Posted on 06/08/2009 12:57:12 PM PDT by presidio9
The Spot: Two guys walk into a store that sells insurance services from Progressive. The first guy says he needs to save some money on his auto insurance—things have gotten so dire that he was forced to sell his watch to the other guy. After the clerk finds a lower coverage rate, she suggests that the first guy will now be able to buy his watch back. "Not for sale," says the second guy. "That's cold," says the clerk.
Are they or aren't they? There's been chatter on the Web, and in YouTube comments, about whether the two guys in this Progressive commercial are supposed to be a couple. The evidence is thin but as best I can tell consists of the following elements:
The tall guy's speech and mannerisms seem to be tripping a lot of folks' gaydar. Something in the way the men look at each other—close together, face-to-face—suggests they're not just hetero buddies. When the clerk asks if money's been tight, she looks back and forth between the two guys as though she's assuming they're a joint entity. The clincher: The shorter guy appears to be wearing a rainbow T-shirt beneath his blazer. Ads featuring gay characters are exceedingly rare, bordering on nonexistent, when it comes to mainstream network television. (It may be indicative that GLAAD's Commercial Closet, a repository of gay-themed ads, includes several spots that are merely "gay vague"—for instance, this Bud ad in which a guy rehearses his marriage proposal while kneeling before a male friend.) Perhaps this Progressive ad was designed to split the difference: subtly winking at the gay community while making no definitive statement on the characters' sexuality.
It's worth remembering that Progressive has a famously nontraditional corporate culture. The
(Excerpt) Read more at slate.com ...
As you're relatively new here, I'm guessing nobody has told you about subheadings, or the space restrictions they impose. But thanks for noticing all the same.
The Quizno’s add is an obvious reference to HAL 9000. Come to think of it, HAL sounded kind of gay too.
I think it comes from the fact that Kubrick wanted the computer to sound a bit child like. I’m pretty sure an honest psychologist would say that’s what the gay lisp/accent is all about too. I won’t to begin to venture a guess why.
On the face of it, yes. But the "joke" of the add was fag all the way.
Sorry, don’t see it. I can see how one could come to the conclusion that the two men are gay, but not that they are a couple.
I thought that this commercial was worse than the Burger King’s “Baby’s Got Back” commercial.
I have a feeling that the democratically controlled media, and their advertising arms, who are now under the control of GEN X (not baby boomers anymore), as well as having their heads up their asses as to marketing, also have a hatred for White Males, and I have this feeling that the only way that they can convince themselves to use White Males in their commercials anymore is to MAKE THEM GAY or seem gay. I also have this theory that a good part of the current economic crisis relates to poor marketing, and this new crop of Madison Avenue advertisment crafters have their heads where the sun don’t shine. So much advertising anymore is setting up these LSD like hallucenation advertisements where crap happens that would NEVER happen in real life. ADVERTISE THE DAMN PRODUCT and leave all the other cartoon caricatures and phoney crap out of it.
Mine either. Can't guys be friends anymore? I think Seth at Slate needs to calibrate his Gaydar.
Wait a minute. His name is "Seth" and he works at Slate? Beep Beep Beep!
Nice face....
Mitch Baker, the new watch owner from the commercial was on my podcast to discuss the commercial and everything that went on. Check it out! http://www.heckyespodcast.com/2009/06/22/episode-6-mitch-baker/
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