Commercials That Annoy, Irritate or Outright Enrage

[Bastet]

49 minutes ago, susannah said:

Well I guess as professional athletes are now making more money than God,

The big name players and their enormous salaries get the most attention, obviously, but plenty of players make the league minimum, and most are somewhere in between.  Which is still big bucks, but it's also an incredibly short career in many sports (for example, not even 4 years in the NFL).  And for many of these players, a sports scholarship was their ticket to college, with being drafted lifting their entire family out of poverty when they're barely into adulthood.  As that documentary explored, it's very easy to grow broke only a few years into retirement (for a variety of reasons).

So if anyone achieved enough fame as an athlete to continue making money off their sports career as an advertising spokesperson for something, I can't complain about it unless it's for a totally heinous, bullshit product.  I think Joe Namath was one of the first and possibly the best at leveraging that (which was particularly smart back then, as the NFL didn't bring in anywhere near as much money as it does now, so the players didn't come close to earning what they do now).

[proserpina65]

2 hours ago, susannah said:

Well I guess as professional athletes are now making more money than God, IMO I don't feel too sorry for them if they blow it all after they retire.

Well I have a lot of sympathy for the athletes I grew up watching because, for the most part, they didn't make tons of money.

[proserpina65]

1 hour ago, susannah said:

Well since I didn't see the documentary, I can't comment on it, since this is the irritating commercials thread, but it would be nice if people could present their opinions without seemingly trying to disprove others', opinions as wrong, with how much they know about something.

I haven't seen the documentary either but I have followed various sports for years and know that while many athletes make a lot of money during their very short careers, many others do not.  I don't begrudge any of them the right to earn money by making commercials no matter how annoying I find those commercials.

I do, however, wish the annoying ones, like the aforementioned Mr. Namath's Medicare supplement commercial, weren't run so many times on the channels I watch.  Although honestly, if I had to choose, I'd pick his over Jimmie Walker's any day of the week.

[Mrs. Hanson]

I remember when Joe Namath got married and it made the news!!  He was quite the active and eligible bachelor!!!  Broadway Joe!!!

[peacheslatour]

12 minutes ago, Mrs. Hanson said:

I remember when Joe Namath got married and it made the news!!  He was quite the active and eligible bachelor!!!  Broadway Joe!!!

We're watching Once Upon A Time In Hollywood right now, did you know Joe Namath was once in a movie with Ann Margaret?

[Prevailing Wind]

I remember when he had a chain of restaurants called "Broadway Joe's."  There was a joke going around Miami that the Dolphins' QB (Bob Griese) was gonna open a chain of diners called, "Griese Spoons."

[Gharlane]

10 hours ago, Maverick said:

 There's a commercial with a woman sitting on a sofa wearing a fugly yellow fringed wrap.  The doorbell rings and she struts to the door like she's the shit on the runway.  It's the Grubhub guy who gasps at how she looks.  "I know, right?!   It's from Portugal!"  Lady, if you're going to shop for items from Portugal you need to learn Portuguese because the tag for that thing clearly had to say "tablecloth".      

Oh, I hate thatone for a couple reasons! One, you think people are impressed that you shop at Marshals, I think, and two, the odds of you actually finding something as good as that is almost zero. 

[susannah]

2 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

I haven't seen the documentary either but I have followed various sports for years and know that while many athletes make a lot of money during their very short careers, many others do not.  I don't begrudge any of them the right to earn money by making commercials no matter how annoying I find those commercials.

I'm not sure how people know how much any individual athlete makes, but I don't begrudge any athlete doing whatever he or she wants to after retirement.

2 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

Well I have a lot of sympathy for the athletes I grew up watching because, for the most part, they didn't make tons of money.

"Tons" of money is relative, yes?

[Haleth]

12 hours ago, Bastet said:

The big name players and their enormous salaries get the most attention, obviously, but plenty of players make the league minimum, and most are somewhere in between.  Which is still big bucks, but it's also an incredibly short career in many sports (for example, not even 4 years in the NFL).  And for many of these players, a sports scholarship was their ticket to college, with being drafted lifting their entire family out of poverty when they're barely into adulthood.  As that documentary explored, it's very easy to grow broke only a few years into retirement (for a variety of reasons).

