Say What?: Commercials That Made Us Scratch Our Heads

[peacheslatour]

Cool. East Side of Chicago? LA?

[Brattinella]

San Jose East Side, Tully Road.  (back when dinosaurs roamed).

[legaleagle53]

2 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

There used to be a Shakey's (anybody remember them?) across from where I worked and they had a fantastic salad bar that was all you can eat. I still make salads at home based off of what I used to get at Shakey's.

I totally remember them.  They not only had good pizza, but they were also very kid-friendly and had the best atmosphere (to this day I can still smell the divine aroma of pizzas cooking which permeated the entire restaurant).

They're still around, by the way, but they're mainly a West Coast/SoCal kind of thing: http://www.shakeys.com/locations/

[peacheslatour]

Quote

I totally remember them.  They not only had good pizza, but they were also very kid-friendly and had the best atmosphere (to this day I can still smell the divine aroma of pizzas cooking which permeated the entire restaurant

Super cheesy and they used fennel in the sauce which I love. They were really kid friendly like you say. We had our son's 6th birthday party there. The kids has a great time.

[ennui]

On 9/17/2016 at 4:42 PM, Jamoche said:

Woman is singing along to her car radio. Suddenly she's having an extremely vivid daydream about singing on an American Idol knockoff - so vivid that she doesn't even notice the car she's approaching until her car's collision alert comes on. Seriously? Who daydreams *that* vividly? And if they do, why do they think it's a good idea to do so in a car? How did they survive to adulthood?

If this is the future of driver-assist/"autopilot" drivers, count me out.

You'd be surprised at how many people panic when their safety features stop working. "My backup camera stopped working!" Here's a thought, turn your head and look.

I came to post about the Kit Harrington/Infinity commercial. The part that bothers me, I don't think he looks like someone who would buy that car. First off, they should have put him in a convertible. And give him a pillow to sit upon because that car looks too big for him. Or maybe Kit should be working for Chevrolet, driving a Volt, or something. 

[crazycatlady58]

On 9/20/2016 at 9:15 PM, SpikeGal said:

I can't even fathom why anyone would want a salad over pizza anyway! Well...maybe if you're on a strict diet.. or you're a vegan.

And it's not like salad is all that hard to make! Just get some lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, cucumbers, peppers, boil some eggs, chop them up into a bowl, toss them, and bingo, ya got a salad! Go make your own, you love salad so much!

I cannot eat pizza, way to much fat it does very bad things to my tummy. Maybe  they did not have salad fixings in the fridge?

[backformore]

10 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

There used to be a Shakey's (anybody remember them?) across from where I worked and they had a fantastic salad bar that was all you can eat. I still make salads at home based off of what I used to get at Shakey's.

(Singing)  We serve FUN at Shakey's , also Pizza! 

Yeah, I remember a Shakey's in Chicago.

[backformore]

1 hour ago, crazycatlady58 said:

I cannot eat pizza, way to much fat it does very bad things to my tummy.

Yeah, I hear you.   For me, it's the cheese.  I can handle a certain amount of dairy, but not too much.   Taking a lactaid pill WITH the meal helps (not afterwards, then it's too late)  It's so sad, because pizza was always my favorite food.

[St. Claire]

I will admit to not usually having salad stuff in my fridge (since I invariably buy the produce and end up going way too long without making any salads, thus rendering the produce a disgusting rotting mess in my fridge drawer). However, if I want a salad and the rest of the family wants pizza- we are totally suspending disbelief on that count, BTW, because I almost never turn down pizza- I will go to the store to buy a bag of greens or I will order from someplace else. I prefer pizza places that also offer salads so that I can order both and delude myself into thinking it's a healthy meal, but the idea that the rest of the family is deprived of pizza because I want salad is totally unreasonable. If I'd copped that attitude as a teenager, my parents would have informed me that the family was getting pizza and I could fend for my own darned self if that didn't sit well with me.

[erikdepressant]

9 minutes ago, St. Claire said:

I prefer pizza places that also offer salads so that I can order both and delude myself into thinking it's a healthy meal

That's not deluding yourself!  Salads cancel out fat and calories!

[mmecorday]

Reminds me of the mother in "Little Miss Sunshine" who is feeding her family a bucket of chicken and encourages everyone to have a little salad too.

