The Gong Show: Ads That Could Never (Ever) Run Today

This episode explores the history and impact of controversial advertisements that would be unacceptable by today's standards.

1. Many old advertisements utilized shockingly inappropriate content that would be unacceptable today, including sexism and endorsements of harmful products.
2. Cultural norms and values significantly influence what is considered acceptable in advertising.
3. Reflecting on past advertisements can provide insights into historical societal values and the evolution of marketing ethics.
4. Advertisements serve as a mirror to society, reflecting prevailing attitudes and norms of their time.
5. Analyzing old ads can help in understanding the importance of responsible and ethical marketing practices today.

1. Introduction to Controversial Ads

Terry O'Reilly introduces the episode's theme by discussing advertisements that would not be acceptable today. He sets the stage for a deep dive into specific examples. Terry O'Reilly: "We're going to play a little gong show today, dipping into the vast archives of advertising."

2. Examples of Inappropriate Ads

The chapter covers specific examples of offensive ads, including those promoting cigarettes to women and babies, and sexist advertising practices. Terry O'Reilly: "Ads were either so politically incorrect, so sexist, or so inappropriate you won't believe your ears."

3. Cultural Reflections and Shifts

This chapter reflects on how these ads were a product of their time and what their acceptance says about past societal norms. Terry O'Reilly: "Look at the ads from any decade and you instantly get a sense of what was politically correct."

1. Be critical of the media you consume, understanding its potential impact on societal values.
2. Promote and support advertising that upholds ethical standards and positive societal values.
3. Educate others about the history and impact of advertising to prevent the repetition of past mistakes.
4. Engage in discussions about the role of ethics in marketing within your community or professional network.
5. Advocate for transparency and accountability in advertising practices to ensure they reflect current ethical standards.

This week, we go back in advertising history and take a look at the ads and commercials that could never, ever, EVER run today.

They are either so politically incorrect, so sexist, or so inappropriate, you won’t believe your ears.

From doctors recommending cigarettes, to 7-Up advertising to babies, to everyone singing about the joys of DDT, it’s amazing to think they all ran back in the day.

Ads that couldn’t run today.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

People

Terry O'Reilly

Companies

Philip Morris, Lane Bryant

Books

None

Guest Name(s):

None

Content Warnings:

None

Terry O'Reilly

But wait, there's more. Hi, everybody, it's Terry Oreilly here, and we're happy to announce something we've never offered before. It's our but wait, there's more. Subscriber package if you're a fan of under the influence, you'll get more than ever before. You'll get more bonus episodes like the live recording and audience Q and a we did recently at the Hot Dogs podcast festival.

Exclusive for subscribers only. Youll get more podcasts with additional stories. Youll get early access so you can listen to all of our new shows before anyone else. Youll get all of our episodes, including archives ad free tsk, tsk. I wont judge.

Youll be invited to ask me anything. Sit down chats with yours truly. Youll get first dibs on tickets for live events. Youll get big discounts on under the influence merchandise. And that's only the beginning, all for a few bucks a month.

Just go to our show page on Apple Podcasts and tap try free to start your free seven day trial. Membership has its privileges. Hmm. You should copyright that.

Debbie O'Reilly

Imagine the softest sheets you've ever felt. Now imagine them getting even softer over time. That's what you'll feel with Bowlin branch's organic cotton sheets. In a recent customer survey, 96% replied that Boland branch sheets get softer with every wash. Start getting your best night's sleep in these sheets that get softer and softer for years to come.

Try their sheets with a 30 night guarantee, plus get 15% off your first order@bowlingbranch.com. Code buttery exclusions apply. See site for details. Hey, I'm Ryan Reynolds. Recently, I asked Mint Mobile's legal team if big wireless companies are allowed to raise prices due to inflation.

Terry O'Reilly

They said yes. And then when I asked if raising prices technically violates those onerous two year contracts, they said, what the are you talking about, you insane, Hollywood? So to recap, we're cutting the price of mint unlimited from $30 a month to just $15 a month. Give it a try@mintmobile.com. Switch $45 upfront for three months, plus taxes and fees.

