Hit Celebrity TV Commercials (compilation)

 

Picture: C     Sound: C     Extras: C-     Compilation: B+

 

 

Like the shows they sponsored, the advertisements that used to appear on television were some of the cleverest short films ever made.  Like the great radio ads before them, there used to be a genuine fun and genuine pride in how they pushed their product.  Give or take “Retromercials” on the TV Land cable/satellite network, the only way you can usually see these ads is on bootleg VHS, or if parts of them turn up on a TV show or motion picture.  That is why the arrival of Hit Celebrity TV Commercials on DVD is so welcome.

 

In what is still a too-rare occurrence on legitimate, mainstream home video, here is a collection of over 120 ads that are constantly entertaining to watch.  What follows is a list by the product of each of the ads:

 

9-LIVES CAT FOOD – a full-color Morris The Cat classic.

 

A-1 STEAK SAUCE – Boris Karloff

 

AMERICAN EXPRESS – Mel Blanc, the Man of 1,000 Voices, esp. cartoons.

 

AQUA VELVA – Lainie Kazan

 

AXION DETERGENT – Arthur Godfrey

 

BIC INK CRAYON BANANA PENS – Charles Nelson Reilly

 

BIZ – Kaye Ballard

 

BIZ – Eddie Albert

 

BORAXO SOAP – Ronald Reagan & Patti Davis (in her teens, as a tie-in to the TV series Death Valley Days.)

 

BOUNTY PAPER TOWELS – Nancy Walker (the comic actress from Rhoda and McMillan & Wife who was the product spokesman, later became a TV1 director, then directed the disastrous Disco Musical Can’t Stop The Music with The Village People, Valerie Perrine & Bruce Jenner.)

 

BRYLCREEM – Joe DiMaggio

 

BUDWEISER BEER – Two in a row with Ed McMahon

 

CAMAY SOAP – Jaclyn Smith of the original Charlie’s Angels.

 

CARNATION INSTANT DRY MILK – Harry Morgan & Cara Williams

 

CARNATION MUSTARD SAUCE – George Burns & Gracie Allen (a regular sponsor of their show, reviewed elsewhere on this site.)

 

CHANEL #5 – Catherine Deneuve

 

CHAPSTICK – Suzy Chaffee (Olympian became regular spokesman.)

 

CHARMIN – Two with Dick Wilson as Mr. Whipple, one color, one monochrome.

 

CHEVROLET – The Fifth Dimension

 

CHEVROLET CAMARO (1970s) – Lloyd Bridges

 

CHEVROLET NOVA – O.J. Simpson

 

CLAIROL TRUE BRUNETTE HAIR COLORING – Raquel Welch

 

COCA COLA – B.J. Thomas

 

COCA COLA – Michael Jordan (very early ad for him.)

 

COLGATE TOOTHPASTE – Howdy Doody & Buffalo Bill, with animation sequence.

 

COMET – Jane Withers

 

COVER GIRL – Susan Blakely

 

COVER GIRL – Cheryl Tiegs

 

COVER GIRL – Cybill Shepherd (the model later of Peter Bogdanovich’s The Last Picture Show and much late of hit TV series Moonlighting and Cybill.)

 

DE SOTO/PLYMOUTH – Groucho Marx, on You Bet Your Life (reviewed elsewhere on this site.)

 

DORITOS – Avery Schreiber

 

DR. PEPPER (in original 10-2-4 bottles) - Burt Young (Chinatown, Rocky)

 

DRANO – James Coco

 

ENDUST – Emmett Kelly

 

FAVOR WOOD POLISH – Mariette Hartley

 

FEDDERS AIR CONDITIONING – Farrah Fawcett (cameo at the end)

 

FEDDERS AIR CONDITIONING – MacLean Stevenson

 

FLINTSTONES VITAMINS (animated with the characters.)

 

FORD VANS – Buster Keaton (in the silent movie style.)

 

FORMULA 409 – Vic Tayback (Mel from the hit TV series Alice.)

 

FOSTER FARMS CHICKEN – Fred Williams & Gordon Jump (the DVD fails to note that the female shopper is the great comic actress Valerie Curtin.)

 

FRANCO-AMERICAN RAVIOLI – Al Molinaro (Al from Happy Days)

 

FRITOS CORN CHIPS – The Frito Bandito, an animated mascot that was quickly attacked as a stereotype by Latino groups, including a big one led by Ricardo Montalban.  The result was that Frito-Lay pulled the character, but it is ironically a favorite for memorabilia collectors, who will appreciate the eraser offer in this ad.  If you listen closely, the character was voiced by Mel Blanc.

 

FRUIT OF THE LOOM – Howard Cosell

 

FTD FLORISTS -  Louis Jordan

 

GABRIEL SHOCK ABSORBERS – Roger Miller (singer of the hit King Of The Road, featured in the ad.)

 

GAIN DETERGENT – Jean Stapleton (pre-All In The Family.)

 

GENERAL MILLS TOTAL CERIAL – Dick Van Patten (pre-Eight Is Enough.)

