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 ...
I prefer the cavemen. We know they’re not gay.
I find slightly psycotic and overly made up women extremely attractive. Rose on "Two-an-a-Half-Men", Flo, that medtech on NCIS. Yeooowh!
"Ghost woman says, "Saved yourself some money. so, buy a new outfit. Go out and meet a man. Or woman. I don't judge."
And it's being shown morning, noon, and night in Tampa area.
Nah, it's the phytoestrogens from the soy in all our processed foods. Soy is the worst thing a man can eat all the time, and male babies raised on soy foods are the worst victims. It's not the only problem, but is part of the feminization of our young men.
Actually, it's not really a rainbow. The stripes go: red-yellow-blue-purple-green, with no orange. A faggot looking to make a statement wouldn't make that mistake, but I'm not suprised you did. The way the shirt looks is intentional. It is one of several examples of plausible deniability. Most of the people who create these sorts of ads are pretty smart. They wanted people who watched this one to wonder if these guys were gay. But as the article points out, couples don't make each other sell their watches.
I find slightly psycotic and overly made up women extremely attractive...
slightly psychotic...
LOL!
The kinda girl that would make Lorena Bobbit look like a piker!!
dunno bout that. i’ve never seen the cavemen with a cavelady.
Never crossed my mind when I have seen it. And it still doesn’t. Interesting that a liberal mag would publish an article like this.
Watch all the commercials and see if you think that “African hypen American’s” are over represented as a percentage of the population in commercials on TV.
When is the last time you saw an ad on TV that DIDN'T have a black American in it? And in what form or position or role do they play in these commercials?
Notice how white males are taking a back seat in these commercials and how often they are portrayed as helpless, hapless buffoons and are frequently if not always, objects of ridicule or scorn.
Can you show a black American in any kind of subservient position or role? I don't think so. You wouldn't dare. Al and Jesse would be warming up their private jets and be all over you in a flash.
Remember the WAMU commercial with the young black man leading a corral full of evil white capitalist bankers around? Reverse this and put a corral full of black men being led around by a white guy. Would the fecal matter hit the fan over this in an instant NY second or what?
It's “1984” + and you can't tell the truth anymore. If you do, you're a racist or fascist.
They could be brothers, friends, or coworkers.
One of the secrets of advertising is that often you make the characters ambiguous enough that it allows the viewer to see what they want in it. Normally, it has the viewer see themselves in the situation, but in other cases, it doesn’t work this way and you see what you expect. It is kind of like when you buy a car, you suddenly see that car everywhere. If you have gay on the mind, you see gay everywhere.
That lizard belongs on a barbie somewhere..
You do know, of course, when you see an ad liberally sprinkled with people/animals who have fake English accents, the target audience is people who live in trailer parks!
Cause it sounds so prim and official and hoity-toity!!!
Who gives a ratts ass.
LOL.
Well,, ive never taken a friend with me to go buy insurance.
Actually, there was a commercial where they were at a cave-party, and there were cave-babes there.
But the Geico guys couldn’t get into it... they had...
issues.
Now you’ve ruined it! :(
dunno bout that. i’ve never seen the cavemen with a cavelady.
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