gals. There you have to wonder "what they are selling"? I especially like the new one, with the Buddy Holly song "Every day, its a gettin' closer" and the people commute using bumper cars, etc. Now I like it so very much, but do I know what the product is? Not.

maryz · « **Reply #12 on:** October 01, 2010, 01:54:41 PM »

We rarely notice any commercials. If we're watching a program as it's being broadcast, we mute the commercials. And if we're watching a recorded one, we fast-forward through them.

FlaJean · « **Reply #13 on:** October 01, 2010, 04:17:11 PM »

We mute most of the commercials but occasionally catch one. Like the gecko ads also.

Ella Gibbons · « **Reply #14 on:** October 01, 2010, 05:49:32 PM »

Insurance companies! I see tthree posted here - Geico, AFLAC and Progresso. Interesting.

I love the Clydesdale horses, MARJ, thanks for those. I'm going to go hunting for a rating service or other. Certainly there is a company who rates the popularity of these ads, their commerical value.

The car ads? You'd think there would be more. I noticed TOMEREADER mentioned Nissan and I know the other night I saw a commercial showing a blue and red car side by side advertising something, I have no idea what?

Isn't that always the case! You watch, but don't know what for? Somebody mentioned that! A lot of money goes into those commercials, I'm sure.

But Geico and Aflac, I remember the companies. Good commercials.

Ella Gibbons · « **Reply #15 on:** October 01, 2010, 06:03:15 PM »

Don't have time to look for ratings right now, but car ads - of course, on sports! Any sports!

And where are the food ads, the McDonalds, the Coke ads, and the rest?

maryz · « **Reply #16 on:** October 01, 2010, 06:18:56 PM »

I have thought of some ads that really offend me - any commercial for prescription medication. That's a good part of why our drug costs are so high. And they make people ask their doctors for medication that might not even be appropriate for their conditions. We asked our family doctor if that ever happened to him. He said it did, frequently. And we asked if patients got angry if he refused to prescribe the medication. His response was a definite yes - and that he'd lost patients because of it. In some countries, it's not permitted to advertise prescription meds on TV.

JoanP · « **Reply #17 on:** October 01, 2010, 06:28:41 PM »

Maryz, just listening to the possible side effects of these drugs is enough to turn me off. Sometimes Bruce and I laugh out loud, especially when they say that death is possible in some cases

mrssherlock · « **Reply #18 on:** October 01, 2010, 09:14:39 PM »

Like most of you, we fast forward or mute commercials in most cases. There are some really funny ones we watch, mostly on sports shows. HBO, et al., and PBS are also favorites. I was watching my recording of the latest Masterpiece Mystery and was astounded, felt betrayed, by a commercial for eharmonydotcom. Blea!

ANNIE · « **Reply #19 on:** October 01, 2010, 09:21:18 PM »

Jackie,
I saw that ad and thought I was connected to the wrong channel. What the heck are they doing to their supporters??
I haven't given them any money for a couple of years because they were just talking about their advertisers but now with the eHarmony ad, I am just disgusted with PBS.

I will be watching Wallendar on Sunday night though as we liked that series last year. Very good.

pedln · « **Reply #20 on:** October 01, 2010, 10:49:57 PM »

I was surprised to see eHarmony on PBS, too. But, hey, we want to see the programs and they don't come free. They have to list their sponsors, but they are usually all at the beginning and then the rest of the programming is commercial free.

Some of the ads get really clever. Now, if there are no closed captions I'm usually lost. But one that I enjoy without them is the Intel ad. Really cool. Starts out with two young lads playing some sort of old fashioned video game and you note a little sister coming downstairs in her ballet tutu. Then throughout the commercial the same two age, and the background changes appropriately. Very well done and thought out in my opinion.