[OSM Mom]

On 9/17/2016 at 5:42 PM, Jamoche said:

Woman is singing along to her car radio. Suddenly she's having an extremely vivid daydream about singing on an American Idol knockoff - so vivid that she doesn't even notice the car she's approaching until her car's collision alert comes on. Seriously? Who daydreams *that* vividly? And if they do, why do they think it's a good idea to do so in a car? How did they survive to adulthood?

If this is the future of driver-assist/"autopilot" drivers, count me out.

I just posted about this in annoy thread. Hate this woman.  Self centered bitch.. Hey, how about paying attention to your driving.  Ugh.  I sing along in the car too.  Never have I almost rear ended a car because I was so distracted.  Idiot. 

[FormerMod-a1]

Makes me wonder what her insurance premiums must be,  She must have been rear ending things all the time before this feature was invented/rolled out.  Maybe she has Liberty Mutual.

[bad things are bad]

Quote

I garentee you that Lutherans would NEVER EVER participate in this!

I'd cut the Lutherans some slack because of fond memories of "Davey and Goliath".

Quote

You'd be surprised at how many people panic when their safety features stop working. "My backup camera stopped working!" Here's a thought, turn your head and look.

I've read more than one story on the automotive websites I frequent about people who freak out when their key fob goes dead and they can't figure out how to get in their car. Here's another thought, USE THE PHYSICAL KEY. 

[ennui]

2 hours ago, OSM Mom said:

I just posted about this in annoy thread. Hate this woman.  Self centered bitch.. Hey, how about paying attention to your driving.  Ugh.  I sing along in the car too.  Never have I almost rear ended a car because I was so distracted.  Idiot. 

I suppose people might relate to the commercial better if the driver were texting. In 2013, "According to figures from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), out of the 6 million car accidents that happen on U.S. roads every year, over 40% of them (2.5 million) are rear-end collisions."

I don't like the commercial, but distracted driving is a real problem.

ETA, maybe they should have used the hamsters and the KIA Soul. The boy band hamsters are very popular.

Edited September 22, 2016 by ennui
I admire KIA for using hamsters, since that's the joke, anyway.

[OSM Mom]

1 hour ago, ennui said:

I suppose people might relate to the commercial better if the driver were texting. In 2013, "According to figures from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), out of the 6 million car accidents that happen on U.S. roads every year, over 40% of them (2.5 million) are rear-end collisions."

I don't like the commercial, but distracted driving is a real problem.

ETA, maybe they should have used the hamsters and the KIA Soul. The boy band hamsters are very popular.

I know distracted driving is a real problem.  I see it every day.  The ad just makes me stabby because IMO that technology gives people another reason to not pay attention behind the wheel.  

[Prevailing Wind]

Quote

 I sing along in the car too.  Never have I almost rear ended a car because I was so distracted

I have been so distracted, however, I limped into the gas station on fumes - I forgot to watch my gas gauge for miles & miles & miles. Not a good thing to do on a Road Trip, where you don't know where gas stations are.

[mojoween]

I've never ordered from a pizza place that didn't also have salads.  But 99% of the time we are ordering from a local joint and not a chain.  Also, Domino's crust is ass.

[Silver Raven]

On ‎9‎/‎21‎/‎2016 at 1:04 PM, legaleagle53 said:

I totally remember them.  They not only had good pizza, but they were also very kid-friendly and had the best atmosphere (to this day I can still smell the divine aroma of pizzas cooking which permeated the entire restaurant).

They're still around, by the way, but they're mainly a West Coast/SoCal kind of thing: http://www.shakeys.com/locations/

Shakey's originated here in Sacramento.  The new Golden 1 Center basketball arena in downtown Sacramento is going to be decorated with signs from old local companies, and one of them is for Shakey's.

[Bastet]

Quote

I've never ordered from a pizza place that didn't also have salads.  But 99% of the time we are ordering from a local joint and not a chain.

Same here.  I eat a side mixed-green salad with pretty much every meal, so when I order pizza I either make such a salad or order one.  I am lucky enough to have a wealth of options for Italian delivery, never having to resort to chain pizza joints, so it may be naive, but I'm left with a "You just now have salads?!" sense upon hearing about these Domino's commercials (which I've yet to see).  To me, it's like advertising one provides napkins.