Debbie O'Reilly

Promoting for new customers for a limited time unlimited more than 40gb per month slows full terms at mint mobile.com dot. There's never been a faster or easier way to start your weight loss journey than with Plushcare. Plushcare accepts most insurance plans and gives you online access to board certified physicians who can prescribe FDA approved weight loss medications like Wigovi and Zepbound. For those who qualify, take charge of your health and speak with a board certified physician about a weight loss plan that's right for you. Get started today@plushcare.com.

Terry O'Reilly

Weightloss. That's plushcare.com weightloss. Plushcare.com weightloss.

This is an apostrophe podcast production.

Debbie O'Reilly

You're soaking in it.

You're going loving. In an instant, your teeth look whiter than no new noonoo.

Terry O'Reilly

The Gong show premiered on NBC television in 1976. Hosted by Chuck Barris, it had a very unusual premise for its time. Amateur performers, most of them terrible. Would audition before three judges. Behind those judges hung a giant gong.

If the performers were beyond terrible, or if their act was just absurd or idiotic. One of the judges, or all three of the judges would bang the gong with a huge mallet. Survive being gonged. The three judges would rate the act out of ten. The act or performer who got closest to 30 points would be crowned the winner.

Barris would present a golden gong trophy and a grand prize check. For the sum total of $516.32, which Barris called a highly unusual amount. It was actually the Screen Actors Guild's minimum payment. For a tv appearance.

You either loved the gong show or you hated the gong show. I loved it. It was the absurd humor of it all. The wacky judges, the often outrageous acts. And above all, the quirky but lovable host Chuck Barris.

Even though his Persona was kind of odd and bumbling. And even appeared slightly tipsy at times. Barris was clearly having a lot of fun. And he was actually a very talented guy. In 1962, he wrote a hit song for Freddy Boom Boom Cannon.

Called Palisades park. But above all, Barris was one of the most successful tv producers in Hollywood. He created hit programs like the newlywed Game and the dating game.

In many ways, Chuck Barris was the pioneer of reality television. As all of his shows involve real people responding in unscripted ways. But it was the gong show that was his most outrageous production. From Hollywood, almost live. It's the gong show.

The acts varied from terrible singers. All those heads in West Virginia riding Mama juju juju. To people who could burp the Alphabet.

To a trio that whistled and used their pant zippers to make music.

Most of the time, the show seemed on the verge of careening out of control. The performers and the judges would suddenly jump up and start dancing for no reason. One of the judges, JP Morgan. Once ripped her blouse off and danced topless, driving the censors nuts. And Chuck Barris loved it all.

It was a crazy, crazy half hour while the gong show was produced by Barris. What you may not know is the actual show idea had a connection to Tommy Hunter.

Tommy Hunter was a canadian staple on CBC television for 27 years. Known as Canada's country gentleman, his show featured country music and a bevy of country stars, including Johnny Cash, Ann Murray, and even a 14 year old Shania Twain. One day an act came in to audition for Tommy. It was a juggler. He would throw bowling balls up in the air but never catch any of them.

Then he would throw four bowling pins up in the air and they would just bounce off his head and fall to the floor. Then the juggler said, and now I'd like to do it blindfolded. Hilarious. Tommy Hunter told one of his show writers named Chris Beard about the crazy juggler and other nutty acts that had auditioned for his program over the years. Beard thought it could make a funny show, put Tommy Hunter in a tuxedo and have him introduce all these kooky, hare brained performers.

Beard pitched it to the CBC, who turned him down flat. So Beard jumped on a plane, flew to Hollywood and pitched it to Chuck Barris, and that show became the gong show.

We're going to play a little gong show today. I'm going to dip into the vast archives of advertising and talk about ads and commercials that could never, ever, ever run today. They are either so politically incorrect, so sexist, or so inappropriate you won't believe your ears. Yet. They all ran back in the day.

So get your gongs ready.

Debbie O'Reilly

You're under the influence.