I think I remember hearing that rookies attend seminars about how to manage their money.  I'm sure it's a recent thing, obviously in Joe Namath's day no one would even think about giving this kind of info to these kids.  I'm also sure most of these kids don't pay attention.  22 years old and making tons of money?  They can't foresee how long their actual NFL career will last and hardly any will have recognizable enough names to do product endorsements.

[Baltimore Betty]

11 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

Well I have a lot of sympathy for the athletes I grew up watching because, for the most part, they didn't make tons of money.

I agree, Frank Robinson (Orioles baseball player) lived around the corner from me back in the day, we lived in a very middle class neighborhood, nice but nothing fancy, 1/4 acre lots. One of his son's and I went to the same day camp and was in the same bus, every morning Frank and his wife would stand on the front lawn and wave to all us kids, it was a thrill. Back then lot of the Orioles would get jobs during the off season so I would say the contracts were not anywhere near today's contracts and endorsements did not pay like they do now.

[Mrs. Hanson]

58 minutes ago, Baltimore Betty said:

I agree, Frank Robinson (Orioles baseball player) lived around the corner from me back in the day, we lived in a very middle class neighborhood, nice but nothing fancy, 1/4 acre lots. One of his son's and I went to the same day camp and was in the same bus, every morning Frank and his wife would stand on the front lawn and wave to all us kids, it was a thrill. Back then lot of the Orioles would get jobs during the off season so I would say the contracts were not anywhere near today's contracts and endorsements did not pay like they do now.

Waving at @Baltimore Betty from 90 Day!  I agree, I remember seeing retired Vikings players at events requesting ten dollars for an autograph.  The 70's did not pay like they do now.  And Joe Namath can't help how much that ad airs, can he?

[proserpina65]

10 hours ago, susannah said:

"Tons" of money is relative, yes?

I'm more familiar with soccer, but average players do not make Cristiano Ronaldo/Lionel Messi money.  Yes, they make more than most average people do for the few years that they play at a top level.  Players who never make it to the top level make the kind of money that people like me do, again only for the years they're playing.  Many players never get past the level where they actually have day jobs because soccer doesn't pay them a living wage.

The point is, yes "tons of money" is relative but the vast range of athlete salaries put most of them at lower middle class level wages.  And that's only while their careers last, which for many players is just a couple of years.

2 hours ago, Baltimore Betty said:

I agree, Frank Robinson (Orioles baseball player) lived around the corner from me back in the day, we lived in a very middle class neighborhood, nice but nothing fancy, 1/4 acre lots. One of his son's and I went to the same day camp and was in the same bus, every morning Frank and his wife would stand on the front lawn and wave to all us kids, it was a thrill.

How cool!  Frank Robinson was a class act.

1 hour ago, Mrs. Hanson said:

And Joe Namath can't help how much that ad airs, can he?

I don't blame Joe for that.  I blame stupid Lifetime for airing those Medicare supplement commercials every single commercial break.  And the Shriners/St. Judes commercials.  And all the awful Go Big show commercials on TBS.  I was thrilled that I was getting to work from home for a couple of weeks because I could watch things like The Closer while I worked.  I forgot about how annoying the commercials are.

[Welshman in Ca]

11 hours ago, Gharlane said:

Oh, I hate thatone for a couple reasons! One, you think people are impressed that you shop at Marshals, I think, and two, the odds of you actually finding something as good as that is almost zero. 

The reason it's almost zero in some places from what I've been told & read is that some of their employees keep the really good stuff back for resellers who then "tip" the employee for helping them. Some employees also "hide" the good stuff in a different section to where it should be to annoy the resellers and let the real shoppers find them but usually employees just buy it for themselves.

[susannah]

19 minutes ago, proserpina65 said:

The point is, yes "tons of money" is relative but the vast range of athlete salaries put most of them at lower middle class level wages

Again, I wonder how anyone knows just how much any individual athlete makes.