Oh, and thanks for the memories sparked by talking of the smell of a Shakey's.  We went out to dinner every Friday when I was a kid, and that was a frequent destination, and then it was the hang-out spot after football games in high school.  I haven't been back since - precisely because it was so open to kids and teens, an environment in which I had no interest once I grew up - but when that comment was made I could call up the smell, no problem.

[mmecorday]

University of Phoenix strikes again!

He says that his mother passed away in 2003 and he promised her that he would get a college education. Then he says he calls her house sometimes just to hear her voice. This is what I don't understand. Is her house being kept as a shrine in her memory? Is he maintaining her answering machine just so he can call it to hear her voice? I totally sympathize with him, though, as someone who lost her mother not too long ago.

[Bastet]

I like Larry Fitzgerald a lot, but that commercial creeps me out.  That he's calling to hear her voice is one thing, but he leaves a message.  For a dead person.

[theatremouse]

If I'm trying to rationalize how this could make sense, it's that other relatives still live at said address, and none of them re-recorded the outgoing message, because they all use that method of hearing her voice?

But it doesn't make a ton of sense if the interval they're talking about is since 2003 and we're meant to take the statements as being present-day.

[shapeshifter]

This commercial is supposed to convince you that you cannot do without the Internet for even 7 minutes, and AT&T will be sure that never happens. But the last scene (showing 7 minutes without Internet) shows a tween girl playing a keyboard very badly, presumably because she spends all her time online and never practices.

[shapeshifter]

On September 17, 2016 at 6:42 PM, Jamoche said:

Woman is singing along to her car radio. Suddenly she's having an extremely vivid daydream about singing on an American Idol knockoff - so vivid that she doesn't even notice the car she's approaching until her car's collision alert comes on. Seriously? Who daydreams *that* vividly? And if they do, why do they think it's a good idea to do so in a car? How did they survive to adulthood?

If this is the future of driver-assist/"autopilot" drivers, count me out.

I have to confess that I love that commercial because she not only sings in her daydream, but she casts herself as at least 2 of the judges, but mostly because my 33-year-old daughter doesn't drive, but with a smart car like that, she could. She totaled cars twice in her teens, and then she went to NYU (she has a genius IQ but poor large motor skills) and has stayed in NYC ever since, so she doesn't have to drive. Another daughter has a dear friend in NY who has epilepsy. Cars like this could enable her to live elsewhere.

[ennui]

3 hours ago, mmecorday said:

his mother passed away in 2003 and he promised her that he would get a college education. Then he says he calls her house sometimes just to hear her voice. This is what I don't understand. Is her house being kept as a shrine in her memory? Is he maintaining her answering machine just so he can call it to hear her voice?

I think that's kind of odd, as well, but I have a message from someone who passed away a couple of years ago. I consider deleting it, but once it's gone, I won't ever get another one. 

Grief can be odd.

However, I think it is odder that he leaves a message. Now he has to go to the house and play it back and delete it. Unless he's planning to keep that one, too. 

Eh. It's a commercial, and I'm overthinking it.  :)

[Haleth]

I love Larry Fitzgerald and understand wanting to hear his mom's voice.  My own mom saved the answering machine tape of my dad's voice when he died.  It's not so unusual.

Anyway, on a lighter note, a while back (I think it was in this forum) someone linked the commercial for Shiney Hiney?  The brush for cleaning, um, an intimate area?  All this week Ellen Degeneres has been making fun of it and yesterday even had the actress from the commercial on the show.  Here is a link to all the Shiney Hiney antics.  For some reason I can't get the videos to play, but if you can, enjoy!  Funny stuff.

[theatremouse]

It's not unusual to save the tape. It is unusual for it to remain an active outgoing message on an in-use phone line for 10+ years afterward. That's the puzzle.

[smittykins]

4 hours ago, Haleth said:

 

Anyway, on a lighter note, a while back (I think it was in this forum) someone linked the commercial for Shiney Hiney?  The brush for cleaning, um, an intimate area?  All this week Ellen Degeneres has been making fun of it and yesterday even had the actress from the commercial on the show.  Here is a link to all the Shiney Hiney antics.  For some reason I can't get the videos to play, but if you can, enjoy!  Funny stuff.

Aww, no mention of the fingertip brush or the lightening cream?  I'm disappointed. :)

[janie jones]

On 9/23/2016 at 5:04 PM, ennui said:

However, I think it is odder that he leaves a message. Now he has to go to the house and play it back and delete it. Unless he's planning to keep that one, too.