Terry O'Reilly

Marlboro cigarettes are the world's best selling brand, and for decades, the brand was personified by the Marlboro cowboy and this mythical place. Come to where the flavor is. Come to Marlboro country.

If you're a loyal listener to our show, you've heard me say that Marlboro was originally a women's cigarette, but it started losing market share. So parent company Philip Morris took one last chance to save the brand and repositioned it to be a mans cigarette. Their advertising agency chose the cowboy as the ultimate male image. Now, before all that happened, Marlboro was aimed at women, as I mentioned. And the print ads Marlboro ran were kind of shocking.

One ad shows two babies, maybe a year old. One baby says, gee, mommy, you sure enjoy your Marlboro. And if that weren't enough, the other baby says, before you scold me, mom, maybe you better light up a Marlboro. Hard to believe a cigarette company would put babies in their ads. Those ads ran often in the 1950s and could be seen in prestige magazines like the Saturday Evening Post.

Staying with babies for one more moment. Seven up ran some questionable ads in the mid fifties. One had a baby drinking directly from a seven up bottle, cradling it as a baby would normally hold a bottle of milk. The headline says, why? We have the youngest customers in the business.

The ad goes on to say, this young man is eleven months old, and he isn't our youngest customer by any means. Seven up is so pure, so wholesome, you can give it to babies and feel good about it. By the way, mom, if your toddlers have to be coaxed to drink their milk, add seven up to their milk in equal parts. Hard to believe the soda industry would make a pitch that directly and that boldly to moms and babies. That ad is from 1955.

We were speaking of cigarettes earlier. There was a time when doctors actually endorsed smoking. One print ad, for example, shows a doctor smoking with the headline, more doctors smoke camels than any other cigarette. The ad said that doctors in every branch of medicine were asked, what cigarette do you smoke? The brand name most was Camel.

The doctors choice is America's choice. This ad is from 1952. The link between cancer and cigarettes wouldn't officially come from the surgeon general until 1964. The more doctors smoke camels line was used in popular radio programs, medical journals, magazines like Time Life and the Saturday Evening Post. It was even used in tv commercials.

You know, if you were to follow a busy doctor as he makes his daily round of calls, you'd find yourself having a mighty busy time keeping up with him. Time out, for many men of medicine, usually means just long enough to enjoy a cigarette. And because they know what a pleasure it is to smoke a mild, good tasting cigarette, they're particular about the brand they choose. In a repeated national survey, doctors in all branches of medicine, doctors in all parts of the country, were asked, what cigarette do you smoke, doctor? Once again, the brand named most was Camel.

Along with doctors, Santa got in on the act. A lucky strike print ad showed good old St. Nick enjoying a smoke, along with a special message that said, a gift that brings pleasure to every home, both great and small, is rare indeed. Such a gift, my friends, is lucky strike. Signed Santa Claus.

And Santa Claus wasn't brand loyal. Another 1947 ad shows the jolly old elf holding an entire carton of camel cigarettes, saying, a merry Christmas for every smoker.

Lane Bryant is an american women's apparel retailer that specializes in plus sizes. The company began way back in 1904 and claims to be the country's largest plus size retailer. I came across an old ad from the company. The headline says, in big block letters, free for chubbies. There was a coupon attached that said, fall and winter fashion book full of charming, chubby sized clothes.

Send for yours now. Who could resist that pitch?

And if you think these ads are bad, wait until you hear the sexist ones.

Debbie O'Reilly

Ready to pop the question. The jewelers@bluenile.com have got sparkled down to a science with beautiful, lab grown diamonds worthy of your most brilliant moments. Their lab grown diamonds are independently graded and guaranteed identical to natural diamonds, and they're ready to ship to your door. Go to bluenile.com and use promo code listen to get $50 off your purchase of $500 or more. That's code.

Listen at blue nile.com for $50 off bluenial.com code listen hi, I'm Daniel, founder of Pretty Litter. Did you know cats tend to hide symptoms of sickness and pain? I learned this the hard way after losing my cat, Gingy. So I created pretty litter, a health monitoring litter that helps detect early signs of illness by changing colors, saving you money and potentially, your cat's life. Pretty litter is veterinarian developed, and it's the easiest way to keep tabs on your fur baby's health right at home.