Frybabe · « **Reply #21 on:** October 01, 2010, 10:58:44 PM »

I consider commercials/ads and art form. Advertisers hope to create ads that will get you to remember their products. So, which ones to we notice? The very good and the really lousy. Like most of you I like the Geico Gecko. The AFLAC duck is pretty funny. The latest series starting "mayhem" for Allstate is a riot.

marjifay · « **Reply #22 on:** October 01, 2010, 11:19:01 PM »

I like commercials with humor. One I like is for Progresso Insurance (or something like that--you can see how much I pay attention) where two older people, a man and a woman, are talking about getting insurance and the girl promoting it says "You will like it the longer you stay with us, as you get more benefits as time goes on." And the man looks longingly into the eyes of his woman partner and says, "What you're telling us then, is that it gets better with age!" The girl looks embarrassed and says, "Please tell me you're still talking about insurance!"

I hate all the commercials for medications, and it seems as if every other commercial is one of those. Telling us to ask our physician for a particular medicine. And then (as required by law) giving us a long warning list of what we might expect if we use the medicine -- everything up to just short of death. I bet physicians get tired of their patients demanding prescriptions for these medicines.

Marj

Steph · « **Reply #23 on:** October 02, 2010, 06:13:05 AM »

I love the horses in the Budweiser ads and have worried that the new company that owns them does not seem to value the horses the way the Busch family did..
Love Aflac and Geico as well. Dislike the Progressive girl.. just too toothy for me.
There are certain products that I dislike the commercial enough that I write it down and make sure I dont buy that product..Yes, my doctor also complained about the number of people who come in and demand a product.. I cannot imagine doing that.
Coke used to have great commercials, but have not seen one for a long time that I liked.. I think they skew to a younger group.
Intel has some interesting commercials as well.

Babi · « **Reply #24 on:** October 02, 2010, 08:48:39 AM »

Actually,I found the 'cavemen' reaction to caveman stereotypes beutifully done They do make a point, too, don't they. So many of our own assumptions are just as offensive.
I think it depends on how the babies are used in a commercial. Talking baby with lips moving oddly I do not like. Babies toddling about and playing while someone talks about diapers is fine. It's always a pleasure to watch the little ones playing

Quote

How could that possibly be true?"

I agree, ELLA. Maybe the'younger viewers' are those so young they have a short attention span.
A new development that really aggravates me is some ad from another show dancing across the screen right in the middle of some dramatic moment. Distracting, rude and extremely irritating!
Oh, yes, PEDLN. My current 'I hate that one' is the Omnaris commercial. A
squad of men in glowing white uniforms and purple gloves and hats, lifting a
humongous nasal spray toward a gigantic nostril. UGH!
I, too, found that "I didn't have to pay a cent of my own money." embarrassing. Frankly, everyone of the people in the ad looked as though they could well afford to contribute toward the cost of the chair.

OH, I love that video of the Clydesdales, MARJ. I've never seen that one
before. It's really a prize-winner. Thank you so much for the link.

maryz · « **Reply #25 on:** October 02, 2010, 08:54:25 AM »

Steph made a point about commercials being directed at a younger group. John will often say about a particular ad - "I don't think that's made for us." Seniors may have more "disposable" money, but we don't seem to spend it as freely.

Babi · « **Reply #26 on:** October 02, 2010, 08:56:00 AM »

My previous post was getting too long, but I do want to say that what
MARYZ & JOANP had to say about the medical commercials makes an important point, IMO. I would be happy to see a law forbidding such advertisiing here. They do serve one good purpose, tho'. I would think people hearing about all those side effects would conclude the 'cure' is worse than the disease!
Actually, the doctor's aren't alway aware of all those side effects. My daughter, Valerie, bought home new prescription once, and on reading the
list of side effects found that the medicine could possibly cause death with
the first dose. She took it back to the doctor with a plaintive "Why are you trying to kill me?" He, of course, hadn't known of that 'warning', and
immediately had all samples of it taken off his shelves. But how many
people do carefully read all the information on a new med?

