people under 23, you're just going to have to take my word on this one, it's GOLD

[spatch]

HEY!
You say you're getting tired of lettuce and tomato hamburgers in this town that don't quite make it?

Well, here's an obstensibly coked-up Jason Alexander to the rescue, touting McDonald's NEW McDLT, where the hot -- *snap snap!* -- stays hot, and the cool -- *snap snap!* -- stays cool!

Try one today with a refreshing New Coke!

Comments

[glowkitty]

Hooray, disturbingness!

[tylerpistol.livejournal.com]

If they brought back the McDLT, I'd seriously break my three year McDonalds exile. That was the best burger they ever made. If they brought back Shamrock Shakes, I'd be a regular customer.

[toonhead-npl.livejournal.com]

Geez for a minute I thought you were going to tell me it was back.

I didn't know George there was in the commercial -- who knew who he was back then?

I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[ivorjawa.livejournal.com]

[spatch]

Well, he was a Broadway figure starting around the mid-80s (heck, he won a Tony in 1989 for Jerome Robbins' Broadway) so I'm kinda hoping that really is him singing in the ad, considering the singing voice has got the mark of a Professional Dynamic Jingle Singer all over it.

Re: I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[glowkitty]

AWESOME.

[ivorjawa.livejournal.com]

Now if only you could get Bill Cosby pimping Coke Blak, that would be something.

[off_coloratura]

Oh. My. God.

It was such a great idea, but OH how it was mocked.

And who on earth calls them "lettuce and tomato hamburgers"?!

Re: I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[ivorjawa.livejournal.com]

How ya' gonna' do it?
PS/2 It!
It's as easy as I.B.M.

How ya' gonna' do it?
PS/2 It!
The solution is I.B.M.

unfortunately, youtube yielded no love for that particular commercial

Re: I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[glowkitty]

Oh man, I remember that one. My husband still had his PS/2 in college, and any time I looked at it I got that stupid ad in my head. (Sadly, it died for good a few years ago, and we took it to the trash heap.)

[glowkitty]

I dunno, around here "vegetable hamburger" is pretty commonly used to describe the same thing, except with pickles and onions as well. But any more I don't know if they mean "beef patty with vegetables on it" or "Boca burger." Given it's shit-town Iowa that I usually see the description, it's pretty safe to assume the former.

Re: I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[ivorjawa.livejournal.com]

I hope you still have the keyboard.

When the nuclear war comes, all that will be left are cockroaches and IBM Model M keyboards.

Re: I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[glowkitty]

...actually, I think we DO still have it. It may or may not even be up here right now, considering the large amount of piecemealing of crappy old computers we have been doing lately.

Re: I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[spatch]

My Model M died a glorious death and by glorious I mean one day I went to type on it and it did nothing.

TEARS, I tell you.
TEARS.

But my DEC keyboard I swiped from Compaq is still going strong.

Re: I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[ivorjawa.livejournal.com]

Dude. PC Keyboard Dot Com.
They bought the patents from IBM. I have a brand new Model M with a USB connector that I use with my mac at work.

[muse0fire.livejournal.com]

Oh god. The flashbacks those clothes provoke.

And hey! Jason Alexander had hair! Who knew?

Re: I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[spatch]

File under "Way, No F'n."

Re: I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[toonhead-npl.livejournal.com]

wait was that the one with the cast of M*A*S*H?

[mrscake.livejournal.com]

Those *were* good, and I liked the Shamrock shakes too!

[annilita.livejournal.com]

So, YouTube is down right now for scheduled whoosies and whatsies. But just your post alone sparked a memory of the entire commercial in my brain.

I'm not sure where else it could have been sparked, really, but I'm very disturbed that I can remember the entire commercial all of the sudden. What other pop culture wonders are hiding in there?

Re: I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[spatch]

Alan Alda shilled for Atari home computers, if I'm not mistaken.

And George Plimpton, of all people, made ads for Intellivision.

[dogofthefuture.livejournal.com]

Seriously, what the hell did we do before YouTube? It was only, like, a year ago. And yet it is now an important part of my life.

[fancycwabs.livejournal.com]

I completely agree. Except for the Shamrock Shakes bit--as I've never had one.

[fancycwabs.livejournal.com]

That sounds quite a bit like his singing voice in the made-for-TV version of Bye Bye Birdie a couple of years back.

Re: I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[fancycwabs.livejournal.com]

I am reminded of this homage to the George Plimpton ads. I ran into George (and James Elroy, among others) at a book street fair in New York, but didn't say anything beyond "hi." A mutual friend (who was an associate editor on The Paris Review and knew Plimpton from the founding days) told me I should have instructed Plimpton to kiss my ass.

[hemlock-martini.livejournal.com]

ARRRRGH THE BRIGHT PASTEL COLORS OH JESUS MY EYES THEYS BLEEDIN

[amandaruth2001.livejournal.com]

I wonder if this ad (so clearly inspired by West Side Story, which seems to pop up whenever hot! and cool! are juxtaposed) was the inspiration for the Gap West Side Story series of ads from a couple of years ago.

And it should be no surprise that I WAS A SUCKER FOR THAT EXCESSIVE NON-BIODEGRADABLE STYROFOAM McDLT PACKAGING. It was my first "big" burger at McDonald's.

Re: I see your Dr. Cosby and raise you Captain Kirk pimping the VIC-20

[zhym.livejournal.com]

Absolutely awesome: brand new Model M clicky keyboards on USB. I thought they were the same folks who made the original for IBM way back when, though.

(This comment typed on an IBM Model M, built 17DEC88, made in the USA. When the revolution comes, this keyboard can also serve as weapon and/or shield.)

[zhym.livejournal.com]

If anyone ever doubts that the '80s were chock full of people doing cocaine, all we have to do is show them a few commercials of hyper people dancing in the streets, signing about a burger or a beverage.

[scout1222.livejournal.com]

Huh. I didn't know that. But that's a good thing, because my only other thought was that he got the Seinfeld gig because of this commercial. Which I just couldn't fathom.

[kalliejenn2.livejournal.com]

is that the dog from duck hunter?

[spatch]

Yes, yes it is.

And I never wanted so badly to shoot a videogame character as I did that smug, smirking dog.

[spatch]

It would have been so awesome if the Hot Stays Hot side and the Cool Stays Cool side had a choreographed knife fight. But I guess that was axed from the final version due to budget constraints, or something.

I have to say that as a kid, I too liked the horrible horrible styrofoam packaging McDonald's used in the 80s. Mostly because once you were done with your burger or your McNuggets or whatever, you could stick your straw in the little hole where the box latched shut and, hey presto, you had an instant tank ready for army battles! VRRRRRMMMMM PCHEW PCHEW PCHEW

erin go blah

[spatch]

The best thing about the Shamrock Shakes, besides the fact that they came in a most unnatural shade of green, was that they'd also bring out Uncle O'Grimacey, the Irish uncle of Grimace.

Hello and yes, amorphous green vaguely Irish blob-thing with meerschaum pipe! I will gladly partake of your unnaturally green-colored beverage that tastes like, uh, Shamrocks! Whee!

[limax.livejournal.com]

I was working for McDonald's when those were introduced. They were a lot of fun to make... and yes, we made them on the quarter pounder grill.