Go to prettylitter.com and use code acast for 20% off your first order and a free cat toy. Terms and conditions apply csite for details. When it comes to your finances, you think you've done it all. You've saved, you've researched, and you've invested all that you can. Now it's time to take those investments to the next level by using the brand behind every great investor.

C

Yahoo Finance as America's number one finance destination, Yahoo. Finance has everything you need, whether you're a seasoned trader or just dipping your toes into the market. Join the millions of investors who trust Yahoo. Finance to guide them on their financial journey. For comprehensive financial news and analysis, visit Yahoo Finance.com comma.

The number one financial destination yahoofinance.com dot. I'm Sandra, and I'm just the professional your small business was looking for. But you didn't hire me because you didn't use LinkedIn jobs. LinkedIn has professionals you can't find anywhere else, including those who aren't actively looking for a new job but might be open to the perfect role, like me. In a given month, over 70% of LinkedIn users don't visit other leading job sites.

Terry O'Reilly

So if you're not looking on LinkedIn, you'll miss out on great candidates like Sandra. Start hiring professionals like a professional. Post your free job on LinkedIn.com. Spoken today.

Sexist advertising was rampant back in the day. Women were relegated to the kitchen and things weren't going well. Harvey, want anything special for your birthday? Just a decent cup of coffee. You're kidding.

I'm serious. Honey, your coffee's undrinkable. That's pretty harsh. Well, so's your coffee. You know, the girls down at the office make better coffee on their hot plates.

His poor wife gets advice from her. Neighbor, and he didn't even kiss me goodbye. You know, if I could just make a decent cup of coffee, I could relax. So relax. Why don't you try instant folgers?

Debbie O'Reilly

Tastes good as fresh perk. Then it's Folger's coffee to the rescue. Hey, great coffee. It's instant folgers. Doesn't it taste good as fresh perked?

Terry O'Reilly

Better. Better than those girls make at the office? Honey, their coffee can't hold a candle to yours. That was standard fare back in the late fifties and sixties. A print ad for Chase and Sanborn coffee had a headline that said, if your husband ever finds out you're not store testing for fresher coffee, dot, dot, dot.

The visual showed a woman lying across her husband's knees as he spanks her.

You may remember commercials for whisk detergent anchored by the slogan ring around the collar. Women were tortured by those commercials as they were blamed for the dirty rings around their husband's shirt collars. As you can hear in this commercial where a husband, his wife, and their young son are greeting hubby's mother at the airport. And mother in law instantly blames daughter in law for those dirty rings. Craig, she looks just like you.

Debbie O'Reilly

Same eyes, same freckles, same ring around the collar. They both got ring around the collar. Humiliated, wife looks at the camera and says, dirty rings. The ring around the collar line was repeated at least five times in every commercial. A print ad for thermador was promoting a three in one oven where all three components sat on top of one another in the kitchen.

Terry O'Reilly

The ad showed a buxom woman in a very, very low cut top lounging near the oven while her husband looked on with a knowing smile and a martini. The headline stacked for your convenience. The ad said, Thermador ovens were, quote, stacked and endowed with the most refined developments for culinary satisfaction. Another print ad showed a woman unwrapping a vacuum cleaner. Headline, Christmas morning.

She'll be happier with a hoover. It included a PS, two husbands that read she cares about her house. So if you really care about her, consider a hoover for Christmas. Yeah. Then consider a divorce.

I remember this commercial used to drive my mother up the wall. When it aired in 1972, it was for Geritol. My wife's incredible. She took care of the baby all day, cooked a great dinner, and even went to a school meeting. And look at her.

She looks better than any of her friends. She takes care of herself, gets her rest, does her sit ups, watches her diet. And to make sure she gets enough iron and vitamins, she takes Geritol every morning. Makes me take it, too. More than twice the iron of ordinary supplements, plus seven vitamins.