 

GIBBONS BEER – Frank Gorshin (the original Riddler from TV’s Batman, but the brief reference to the show is outdone by Gorshin’s great Marlon Brando impersonation, which spoofs method acting.)

 

GILLETTE RAZORS – Pee Wee Reese/Don Zimmer/Roy Campanella

 

JACK La LANNE’S GLAMOUR STRETCHER (La Lanne promotes an exercise device with a chart, and a phonograph record made of “unbreakable” vinyl)

 

HALEY’S M.O. – Ted Knight (who was already a voice-over announcer, character actor and voice on many cartoons, prior to The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Too Close For Comfort.)

 

HEAD & SHOULDERS SHAMPOO – Vicki Lawrence (already know through her association with Carol Burnett.)

 

HEFTY TRASH BAGS – Jonathan Winters

 

HEINZ PICKLES – Arte Johnson (dressed as a pickle in a jar, he was already a hot property form the TV classic Laugh-In.)

 

HOSTESS CRUMB CAKES – Ann Blyth (using her Hollywood image to distinguish this particular Hostess product from their other snack lines, deemed to be aimed squarely at kids.  The product is still in production, so it worked.)

 

HUNTS CATSUP (aka KETCHUP) – A tie-in to My Three Sons offers the cast, including Fred MacMurray, Barry Livingston, Stanley Livingston, and William Demarest.

 

I CAN’T BELIEVE IT’S A GIRDLE from Playtex – Rue McClanahan (Prior to her success on Maude and later The Golden Girls, Rue stands out in this huge hit TV as that helped sell big this very successful product.  Who is that saleswoman?)

 

IVORY SOAP – Donna Mills (Before Knots Landing, this is even prior to her work in Clint Eastwood’s directorial debut Play Misty For Me in 1971.)

 

JELL-O SOFT SWIRL PUDDING – Florence Henderson (The Brady Bunch mom in one of her long series of memorable TV ads.)

 

JENO’S PIZZA ROLLS – A Lone Ranger tie-in with original Ranger Clayton Moore and original Tonto Jay Silverheels, includes some surrealistic party behavior and the use of the famous classical piece The William Tell Overture by Rossini.

 

KELLOGG’S CORN FLAKES – A Beverly Hillbillies tie-in with Buddy Ebsen, Max Baer Jr., and Donna Douglas in black and white.

 

KELLOGG’S – MacLean Stevenson early in his career at the Kellogg’s “computer factory” circa late 1960s.

 

KELLOGG’S FROSTED FLAKES – Tony The Tiger in an early color ad, when they finally settled on the look he has now.

 

KELLOGG’S RICE KRISPIES – Jimmy Durante, singing.

 

KELLOGG’S SPECIAL K CERIAL – Lily Tomlin, simply dubbed SPECIAL K CERIAL on the DVD menus.

 

KINDNESS HAIR CONDITIONER – Elizabeth Montgomery in a Bewitched tie-in.

 

KLEAN ‘N SHINE – Florence Henderson

 

KODAK – Ozzie Nelson (1950s, black and white.)

 

LAY’S POTATO CHIPS – Two from a series of promotions starring Buddy Hackett

 

LAY’S POTATO CHIPS – Tim Conway

 

LIPTON CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP – Arthur Godfrey (1950s, early packaging, black & white, which is longer than most on this DVD.)

 

LISTERINE – Nancy Allen (later of Brian De Palma classic thrillers Carrie, Dressed To Kill, and Blow Out, then the Robocop films.)

 

LUSTRE-CRÈME SHAMPOO – Yvonne DeCarlo (Pre-Munsters, as a tie-in to her work in the William Dieterle Republic Pictures feature film Magic Fire from 1956.  She plays piano.  The film is about composer Richard Wagner.)

 

MAXIM INSTANT COFFEE – Patricia Neal (Hud)

 

MAXWELL HOUSE – Danny Thomas

 

MINUTE MAID ORANGE JUICE – Bing Crosby Family

 

MR. COFFEE – Joe DiMaggio in his famous ploy of personally sending money in his name to all who buy the machine.

 

NESTLE’S QUIK – Two with Roy Rogers, when the only flavor was chocolate, and Dale Evans joins in on the second ad, both tie0ins to his show.

 

NYQUIL – Sherman Hemsley (soon to be George Jefferson on All In The Family and The Jeffersons.)

 

OLD MILWAUKEE BEER – Tony Dow, trying to break his kid image from Leave It To Beaver.

 

OPEN PIT BARBEQUE SAUCE – Color tie-in to The Andy Griffith Show with Griffith, Ron (Ronny) Howard, Aneta Corsaut, and Jack Dobson.

 

OVALTINE – Joe Namath, Jerry Philbin, Emerson Booser, John Dochrie

 

PACQUIN HAND CREAM – Jaclyn Smith (videotaped, prior to Charlie’s Angels.)

 

PALMOLIVE – Jan Miner as the Manicurist Madge, with the famous “softens hands while you do the dished”, but later ads dropped “the” to match the bottle’s phrasing.

 

PAMPERS – Susan Sarandon

 

PEPSI – Don Johnson, joined by Eagle-gone-solo Glenn Frey and is the only letterboxed ad on the DVD.

