My Nana’s favorite series has everything you could want from a television show: fascinating characters, riveting plots of revenge, tear-jerking speeches, and heartwarming reconciliations — all with limited commercial interruption. Despite its numerous attributes, though, I’d bet that very few people are familiar with my Nana’s must watch of the week. It’s called The Televised Town Meeting (live…from Sebastian, FL!).
Forget that cheerleader cutting off her toe and Dancing With the Stars’ results segments. You want a real nail-biter? In latest episode of TTTM, the annual three-day Sebastian Lagoon Clambake Festival was unceremoniously canceled — thanks to ”a group of citizens against everything,”quipped one council member — and things got so heated, an anti-clambake lobbyist was ejected (mid-argument) from the meeting! (No, I’m not making this up — click here for the lowdown.) Coming up on future episodes, anattorney has been hired to represent the Sebastian Clambake Foundation, and more fallout from the "clambake catastrophe" is expected. Set your DVRs!
Hearing about my Nana’s obsession with TTTM got me wondering: What are you watching these days that might not really considered a television show? Personally, I cannot get enough of infomercials for knives and blenders.
I love Ginsu knives and I love watching them cut through aluminmbeverage cans and automotive radiator hoses. I’ve never needed to chopup an aluminum beverage can and I’m not exactly sure what an automotiveradiator hose is, but I feel very satisfied knowing I could cut througheach, effortlessly. But wait, there’s more! I could take a hammer andbeat my Ginsu knife and it would still work perfectly. Again, why I’dbeat a knife with a hammer is inconsequential. I just like knowing thatmy knife would beat your hammer, and it would still be able to cutpaper-thin slices of a tomato. And as for those Magic Bulletblenders, don’t even get me started.
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Every weekend I have to tune in for at least a half hour of “Book TV” on C-SPAN2. No matter what author/book they happen to be featuring I always get hooked. Sometimes I’m treated to a lovely surprise, like the time I tuned in and had the pleasure of listening to Nick Hornby discuss his writing methods and his (at the time) upcoming release “A Long Way Down.” They mostly only feature non-fiction books though so it can be hit or miss sometimes, but I did enjoy listening to Walter Isaacson discuss his newest book “Einstein: His Life and Universe” this past weekend. Oh, and coming up this Saturday? Garry Kasparov discusses his book “How Life Imitates Chess!” Sounds like it’ll be a thrill a minute!
Thank you for mentioning the Magic Bullet! I think I watch that every week. Long live Hazel!
This the television equivelent of only cockroaches surviving an atomic blast. I’m needing my new Daily Show fix bad, man!
I always love it when I see actors I recognize hamming it up for the camera in one of these informercials, like the Mom from Phil of the Future in the Rug Doctor commercials. The steam shark commercial was kind of cool, but I detest the oxyclean guy. Sometimes I like to watch the TimeLife music collection commercials because they play the best bits of the best songs in a genre.
Oh, dear Lord, the Magic Bullet. A friend actually bought one about a year ago, and I had quite a good time laughing at her after I saw the infomercial. But then she made hummus with her Magic Bullet… and damn if I didn’t consider going out right then and there and buying one. Except that I have just too much pride for that.
every time I see that xpress 101 infomercial I have to watch it. I guess I’m fascinated by the stuffed soup. And I actually bought a magic bullet.The recipes on that infomercial lured me in and the only thing I ever made in that is margaritas.
Infomercials have been around for a very long time. My favorite Infomercial parody has to be Dan Aakroyd’s “Bass-O Matic-300″.
Is it just me or is one of the breakfast “guests” during the Magic Bullet infomercial smoking? I’ve watched it five times now and I swear she’s got a cig in her mouth.
I too have a weakness for infomericals and I’ve had to restrain myself to keep from ordering the Xpress 101.
Oh my God – I’ve watched the Magic Bullit infomercial at least 20 times!
And yes – the old lady in the house coat with the fizzy hair and glasses on a chain DOES in fact have a cigarette hanging out the corner of her mouth as she talks.( Her name is Hazel – dear lord they actually named her HAZEL as if the cliche wasn’t complete) It’s insane…and I’m pretty sure the reason I started watching the infomercial in the first place.
Gretchen, I’m right there with you on the blender thing. To wit, best website EVER:
http://www.willitblend.com/
I used to be obsessed with the Nads infomercial. I could not believe that ripping leg hair out at the roots didn’t hurt. So I would carefully analyze the models facials expressions to see the tiniest bit of pain. Once satisfied, I bought some. Man, did that hurt!