Or his dad has to delete it.  Way to make your dad sad, dude, leaving messages for your dead mother.

On 9/24/2016 at 10:06 AM, smittykins said:

Aww, no mention of the fingertip brush or the lightening cream?  I'm disappointed. :)

If by "fingertip brush" you mean "dog toothbrush."

[SmithW6079]

On 9/24/2016 at 11:44 AM, theatremouse said:

It's not unusual to save the tape. It is unusual for it to remain an active outgoing message on an in-use phone line for 10+ years afterward. That's the puzzle.

Maybe the telephone line goes to the graveyard...

[Moose135]

1 hour ago, SmithW6079 said:

Maybe the telephone line goes to the graveyard...

Maybe it's like that Twilight Zone episode where the kid can talk to his dead grandmother on the phone.

[SmithW6079]

1 hour ago, Moose135 said:

Maybe it's like that Twilight Zone episode where the kid can talk to his dead grandmother on the phone.

That's the ones I was thinking of.

[Sandman87]

After watching several different versions of the LetGo commercials, I now understand what they're offering: It's a service that makes it easier for people to profit from fraud and/or theft by selling other people's stuff online without the owner's permission. Seems like an awfully specialized niche for a commercial service.

Or at least that's what it looks like.

[St. Claire]

On 9/22/2016 at 2:00 PM, bad things are bad said:

I've read more than one story on the automotive websites I frequent about people who freak out when their key fob goes dead and they can't figure out how to get in their car. Here's another thought, USE THE PHYSICAL KEY. 

I don't know if it would happen when the battery dies, but some cars will set off an alarm if you use the key to unlock after having locked with the remote. I found this out the hard way when getting ready to go to work early one morning and unlocking my husband's car to leave something in the console for him. I suspect my neighbors were not pleased.

[Brattinella]

1 hour ago, St. Claire said:

I don't know if it would happen when the battery dies, but some cars will set off an alarm if you use the key to unlock after having locked with the remote. I found this out the hard way when getting ready to go to work early one morning and unlocking my husband's car to leave something in the console for him. I suspect my neighbors were not pleased.

Boy, that's not a feature I would personally want!

[proserpina65]

On ‎09‎/‎21‎/‎2016 at 10:30 PM, crazycatlady58 said:

I cannot eat pizza, way to much fat it does very bad things to my tummy. Maybe  they did not have salad fixings in the fridge?

But surely the person wanting salad can get their salad from someplace else while everyone else is getting pizza?  Which, to me, is the annoying part of the commercial - there are at least four places within walking distance of my house which does pizza and decent salads.

Edited September 26, 2016 by proserpina65

[proserpina65]

On ‎09‎/‎22‎/‎2016 at 6:17 PM, mojoween said:

I've never ordered from a pizza place that didn't also have salads.  But 99% of the time we are ordering from a local joint and not a chain.  Also, Domino's crust is ass.

I kind of like Domino's, but I had one of their pizzas last Sunday, and damned if the crust wasn't salty as hell; I don't remember it being like that before.  On a topic-related note: I don't want a Domino's sign or a day with the Noid, thank you very much.

[proserpina65]

5 hours ago, St. Claire said:

I don't know if it would happen when the battery dies, but some cars will set off an alarm if you use the key to unlock after having locked with the remote. I found this out the hard way when getting ready to go to work early one morning and unlocking my husband's car to leave something in the console for him. I suspect my neighbors were not pleased.

My mom's HHR is like that - I too found out the hard way because my car doesn't have electronic locks - but all I had to do was relock it with the fob.  Don't know what would happen if the batter died.

[erikdepressant]

1 hour ago, proserpina65 said:

But surely the person wanting salad can get their salad from someplace else while everyone else is getting pizza?  Which, to me, is the annoying part of the commercial - there are at least four places within walking distance of my house which does pizza and decent salads.

As I was reading this, there was a question on Jeopardy! about "salad days" being the time when one is young and inexperienced.  I think that was the universe burping or something.

[beadgirl]

Quote

 

Quote

I've read more than one story on the automotive websites I frequent about people who freak out when their key fob goes dead and they can't figure out how to get in their car. Here's another thought, USE THE PHYSICAL KEY. 

I don't know if it would happen when the battery dies, but some cars will set off an alarm if you use the key to unlock after having locked with the remote. I found this out the hard way when getting ready to go to work early one morning and unlocking my husband's car to leave something in the console for him. I suspect my neighbors were not pleased.