[cinsays]

13 hours ago, Mrs. Hanson said:

I remember when Joe Namath got married and it made the news!!  He was quite the active and eligible bachelor!!!  Broadway Joe!!!

yup, he was one of my crushes in college!  made the unfortunate mistake of dating somebody who looked a lot like him

 

[proserpina65]

2 minutes ago, susannah said:

Again, I wonder how anyone knows just how much any individual athlete makes.

Because sports publications report on it.  English soccer salaries are discussed in detail in multiple different outlets, for example.

Edited January 27, 2022 by proserpina65

[theatremouse]

Y'all, unless it's about the content of an ad in which the athlete stars, sports people are off-topic here. 

[OldStandard]

LL Flooring has a couple of ad appts that are particularly aggravating to me.  Both of them feature women who are fully clothed in daytime clothes, but who are stretched out on the floor face down, or with a small turn at the neck to allow them to breathe (but their speech is still slurred).  They rhapsodize about the beauty of their floors, which are nice enough - but I can’t help but wonder about the effect that renders these women absolutely brainless.  The one who gets a bit snooty about “you know, the artisan one” comes pretty close to triggering my gag reflex!

[millennium]

Strypaper?

[Bastet]

3 hours ago, OldStandard said:

They rhapsodize about the beauty of their floors, which are nice enough - but I can’t help but wonder about the effect that renders these women absolutely brainless.

Maybe, since they're face down on the floor, they're high off all the chemicals new flooring off gasses.

[madmax]

6 hours ago, susannah said:

Again, I wonder how anyone knows just how much any individual athlete makes.

Moving to small talk

[CrazyInAlabama]

The Hormel Chili, turned into dip commercial is icky.    Everyone's arms turn into superlong, waving arms.     That wouldn't make me want to buy their Chili, and make dip out of it. 

[susannah]

There was talk earlier about Martha and I didn't know what ad it referred to. I have recently seen a Medicaid ad where an old crone named Martha is screaming about benefits her neighbor is getting and she isn't. Is this the one?

[Gramto6]

26 minutes ago, susannah said:

There was talk earlier about Martha and I didn't know what ad it referred to. I have recently seen a Medicaid ad where an old crone named Martha is screaming about benefits her neighbor is getting and she isn't. Is this the one?

Argh! So Martha is back too!? I haven't yet been "blessed" with seeing her...

[peacheslatour]

35 minutes ago, susannah said:

There was talk earlier about Martha and I didn't know what ad it referred to. I have recently seen a Medicaid ad where an old crone named Martha is screaming about benefits her neighbor is getting and she isn't. Is this the one?

Yep. That's it. Edgy, ain't it?

[chessiegal]

36 minutes ago, susannah said:

There was talk earlier about Martha and I didn't know what ad it referred to. I have recently seen a Medicaid ad where an old crone named Martha is screaming about benefits her neighbor is getting and she isn't. Is this the one?

Yes, Martha is one of the Medicare ads. Part of Namath, JJ Walker, and IIRC, a fairly normal woman.

[Gramto6]

2 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

Yes, Martha is one of the Medicare ads. Part of Namath, JJ Walker, and IIRC, a fairly normal woman.

Didn't William Shatner do some too? I guess we have those to look forward to also... Ugh!

[millennium]

2 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

Yep. That's it. Edgy, ain't it?

And it makes me feel so good about getting older!   Imagine the joy of that day in the not so distant future when  look around at your peers and see that not only are you surrounded by Marthas, but the world considers you a Martha too!

[Prevailing Wind]

5 hours ago, susannah said:

There was talk earlier about Martha and I didn't know what ad it referred to. I have recently seen a Medicaid ad where an old crone named Martha is screaming about benefits her neighbor is getting and she isn't. Is this the one?

Probably the same actress, different ad. The first one she was being obnoxious about not calling to check her potential benefits, even to the point of doing that head-downward-nod that implies, "So there!" All that was missing was her stomping her feet.  She's wearing HUGE glasses, right?

ETA: I swear I saw a medicare ad with Denzel sitting on steps outside a brownstone.

 

Edited January 28, 2022 by Prevailing Wind

[Katy M]

6 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

Probably the same actress, different ad. The first one she was being obnoxious about not calling to check her potential benefits, even to the point of doing that head-downward-nod that implies, "So there!" All that was missing was her stomping her feet.  She's wearing HUGE glasses, right?