I love the Magic Bullet infomercial too!! the old lady with the cigerette i her mouth that isn’t even lit! The horrible acting! It’s a ball of wonderful!
Ames: Thanks for the trip down Nads Lane. Anything I can spread on my face that’s named after a 12 year old boy’s slang term for testicles is alright in my book!
I caught myself watching an infomercial for 20 minutes for some kind of magnetic clasp that makes it easy to put on necklaces and bracelets. Thankfully I was knocked out of my trance by a phone call. Otherwise I could’ve sat there for hours.
My all time favorite infomercial is the Magic Bullet. I love all the “characters” from the lady smoking a cigarette with too much make up on to the guy with the plaid sport coat on that looks like he’s still drunk. Also, love the main guy using the bullet with his wife and his British/Australian accent. You can’t get any better than that. I do an impression of that guy and it always get a laugh!
I absolutely love the infomercial for the Lauren Hutton Face Disc. I could spend days on end watching as Lauren go on about kabuki brushes, reduced blood flow to the face, and how she turned down 27 infomercials in the last 20 years. When she intones, “I made it myself, and I use it every day,” I get goosebumps. I still pine for her hormone replacement therapy commercial (“Knowledge is power; information is how you get it.”) and always look forward to her appearances on HSN. If there were a television network devoted entirely to Lauren Hutton ads and infomercials, I’d never want to leave home.
I used to live in Cambridge, Mass. As far as I could tell, their programming consists solely of a live feed from a video camera in the window of their storefront right off Mass Ave. I could sit there and watch people walk past it for minutes on end. It was mesmerizing, I’m not sure why
I have to say unlike everyone else whose comments basically rave about infomercials…I cant stand..my response is “Hated it”.. If you stay up late enough you can can see every product know to mankind. Do we really need to be bombarded with kitchen items that do everything accept lock your doors, or brooms that not only sweep but mop up spills?
Its gotten so bad that you really dont know what to purchase….and since christmas is 3 steps away they have up the ante…. No thanks…
Kraig Rasool
Fort Washington md
Dude, come down off your pedestal, or at least pull the stick outta your but before popwatching. Have some fun.
I have also watched the Magic Bullet informercial numerous times, mostly because it’s my sister’s all-time favorite show. She’s practically got the whole thing memorized. Then when she saw that Target had an “As Seen On TV” shelf and carried the Magic Bullet, she almost started crying, she was so happy. So of course, she bought one. It makes excellent guacamole.
Hey evie, represent! I’m from Cambridge, too.
Did you go to CRLS?
Hey evie, represent! I’m from Cambridge, too.
Did you go to CRLS?
…Then you must know those crappy low-budget furniture commercails. “Bernie and Phyls! Quality, comfort, and price!… That’s nice!”
I loved the one that was Jordan’s Furniture for a blood drive they were hosting so they showed the… Jordans…standing in front of this moving red background that looked like the blood cells from the Magic Schoolbus when they go inside that kid’s bloodstream.
Classy.
No informercials or local tv (though the snarky backbiting between news anchors on DC’s broadcasts are pretty funny), but there are a few tv commercials I love to watch over and over. Here’s my personal top 3:
#1: Fitness “celebrity” John Basedow’s “Fitness Made Simple” ads. These commercials are so embarrasingly bad and low budget that they’re trainwreck-tacular.
#2: “Eastern Motors” has commercials that beg to be watched over and over again. The cheesy hip hop song with the frequent guest stars get me every time. Best one? Lavar Arrington (Former Redskins player who’s ads were kept in local rotation after he got traded away).
#3: Empire Carpeting. I grew up near Chicago and watched a lot of WGN (they showed M.A.S.K, GI Joe and the Transformers cartoons after school), so that 588-2300 jingle was a permanent fixture for me. Now that they’ve gone national, I’ll sit back and watch their ads every time. Empire today, Carpeting tomorrow.
OMG 588-2300 EMPIRE!! That along with the Victory Auto Reckers commercials played ALL DAY over and over on WGN in Chicago. They still play that same cheesy commercial where the guy opens his door and it falls off, then calls Victory and gets cash for his busted up car.
It was spray on hair that had me transfixed. I kept trying to spot how it was obvious that it was a can of paint and not actual hair.
I’m one of those Magic Bullet lovers, so much so that I’ve even considered buying one, although I haven’t yet. I love that it’s like a really poorly acted and produced local community playhouse production. I also love weight-loss infomercials, especially Richard Simmons infomercials. I’ll also happily sit through any of those Time-Life music compilation infomercials, just to hear the snippets of favorite old songs.