ALF43 · « **Reply #27 on:** October 02, 2010, 10:49:09 AM »

I consider myself gifted with a good sense of humor but one thing that I hate are commercials. I find 95% of them banal and inane. Honestly I do not watch commercials but rather get up, brush my teeth in the evening, get a load of clothes from the dryer to fold or read during the commercial. I honestly find them insulting! The geiko was funny once- I'm sick of the damned geikos and swat at them on my lanai in frustration.

They insult one's integrity and ingenuity, I fear.
Ella says

Quote

:"According to a surprising study to be published in the Journal of Consumer Research, commercial interruptions often enhance enjoyment of television, at least for younger viewers. How could that possibly be true? "

That is not the case with my viewing and I resent any implication that that would enhance my enjoyment of a program. Partiularly the Cialis and Viagra or whatever it is that show 2 people enjoying a tub bath together. WHAT?

?
A tub bath in the middle of a field? What is that all about? Oh yeah, so he can be ready at any time. NO!! That is insulting. Nor am I the least bit interested in whether he is ready or not. I'm not!

And Pearson"s right-- hello, the side effects can be deadly! Well thanks for that information & does that negate their culpability because they've advertised that fact? Pearson, check that out with Bruce, will you?

I hate car dealership ads and have written the dealer in Orlando reminding him that HE and his child are the reason I do not care to visit his dealership.
Now I am going to have find one ad that I like (I do like the Clydesdaes as well.)

pedln · « **Reply #28 on:** October 02, 2010, 11:20:30 AM »

Quote

I find 95% of them banal and inane.

I agree, Andy. This morning I was watching various cable news channels, and the commercials, for the most part, were totally BORING. And I cannot, even in my wildest dreams, imagine how watching commercials would improve the overall viewing experience. I think the conclusions of those researchers are flawed.

But you do have to congratulate those who have shown imagination. I used to like the AIG ads, before AIG became a dirty word -- "just watching butterflies, honey, we're with AIG." There's one problem with clever commercials. You don't always note who is doing the advertising. This morning there was one cute ad showing lots of kids with grandma or grampa. I got caught up in the actions of the kids and didn't pay any attention to the product. I finally discovered it was Humana. I also like the ad where everyone in the village is concerned about 3 o'clock -- but what's the product?

Ella Gibbons · « **Reply #29 on:** October 02, 2010, 11:50:15 AM »

Yes, yes, I agree with all these dislikes and more......

any commercial for prescription medication - Maryz

scooter ads - Pedlin

commercials that yell - Callie

viagra ads - Andy

Who should we tell?

Ella Gibbons · « **Reply #30 on:** October 02, 2010, 11:53:48 AM »

I should add those Fruit of the Loom ads, and ads that show girls with very scanty underwear.

And one of the worst - and I don't know the product - is that man that will not let the little girl on her bicycle ride it out of that square on the floor!! I could slap the guy!

Last night I watched a movie on Fox, I think it was and there was a very different commercial, a black/white commerical, and it was for Levis. Cute!

Ella Gibbons · « **Reply #31 on:** October 02, 2010, 12:13:34 PM »

THE CLIO AWARDS - the organiztion that awards the best commerical ads (of all kinds, but there are the TV ads to click on)

http://www.clioawards.com/about/

straudetwo · « **Reply #32 on:** October 02, 2010, 12:44:36 PM »

Alf, I couldn't agree more.

Commercials are inescapable, often much louder (deliberately, I'm told) than the program, and impossible to ignore, except for the mute button, or running out for a glass of water. But what is bothersome is the heavy-handed, aggressive, insensitive approach
- like laxatives at dinnertime.

I remember a time when TV ads were enjoyable and made one smile, like the cereal commercial with 3 brothers, sitting over their bowls of a new variety, unwilling to try it, unsure whether they'd like it, and then shifting the task to the youngest, Mikey. Who liked it, of course.
This one was well handled and enjoyable because of the fresh-faced kids, especially "Mikey".