ETA: I swear I saw a medicare ad with Denzel sitting on steps outside a brownstone.

 

I hate that commercial.  Who is that guy to chastise an old lady?  Martha!!!!

[susannah]

7 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

Probably the same actress, different ad. The first one she was being obnoxious about not calling to check her potential benefits, even to the point of doing that head-downward-nod that implies, "So there!" All that was missing was her stomping her feet.  She's wearing HUGE glasses, right?

ETA: I swear I saw a medicare ad with Denzel sitting on steps outside a brownstone.

 

That's the one!

[Crashcourse]

11 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

ETA: I swear I saw a medicare ad with Denzel sitting on steps outside a brownstone.

That's Danny Glover.

[susannah]

On 1/25/2022 at 5:33 PM, Mrs. Hanson said:

I will bring a Yeti cooler and A LOT of ice.

I can understand how certain things can bother some people, but seriously, these are disabled children! They can't help how they look or talk.

[Prevailing Wind]

48 minutes ago, Crashcourse said:

That's Danny Glover.

Thank you. I wasn't feeling well yesterday; at least I got his first initial correct. LOL. (I like both actors.)

[Mrs. Hanson]

3 hours ago, susannah said:

I can understand how certain things can bother some people, but seriously, these are disabled children! They can't help how they look or talk.

I would never make fun of a less than abled grownup or child.  This commercial grates me as the sweetness is just poured on thick!  We will send you this Wuv to the wescue blanket!"  We get it, we get it, you need donations.  Just dial back the sugar for a bit.

[susannah]

2 hours ago, Mrs. Hanson said:

I would never make fun of a less than abled grownup or child.  This commercial grates me as the sweetness is just poured on thick!  We will send you this Wuv to the wescue blanket!"  We get it, we get it, you need donations.  Just dial back the sugar for a bit.

Again, if that is how they talk, it's how they talk.

5 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

Thank you. I wasn't feeling well yesterday; at least I got his first initial correct. LOL. (I like both actors.)

Are you feeling better, PW? I've been down for a while, but hopefully on the mend now.

[madmax]

I don't recall seeing this one mentioned, but since the Limu Emu ads are pretty universally hated, it's probably here somewhere....

The one in the park with the bird whistles.  The whistles hurt my ears and I'm sure I'm not the only one.

Seriously, who comes up with this shit?

[CrystalBlue]

Jake from State Farm has yet another commercial, this time with a runaway bride.  Hey Jake, either grow it or shave it; that weak straggly whiskers thing isn't doing you any favors with brides or anyone else.  Including me, but I'm not in your demographics or your fan club.

[Prevailing Wind]

1 hour ago, susannah said:

Are you feeling better, PW? I've been down for a while, but hopefully on the mend now.

It's the new diabetes med. I don't think I can handle the side effects. <big sigh> Glad to hear you're feeling a bit better.

I hate the LiMu bird whistles, too.

[Bastet]

4 hours ago, Mrs. Hanson said:

This commercial grates me as the sweetness is just poured on thick!  We will send you this Wuv to the wescue blanket!"  We get it, we get it, you need donations.  Just dial back the sugar for a bit.

That one's a lot, yes, but for me the worst is the one with Kaleb from a couple of years ago, where the director put him in such an over-the-top role it came across like an SNL parody of such commercials, and has put me off the poor kid's presence ever since.  It was the "It really is the best part of my day" gesture (done no favors by the outfit) that sent me over the edge at the end of this one, and, while I don't remember in what context she brought it up, I do remember a full ten minutes of my weekly pandemic phone call with a friend being devoted to how much we couldn't stand this overdone spot:

Like I said, glad he's going well and hope that keeps on, but a big no to watching his commercials ever since thanks to flashbacks to this spectacle.  These kids' stories are compelling enough; these forced aw, look how adorable embellishments just distract.

[michelec]

1 hour ago, madmax said:

I don't recall seeing this one mentioned, but since the Limu Emu ads are pretty universally hated, it's probably here somewhere....

The one in the park with the bird whistles.  The whistles hurt my ears and I'm sure I'm not the only one.