Take care of. Take Geritol. My wife. I think I'll keep her. It was that last line which aired at the height of the women's movement.

You can just hear the eye rolls at that one.

I'm looking at a vintage 1953 print advertisement for a toothpaste called chlorodent. Headline, there's another woman waiting for every man. The ad actually tries to instill fear in wives by saying, the attractive women your husband will meet during the day won't have morning mouth if you use chlorodent. Your goodbye kiss works for you, not against you. In other words, save your marriage with toothpaste.

An ad for ready whipped cream toppings said, how to hold a husband. Serve him desserts glorified with ready whip. Remember, there's only one ready whip. Your dessert. Magic secret that helps to hold a husband.

Nice to know you can save your marriage with dessert topping.

Back in the day, there were quite a few ads and commercials that suggested women were bad drivers. One Volkswagen print ad from the sixties said, sooner or later, your wife will drive home. One of the best reasons for owning a Volkswagen. The visual in the ad was a Volkswagen beetle with a broken headlight and a dented fender. The ad was promoting the fact that VW parts are easy and inexpensive to replace.

The ad explained this by saying, your wife isn't limited to fender smashing. She can jab the hood, graze the door, or bump off the bumper. It may make you furious, but it won't make you poor.

Goodyear tires played into the helpless female stereotype with this 1960 commercial.

It begins with a woman looking at her flat tire on the side of the road at night. This flat tire needs a man. But when there's no man around, Goodyear should be. Next time, give her a second chance. How about this commercial for the new Buick Riviera?

Riviera by Buick. A great and rare machine that a woman can admire and enjoy to the fullest. But only a man can really understand. Yikes. Find a road yourself and discover adventure.

Is a car called Riviera. Here's a Budweiser Super bowl commercial. It opens with a coach screaming at a referee during a football game, but the ref just calmly tunes the coach out. A very close call could have gone either way. It was right on the line.

Al Ferguson's not too happy with it, I can tell you that much. He's beating him like a rented mule and the ref's just tuning him out. Boy, where do you train to take a beating like that? Then we see the ref at home with his wife screaming in his ear, and he just calmly tunes her out. He said, when's that parts gonna get painted?

Debbie O'Reilly

And that litter box? It's been three weeks. Three weeks. And to think I could have married Don Hoffman. And it wouldn't hurt for you to say that you love me once in a while.

Terry O'Reilly

Believe it or not, that commercial ran in 2004.

Then there were the body image ads. One for a woman's undergarment company called Warners ran a print ad that showed a big color photo of a pear. This is no shape for a girl. The subhead. That's why Warners makes the concentrate girdle and the little fibber bra.

The print ad goes on to say that Warners can help girls with too much bottom and too little top. A cigarette ad from 1967 said, cigarettes are like women. The best ones are thin and rich. A print ad for face creams showed a worried wife watching her husband talk to another woman at a party. The ad asked, does your husband look younger than you do?

The subhead said, you can sidestep the tragedy that overtakes so many wives.

Debbie O'Reilly

Flintstones, meet the Flintstones. They're the Barney stone. Then there are the ads that just make you shake your head. How about this one? Starring fred flintstone and barney rubble.

Terry O'Reilly

The commercial begins with fred and barney watching their wives doing housework and mowing the lawn. They sure work hard, don't they, barney? Yeah. I hate to see them work so hard. Yeah, me too.

And let's go around back where we can't see him. Then fred and barney spark up a dart. Gee, we ought to do something, fred. Ok. How's about taking a nap?

I got a better idea. Let's take a winston break. That's it. Winston is the one built a cigarette that delivers flavor 20 times a pack. Yes, the flintstones was meant to be a cartoon for adults.

But a lot of kids like me loved the show, too, so seeing Fred and barney lighting up smokes was a bit disconcerting. And the commercial was a tad sexist.

The headline on a print ad for dupont said, you, see so many good things in dupont cellophane. The visual actually showed three babies wrapped in cellophane. I kid you not. Another ad for black flag insecticide shows a baby with the headline, no flies on me thanks to DDT. The ad says, black flag with DDT is, quote, long preferred by housewives everywhere.