 

PHILIP MORRIS – Lucille Ball & Desi Arnaz

 

POLAROID LAND CAMERA – Ali McGraw (monochrome)

 

POST TOASTIES CEREAL – Andy Griffith

 

PRINGLES – Bernie Kopell  (When they first came out, Proctor & Gamble was allowed to call them Potato Chips, but since they were made of mashing potatoes and reforming them in chip shapes (without oversimplification), they were later renamed “potato crisps” as they are now known.  This ad is before the change.)

 

PROM HAIR CARE – Chico Marx & Harpo Marx

 

RCA Televisions – Lloyd Bridges

 

REMCO MOVIELAND DRIVE-IN THEATER – Patty Duke (listed under Movieland on the menus.)

 

REMINGTON MIST-AIR HOT COMB – Ed Burns, playing up his “Kookie” image form the 1950s hit TV series 77 Sunset Strip.

 

RISE SHAVING CREAM – Dick Butkus

 

ROGER MARIS ACTION BASEBALL GAME starring the man himself.

 

SCHMIDT BEER – Mike Farrell

 

SCOTTIES TISSUES – Jimmy Durante playing piano, the idea being that they can take care of even his famous big nose.

 

SIMONIZ CAR WASH – The Three stooges, in their second era with Curly Joe.

 

SKITTLE-POOL – Don Adams, playing indirectly off of his Get Smart persona.

 

SPEED-O BIKE – Spanky McFarland, a tie-in with the Little Rascals/Our Gang films, actually made for movie theaters.  Sadly ironic when we know how much money he was cheated out of by adulthood.  His lawsuits never worked out before his death, but he remarkably never complained publicly.

 

STUDEBAKER LARK – A Mr. Ed tie-in with Alan Young joined by the talking horse.

 

TANG – Jim Lovell, later the subject of Ron Howard’s Apollo 13, helped to establish the drink as that of astronauts.

 

THAT’S MY COLOR by Technique – Gloria De Haven (typo in the menu)

 

TIDE XK DETEGENT - George Fenneman & Rose Marie (typo in the menu)

 

TOASTA PIZZA – Art Linkletter

 

TOP JOB CLEANER – Paul Dooley

 

ULTRA BRITE TOOTHPASTE – Farrah Fawcett

 

UNION OIL – Marilyn Monroe

 

VENTURE HAIR TONIC – Johnny Bench.

 

VICTORS COUGH DROPS – Charlotte Rae (long before Differ’nt Strokes or The Facts Of Life, and she is a hoot here.)

 

VITALIS DRY TEXTURE CRÈME – Howard Cosell & Don Meredith

 

VOLKSWAGEN FASTBACK SEDAN – Dustin Hoffman (just before he hit it big with The Graduate & Midnight Cowboy.)

 

WESTINGHOUSE AIR CONDITIONERS – Frank Gifford

 

WHEATIES – Bob Richards (Olympic Champion)

 

WHEATIES – Bruce Jenner, the Olympic Champion in the infamous ad that was criticized for implying that you could win the Olympics by eating them.

 

WHEATIES – Ray Scott (sports announcer, on NFL Rookies Of The Year promotion)

 

 

That order does not reflect the actual order the ads appear on the DVD, ort on the two menus provided, but are extended reference for fans.  There literally is something for everyone, though some of them are obviously must-sees.  Many are hit classics that were played for years, due to how effective and memorable they were.  Even in these brief ads, the star appeal of these known names (or later-knowns) is obvious in pretty much all cases.  How star personalities were used to push products varies in interesting ways throughout and certainly throughout many periods.  Some are just gems that are simply brilliant.

 

The ads are all full screen (save the Don Johnson ad), though they vary from black and white to color.  Letterboxing on TV is a very recent development.  As a matter of fact, the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) used to have people monitor TV broadcasts all the time to make sure broadcasters were using the entire area of the 1.33 x 1 screen.  Prior to the slick filmmaking (or anti-filmmaking if you will) that MTV ushered in, many of these people were neglected by TV and motion pictures, but some still went into those fields as well.  Sadly, information on directors, cinematographers and production designers is not available and deserves to be researched and published.  Image quality varies, but sometimes, they look really good.  A few of them even originated on videotape.

 

Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono is the sound on all ads, which is just fine.  All of them, except maybe the Miami Vice tie-in, were always that way.  It reminds us how lame TV audio standards used to be, but that monophonic sound is not always a bad thing.  Though there are no extras, the ads are listed by celebrities and products in the menus.  That kind of cross-referencing deserves to be recognized with some merit, so this may be the only time we will ever count any kind of chapter selection as a legitimate extra.  The menus do not always work right and the chapter selection sometimes has to be tricked to work or to get to a certain ad, but this is still better than VHS.

 

All together, this all lasts around 95 minutes and has immense rewatchability.  Those who are skeptical are especially encouraged to look into this, as there must be at least one ad you are curious about here and the price is not bad.  The companies who still exist protect their advertising histories closely, so that alone is reason enough to outright buy Hit Celebrity TV Commercials.  It has a great price and we can only hope this will become a DVD series.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo