Posted on 01/10/2025 8:17:49 PM PST by Morgana
I wonder what was "patient zero" of that cultural trend.
I do remember beginning to notice it when I was very young, a teenager. Maybe in 1971.
The earliest example I can remember was the "Mona!" commercials for Right Guard, starring Chuck McCann and Bill Fiore. As far as I can determine, those started in 1971, which was also the first year of the American Tourister "Gorilla" commercials.
In 1971, the "feminist movement" had begun to pick up steam.
But I have the feeling that the first "white male chump" commercials started a little before that.
Helen Reddy's song I Am Woman was originally recorded in 1971, but wasn't released until May 1972.
Hit TV show All In The Family commenced broadcasting on CBS in January, 1971.
I do remember beginning to notice it when I was very young, a teenager. Maybe in 1971.
Goes all the way back to The Honeymooners.
Well, true. But that was a comedy show. And Jackie Gleason was so lovable in other ways that the "white male chump" message was softened.
But the use of "white male chump" characters in advertising was a another step down the path. There, advertisers actually spent their own money to get on the bandwagon, using the concept to appeal to female shoppers.
I mean, I'm not an expert on things that were happening in media before I was born, but wasn't Fibber McGee and Molly kind of a white male chump show?
Oh! Maybe I got it!
The "Mr. Whipple" commercials for Charmin started in 1964! And wasn't The Jack Benny Show (on the radio) a twist on the "white male chump" theme, with Gracie appearing to be a ding-a-ling, but actually she was much smarter than Jack, and showed him up with her clever-by-being-dumb act?
I don't know. It's a somewhat interesting topic, to me anyway. How it developed, in the context of historical events and trends.
Or does Google have a "cringe commercials" category.
How To Murder Your Wife (starring Jack Lemmon and Verna Lisi) came out in 1965. That's a search term I didn't enter into Google.
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