Seriously, who comes up with this shit?

I have to mute that ad whenever it comes on because the whistle freaks out my cat.

[susannah]

2 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

It's the new diabetes med. I don't think I can handle the side effects. <big sigh>

Oh dear.

[Prevailing Wind]

Where I worked before I retired, the boss' daughter also worked there and brought her baby to work. As the kid grew, he was forever breaking bones. So much so, that the Children's Services did an investigation on the mom.  They had the kid tested and, sure enough, he has brittle bone disease, like Alec and Kaleb. He's not wheelchair bound yet, and he does go to school, but he's the last kid into school and the last kid out in order to avoid any jostling, even though all the students have been warned to watch out for him.  Last I heard, he was in the Children's Hospital getting an infusion to deal with the pain.

Sometimes, he was bratty, but for the most part, he's a happy kid, gregarious, smart, and polite. Mom's doing an excellent job raising him. Her sister, realizing it's a hereditary condition, got herself spayed. (Yeah, it's a vet's office.)

Bastet is right - these kids are compelling enough on their own without embellishing it with treacle.

[susannah]

16 minutes ago, Prevailing Wind said:

Where I worked before I retired, the boss' daughter also worked there and brought her baby to work. As the kid grew, he was forever breaking bones. So much so, that the Children's Services did an investigation on the mom.  They had the kid tested and, sure enough, he has brittle bone disease, like Alec and Kaleb. He's not wheelchair bound yet, and he does go to school, but he's the last kid into school and the last kid out in order to avoid any jostling, even though all the students have been warned to watch out for him.  Last I heard, he was in the Children's Hospital getting an infusion to deal with the pain.

Sometimes, he was bratty, but for the most part, he's a happy kid, gregarious, smart, and polite. Mom's doing an excellent job raising him. Her sister, realizing it's a hereditary condition, got herself spayed. (Yeah, it's a vet's office.)

Bastet is right - these kids are compelling enough on their own without embellishing it with treacle.

I guess I missed the treacle, I have just seen the ones where they have clips of the other kids as well. Extra points if anyone knows where you get treacle!

[SoMuchTV]

To be fair, this is the thread to post about commercials that (in the posters' opinions) are annoying, irritating, etc.  I don't think anyone is questioning or insulting or wishing ill to the children themselves.  Just the way the commercial is framed (and maybe its frequency, if you ask me).

[chenoa333]

Old fucking Navy commercial: "you ain't seen nothin' like this before". Actually, we have. And we've seen it a million times.

Can they just invest some money in a new commercial? They make multi millions on their cheaply made clothes. This is one of my most hated advertisements. Ever.

[Crashcourse]

1 hour ago, chenoa333 said:

Old fucking Navy commercial: "you ain't seen nothin' like this before". Actually, we have. And we've seen it a million times.

Can they just invest some money in a new commercial? They make multi millions on their cheaply made clothes. This is one of my most hated advertisements. Ever.

I haaaaate that commercial so much!  As soon as I hear that annoying guitar intro, I change the channel.

And I hate the stupid tik tok dancing that I see in a lot of commercials now.  

[Bruinsfan]

I'm merely annoyed by them rather than feeling full blown loathing, but I wish Cheez-Its would get rid of their talking cheeses ad campaign and go back to kids explaining how they get so much cheese flavor in the crackers with fantastical depictions. Those commercials were funny and charming, with this one being the best of the lot imho:

 

 

[peacheslatour]

2 minutes ago, Bruinsfan said:

I'm merely annoyed by them rather than feeling full blown loathing, but I wish Cheez-Its would get rid of their talking cheeses ad campaign and go back to kids explaining how they get so much cheese flavor in the crackers with fantastical depictions. Those commercials were funny and charming, with this one being the best of the lot imho:

 

 

Agreed. The talking food commercials, I find are a little unsettling.

 

[PrincessPurrsALot]

Folks,

Talk about the commercials, not each other.  People are allowed to dislike commercials and the people on them.  They can also dislike the acting, music, script, frequency, or anything else about the commercials.   

Do not shame other posters for their dislike or imply that they are speaking about more than the commercial.