And Now...a Word from THEIR Sponsor

Courtesy of my main man Sean Mc, check out this commercial starring Roy Clark, who is shilling for Pringles potato chips:

It's not just regular Pringles. By cracky, it's COUNTRY STYLE Pringles.

"Hey, Roy, can I have your autograph?"
"Sure! Have some Country Style Pringles!"
"Uh...no, that's OK. Just the autograph would be cool. Thanks."

Despite Roy's jaunty little jingle, I can't figure out what makes Country Style Pringles country style other than the "denim" can (which I do love, by the way). Are they fried in possum fat and beat with an ol' switch right after they're dumped out of the pan?

In an attempt to figure this out, I checked out a longer spot for the same product. This one ups the ante on country metaphors ("I'm hungrier than a moth on a nylon sweater!") but doesn't add a lot of detail beyond it's a NEW kind of Pringles. I'm not sure "a peck of hearty flavor" really explains it for me. But then again, I'm a city dweller, so maybe I just don't get it.

Oh, and the denim blue can. Can't forget the denim blue can.

And Now...a Word fromTHEIR Sponsor

(NOTE: This is a cross-post with Battle of the Network Shows, where you can grab the latest episode of our podcast, in which we discuss game shows Sale of the Century and Face the Music)

It's not difficult to envision Jim Perry as a consummate pitchman. He's so polished in all  his game show work, and his Sale of the Century stint indicates he is comfortable pushing product. One of my favorite YouTube uploaders, Bionic Disco, just posted an early Perry commercial that throws me a bit, though. He just looks so...young in this one. Check it out:

At first, I am taken aback by the haircut, but as I settle in and get past that (OK, it may have taken me a few watches), I am THERE. I want that salt.  I mean, I want that salt he has right there in the ad. I want to take that little jar and chug that Morton's Lite Salt. If this were Sale of the Century, I'd throw away $10--the value of two questions--just for a heaping portion of salt. He wouldn't even have to sweeten (or salt?) the deal by throwing in a set of shakers.

The poise, the delivery, the confidence--even in the 1970s, Jim Perry was the man.

And Now...a Word from THEIR Sponsor: Just for Feet???

Yes, there was once a chain of shoe stores called Just for Feet, and it was apparently a big deal. I think this is a horrible name for a retail store. "Foot" might be acceptable--see Foot Locker--but "Feet" is really pushing it. I don't want to walk into a store called 'Just for Feet." I worry that my page views are gonna plummet as a result of putting the word "Feet" in the title of this post.

No offense to Quentin Tarantino, but feet just ain't my thing, and in fact the word itself is a little off-putting unless it's as the unit of measurement. There's a reason why this is so funny:

This chain originated in the south, and I never entered one of these stores, so this fascinates and repulses me in 2017. Did this store have to be JUST for Feet? If you want to sell shoes, fine, but offer some other products or at least the illusion that you might find something else in there. Even Payless sells umbrellas and hats and stuff.

So here is a vintage ad for...Just for..Feet.:

And Now...a Word from THEIR Sponsor

Welcome to a new recurring feature in which we focus on vintage commercials of yore. Today, I'm hungry for some pizza. Are you in the mood for pizza? Yeah, I'm always in the mood for pizza. Let's go out for some.

Someone want to explain this to me?

I don't have a problem with Tim Conway--fine performer getting the job done here--but what the deuce is the concept of "Straw Hat Pizza"? "Hey, let's make people really feel at home by making them think they're getting their pizza from..." What? A bunch of rubes? Hayseeds? What exactly is the gimmick, and how does it pertain to pizza? Did the employees enjoy wearing those big straw hats? Actually, I 'm pretty sure I know the answer to that last one.

I think "Big White Chef Hat Worn by Guy with Stereotypical Thick Black Mustache" Pizza would have been a better choice, but this was apparently a real direction that a franchise chose. Nothing like getting your pies from someone wearing...a straw hat! And if that isn't appealing enough, check out the lovely 1970s brown-centric logo.

Straw Hat Pizza: "All for fun, and fun for all." Why, that sure does look like a fun joint. I wonder if kids got a free straw hat with every pan pizza. Other ads show the row of fun--basically, a handful of arcade games--a little better. Hey, back in those days, a standalone Frogger was a big deal, something worth donning your straw hat and heading outside to see.

(Note: I begrudgingly did some research and discovered this chain is still around. Straw Hat, I may not understand you, but you have several dozen more restaurants to your name than I do, and for this I respect you.)

Today on Battle of the Network Shows:

Here's to good friends

Tonight is kind of special...

Summer of Angst: The (previous) Pepsi Generation Part 1

Welcome to Cultureshark's Summer of Angst, in which we examine last year's DVD collection "The Lost Television Legacy of James Dean." Since we have a short selection this week, now would be a good time to note that we don't only get ol' J.D. on this set. No, we also get a heavy dose of...Marcus Winslow, who introduces each segment on the DVD.

Yeah, that's right, Marcus Winslow. You may remember him from--Well, you won't remember him, because he's not an actor (which will come as no surprise when you see the poor guy read the cue cards), but he is James Dean's cousin. At least, that's what the DVD says, and the DVD has the TCM name on it, and TCM wouldn't lie.

Winslow doesn't add a whole lot on this first disc. I keep waiting for him to offer something a little more personal than, "He had a bit part in this one," but still, his presence is a nice little link to the Dean legacy.

I had no idea the Dean legacy involved Pepsi Cola, but a pair of adverts kick off the proceedings. I have to say there is no way I would have spotted Our Man Dean had not the producers of this set slowed down the footage and highlighted him. I'm still not 100% convinced, but, again, you know, TCM, no lying, etc.

This portion of the set provides something we don't necessarily expect: James Dean having FUN. In fact, everyone in this first ad, shot December 1950, is having fun.

There's not a lot to this ad, but it has a peppy jingle, and there is something appealing about seeing all these happy youths having so much fun on a merry go round.

By the way, I really hope that Dean got so into his character that he yelled, "A merry go round! WHOOPEE!" before jumping on his horse. Not a "carousel," either--a merry go round.

If there's a theme to this spot apart from fun, it's bouncing. Note these lyrics:

"Bounce, bounce, bounce, bounce
Go get Pepsi for the Pepsi bounce"

I'm not sure how much you want to be bouncing around while drinking all that soda, but, hey, these kids are young and carefree.



Pepsi--It's SWELL!

Winslow tells us that the very next day, Dean shot the second ad on this disc, and that this gig got him his SAG card. What he doesn't mention, but which I heard elsewhere, is that someone was so impressed by Dean on the first day, they asked him back for that second spot. You'll see next time that the actor got a lot more to do on that occasion, but I wonder what the heck they saw in his merry go round riding to make them ask him to return. He must have made some kind of an impression on that horsey!