Over time, the admen (adwomen??) switched into a more aggressive mode, and some of what they produced was annoying IMHO - like the laxative commercials mentioned, similarly from the private sphere.

I don't know how many of you remember the Whisk ad "Ring Around the Collar". That was a forerunner of a harder edge. The women libbers seized on it, rightfully so- and successfully. The product is still being sold, I saw, but the offensive byline was dropped.

Amajor disappointment : PBS (!!!) running its own ads, thus effectively reducing the time of each episode. Is that what we expected from PBS ?
What does it signal? A triumph or a defeat ? For what?
Traude

marjifay · « **Reply #33 on:** October 02, 2010, 06:40:57 PM »

Babi said, But how many people do carefully read all the information on a new med?"

They should put that on a commercial in big caps! Not long ago I noticed that a presceiption a druggist had
filled for me was a much stronger dosage than it should have been. They'd made a mistake. I returned it, and changed druggists. Now I very carefully read the labels as well as examine the tablets themselves.

Marj

marjifay · « **Reply #34 on:** October 02, 2010, 07:22:10 PM »

Not long ago, there was a sexist magazine ad to end all sexist ads: Summer's Eve did a full-page ad in Women's Day Magazine giving women advice on how to feel confident enough to ask the boss for a raise. How? By using Summer's Eve, of course!

AlterNet newsletter did an article on it, and you can see the ad if you go there and search for the Summer's Eve ad in Women's Day Magazine.

Marj

FlaJean · « **Reply #35 on:** October 02, 2010, 09:47:24 PM »

There were several Alka-Seltzer advertisements in the 70s that were really funny. I'll never forget that guy saying "I can't believe I ate the whole thing". The look on his face said it all. They had a couple more that were funny.

Steph · « **Reply #36 on:** October 03, 2010, 05:59:55 AM »

Thinking of old ads.. 40 some years ago when my oldest was maybe 4 or so.. he watched a few tv shows..One of the ads was Tony the Tiger... for a cereal.. We used to go to visit my husbands mother on Long ISland and driving up the Jersey turnpike was the oil storage tanks and on one of the tanks.. a long tiger tail.. The four year old was enchanted and recited Tony the Tiger and most of the ad each time he saw it.. So.. maybe we are just the wrong age group for the ads.

Babi · « **Reply #37 on:** October 03, 2010, 09:05:12 AM »

It is a lot easier to find commercials one hates, isn't it, ALF? But there
are some good ones out there. Which raises the question: "What, in your
opinion, makes a commercial good or bad?"

Quote

Who should we tell?

Good question, ELLA. I think ALF has the right idea.
Let the SPONSOR know his ads aren't helping! And thanks for the CLIO links.
I knew there was some outfit that judged commercials and couldn't find it.
Oh, definitely, STEPH. Different products are carefully targeted for
specific age groups. Of course, some adult ads seem to assume we have the
brains of a 9-year-old.
This is the last day to speak out on this subject. Tomorrow we begin
another subject,..PAIN...suggested by PEDLN. Here's a link to get you thinking, and Pedln will
have another, also. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/29/books/review/Romm-t.html?_r=2&scp=1&sq=pain%20chronicles&st=cse (long, isn't it?)

maryz · « **Reply #38 on:** October 03, 2010, 09:25:12 AM »

I've just had a commercial come up on the TV that I don't like - all the BP "aren't we really wonderful?" ads. If they'd spend that money on helping the people hurt by the oil spill instead of on the ads, there'd be more money to go around.

pedln · « **Reply #39 on:** October 03, 2010, 09:52:50 AM »

We can shorten that link

Pain Management

You're right about that, MaryZ

Now, I hope before this is over, someone can tell me what happened at that wedding -- the ad by the Royal Bank of Scotland. No captions. So much concern. Did someone else step up to be the groom.

Are there jingles running through your head? What are they advertising?
"a little bit'll do ya, a little bit'll do ya" ---- what?

News:

Author Topic: Talking Heads ~ Three Day Wonders (Read 50737 times)