just for the WHAT of it

[spatch]

While I am not an expert in the field of Making Commercials and I certainly didn't take the advanced courses in Making Good Commercials, I am reasonably sure that the commercial creation process involves a lot of eyes and ears belonging to discerning people who, at any time, could notice something slightly amiss with an ad and tell the ad men "You know, it just isn't right. Let's try something else."

However, I'm pretty sure I'm wrong with that theory because if it really were the case, then obviously the world would never have known this inscrutable TV ad for International House of Pancakes -- or, as you'll hear the robot chipmunk sing, IN-TER NASH-UHNUL HOUSE-OF... PAN-CAKES, MMM-MMM-MMMMMM.

Don't ask why the robot chipmunk drops the beat (rather, ask why the intro doesn't bother giving the robot chipmunk the right beat) and don't ask if you can have a hit off the balloons that gaily fly about our central and peripheral vision, because it's clear the robot chipmunk isn't sharing. Don't worry, it wouldn't have made the washed-out food look any more appetizing (though wouldn't it be nice if chain restaurants still had dishes with ceramic chicken heads on top? Seriously, I would actually of my own volition do something crazy like suggest the Cheesecake Factory if I was guaranteed something served on a dish with a ceramic chicken head.)

If Raymond Scott was involved in the music, which is possible considering the bleepy bloopy sounds, someone did a pretty terrible hatchet job on the finished result. In all honesty, though, I'm sad we don't get commercials like this anymore because I've found myself oddly entertained by this exercise in ... whatever it is and would gladly watch it over TP-wiping bears any day.

And the IHOP A-frame style is still a serious ass-kicker. Take that, Denny's "Brady Bunch" Ranch!

Comments

[eustaciavye.livejournal.com]

*blink*

[antikythera.livejournal.com]

It also can't seem to say the 'it' in 'just for the fun of it'. That makes me think it really is a robot and not the guy who did Alvin's voice.

[mmcirvin.livejournal.com]

You can always tell a place that used to be an old IHOP. It's odd, though--new IHOPs don't look like that yet the old buildings are mostly still around, transmogrified into mom-and-pop restaurants with the same shape.

[thetathx1138.livejournal.com]

the fuck what can't I going on is understand

[tansu.livejournal.com]

what am go on here?

[mhaille.livejournal.com]

I was superimposing "last of the famous international playboys" on top of it in my head.
It's way better that way!

[pantsie.livejournal.com]

Sounds like that music was beaming in from Telstar 1.
It's working, though, I want pancakes and balloons...

[gee-tar.livejournal.com]

Apparently, someone slowed the video down in an attempt to identify the voice. I'm not sure if we're successful, aside from getting perhaps an even more trippy commercial.

[scholargipsy.livejournal.com]

That ad almost made me Danny-Kaye my coffee. And is it just me, or does it look like an ad for the IHOP in the Village from The Prisoner, what with all the balloons and trippy proto-electronica?

[babs-the-nymph.livejournal.com]

Dateline: 1969. Everyone was on drugs back then. EVERYONE. This is the only way this can be explained. The head of advertising decided to put the hippie on that campaign, just to fuck with old Rutherford, the rep for the IHOP folks. Everyone hated that guy.

I love how the portions are about 1/4 of what IHOP serves these days. I was at an IHOP a few weeks ago and got a stack of whole wheat n' nut pancakes (highly recommended - holy crap nom) and there were about 40x the amount of pancake any normal human could consume. Well, except for Janric, who finished his meal and then mine. That man has a spare stomach in his leg.

I also love how mom gets a small salad while everyone else gets high-calorie stuff. Ahh gender separation in the 60s...