Another ad for a similar product came from a company called Penn Salt Chemicals in 1947. It showed an illustration of a dog, a cow, an apple, and a woman all happily singing, DDT is good for me. The print ad proclaims that the great expectations for DDT have been realized. The ad recommends DDT be used for orchards, crops, cattle. And the ad includes a small image of a mother holding a baby saying, DDT helps make healthier, more comfortable homes.

Then there's this product. It launched on television in 1984. It's for a device that debones fish. It feels like a Saturday Night Live parody ad, but it's real. Voiceover by celebrity Mike Rowe.

The commercial begins with three guys on a fishing trip, and it's time to clean the fish. Okay, who wants to clean and debone them? I'll do it. What gives? You want to do it?

Just wait till you see what I've got. It's the wonder boner. The wonder boner? Aw, you laugh. Now just watch.

Then he demonstrates how the wonder boner works quickly. Deboning fish in seconds. Why go through the hassle of deboning a fish the old fashioned way? When the wonder boner makes deboning fish this easy, every tackle box and every kitchen should have the wonderboner. Call 1803 103039 and order your wonderboner for only $19.95.

1803 103039. Call now. Get your wallets out, then get your gongs out.

Believe it or not, all these ads were deemed acceptable when they first appeared. There was no discernible pushback, no demands to yank them off the air. None were banned. It was a different time. Marshall McLuhan once said that advertisements were the cave art of the 20th century.

That is true. Look at the ads from any decade and you instantly get a sense of what was politically correct, what the current lingo was, what the latest fashions and most popular products were, and a sense of the prevailing attitudes. The fifties seemed to be the most offensive decade. In hindsight, the most sexist advertising doctors endorsing cigarettes babies in DDT ads. Then again, the eighties had the wonder boner.

Not every ad category has improved with time, but thankfully a lot have to quote another campaign from the past. We've come a long way, baby, when you're under the influence I'm Terry O'Reilly.

This episode was recorded in the Terrestream Airstream mobile recording studio producer Debbie O'Reilly, sound engineer Jeff Devine. Under the influence theme by Ari Posner and Ian Lefever. Tunes provided by APM Music. Follow me on social at Terry Oinfluence this podcast is powered by acast, and if you'd like to read next week's fun fact, just go to apostrophepodcasts CA and follow the prompts. See you next week.

Hi, this is Joe Bruno from Milton, Ontario. Fun fact Fred and Wilma Flinstone were the first animated married couple to share a bed together on television.

Debbie O'Reilly

Mom deserves the best and there's no better place to shop for Mother's Day than whole foods market. They're your destination for unbeatable savings. From premium gifts to show stopping flowers and irresistible desserts. Start by saving 33% with prime on all body care and candles. Then get a 15 stem bunch of tulips for just $9.99 each with prime.

Round out mom's menu with festive rose, irresistible berry, chantilly cake and more special treats. Come celebrate Mother's Day at Whole Foods Market. Want flexibility? Take yoga? Want flexibility with your health insurance?

Check out United Healthcare insurance plans underwritten by Golden Rule Insurance Company. They offer flexible, budget friendly medical, dental and vision coverage that may be right for you. More at, uh, one.com one eight hundredflowers.com is more than your birthday, anniversary, or just because. Gift giving destination we put our hearts into everything we do to help you celebrate all life's special occasions with friends and family, from our farmers and bakers, florists and makers. Everything from 1800 flowers is made with love every step of the way because we know that nothing is more important than delivering a smile.

To learn more, visit 1800 flowers.com acast. That's one eight hundredflowers.com acast. Need new glasses or want a fresh new style? Warby Parker has you covered. Glasses start at just $95, including anti reflective, scratch resistant prescription lenses that block 100% of uv rays.

Every frame's designed in house, with a huge selection of styles for every face shape. And with Warby Parker's free home try on program, you can order five pairs to try at home for free. Shipping is free both ways, too. Go to warbyparker.com covered to try five pairs of frames at home for free warbyparker.com covered.