That's not the only issue -- as I understand it (haven't gotten a new car since 2001), some cars don't even have keys or keyholes anymore. Which seems astoundingly stupid to me; I've had the battery on my key fob drain a few times now, and it's not like it gives you a little warning ("5 unlocks left!").  I have to go to the dealer to get them to replace the battery, but how the heck do I get there if I can't unlock my car because the fob is dead?

I can tell you from personal experience that the alarm will not go off if the car battery is dead.

[LoneHaranguer]

1 hour ago, proserpina65 said:

I kind of like Domino's, but I had one of their pizzas last Sunday, and damned if the crust wasn't salty as hell; I don't remember it being like that before.

Probably an employee screw-up. They advertise a satisfaction guarantee, but I've never had an issue worth trying to take them up on it.

[Moose135]

14 minutes ago, beadgirl said:

That's not the only issue -- as I understand it (haven't gotten a new car since 2001), some cars don't even have keys or keyholes anymore. Which seems astoundingly stupid to me; I've had the battery on my key fob drain a few times now, and it's not like it gives you a little warning ("5 unlocks left!").  I have to go to the dealer to get them to replace the battery, but how the heck do I get there if I can't unlock my car because the fob is dead?

My 2014 Durango has a key fob and push button start.  It also has one key hole, in the driver's door, and a key that fits into the fob should you need it to unlock the door.  If there is a fob issue, you can push the start button with the end of the fob and it will start.  Happened to me last week. The dealer needed to reset a module, but I was able to start the car.  And I can - and have - replaced the battery in the fob myself.

Edited September 26, 2016 by Moose135

[Maverick]

Many (maybe most) models no longer have a physical key.

[friendperidot]

Quote

I don't know if it would happen when the battery dies, but some cars will set off an alarm if you use the key to unlock after having locked with the remote. I found this out the hard way when getting ready to go to work early one morning and unlocking my husband's car to leave something in the console for him. I suspect my neighbors were not pleased.

My mom's HHR is like that - I too found out the hard way because my car doesn't have electronic locks - but all I had to do was relock it with the fob.  Don't know what would happen if the batter died.

There was another little annoying feature, if you left a window down (Nephew did this), locked the doors with the key (I didn't know window was down), next day went to get in car, saw window was down, reached in & lifted lock - alarms all over the place. 

[Sandman87]

I'm still trying to figure out why a car needs a remote control. You have to get in the car to use it. What's next, remote controls for wristwatches and electric toothbrushes?

[chessiegal]

I have a 2004 Acura TL (new) that was our only car until 4 years ago. My husband's fob battery died a few years ago (mine still hasn't, what's up with that?), and he wanted to move the car one day and asked for my keys to unlock it. I told him to just use his key. He said, I can't. you need the fob. I told him no, you can use they key on the driver's side. He didn't believe me. He'd driven this car for 10 years and never noticed the key can open it. That was my chuckle for the day. The next time I got the car serviced, I got his battery replaced.

[SpikeGal]

8 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

I kind of like Domino's, but I had one of their pizzas last Sunday, and damned if the crust wasn't salty as hell; I don't remember it being like that before.  On a topic-related note: I don't want a Domino's sign or a day with the Noid, thank you very much.

I'll take the free pizza for a year!

[backformore]

6 hours ago, Sandman87 said:

I'm still trying to figure out why a car needs a remote control. You have to get in the car to use it. What's next, remote controls for wristwatches and electric toothbrushes?

I used to think that also.  Until I got a car with a remote.  It not only locks and unlocks, it also starts the car.  SO, when I'm leaving work in January, I can start my car, then get a cup of coffee, use the restroom, pack my stuff up, then walk over to my nice warm car with all the snow already melted off of it. 

[DeLurker]

11 hours ago, chessiegal said:

I have a 2004 Acura TL (new) that was our only car until 4 years ago. My husband's fob battery died a few years ago (mine still hasn't, what's up with that?)

I've got a 2004 Prius and my brother told me that the key fob battery lasts longer if you actually put it into the slot for it when you drive, at least once in a while.  He explained why with a long technical explanation (which I believe because he has a degree in physics and is an all around smarty pants), but I think it parallels why they say you should let your cell or laptop run low on battery before recharging.