Retro Reminiscing Video and Pictures - Do You Remember - Page 13 of 58 - online community focused on sharing and reminiscing about video, audio, and images that stir our memories of the past - old television, theme songs, commercials, print advertisements, the sights and sounds you remember

Professionally Speaking, Meet the Ajax Man

We just told you about Madge the Manicurist. How about our favorite, or possibly only, professional dishwasher?

Actor Eugene Roche became television’s Ajax Man in the early 1970s, playing a no-nonsense restaurant dishwasher who knew exactly how to make greasy dishes “squeaky clean.” After washing a plate with Ajax dishwashing liquid, he would run his fingers across it to produce that memorable squeak.

His familiar sales pitch was, “Professionally speaking, you’ve got to try Ajax.” Roche’s everyday appearance and serious delivery made him seem like a genuine restaurant employee offering advice from years behind the sink.

Colgate-Palmolive ran the campaign through the Norman, Craig & Kummel advertising agency. Roche appeared as the Ajax Man from around 1971 through at least 1977, making him one of the decade’s most familiar commercial characters.

Roche later became a successful character actor, appearing as Pinky Peterson on All in the Family and Luther Gillis on Magnum, P.I.

Do you remember the Ajax Man making that plate squeak?

Madge and the Palmolive Soak

Madge worked at the fictional Salon East Beauty Parlor, where nearly every manicure ended with the same surprise. After listening to a customer complain about dry or rough hands, Madge would calmly reveal that her fingers were already soaking in Palmolive dishwashing liquid.

The famous line, “You’re soaking in it,” first became part of the campaign in 1966. Actress Jan Miner’s perfect delivery helped turn a simple product demonstration into one of television advertising’s most recognizable catchphrases.

Madge became so well known that A&W later parodied the commercials. Instead of Palmolive, she soaked her hand in a mug of root beer, proving just how deeply the character had become part of popular culture.

Did anyone ever try soaking their own hands in Palmolive after watching Madge?

Petula Clark and the Plymouth Beat

At 93 years old and a grandmother of two, Petula Clark was cooler in this Plymouth commercial than most kids could ever hope to be today. Surrounded by sports cars, psychedelic colors and a swinging band, she turned a simple automobile ad into a full-blown 1960s pop performance.

The 1967 commercial promoted Plymouth’s 1968 lineup, including the Fury III convertible. Clark sang specially rewritten lyrics to “The Beat Goes On,” the song written and produced by Sonny Bono and made famous by Sonny and Cher earlier that year.

Plymouth used the familiar tune as part of its “Plymouth Is Out to Win You Over” campaign. The slogan was created by copywriter Jim Ramsey for the Young & Rubicam advertising agency. Clark also appeared in longer Plymouth presentations featuring models such as the Barracuda, GTX and the new Road Runner.

The musicians appearing beside Clark were not credited and remain unidentified, but I’m certain our audience will pick out a couple of them. They were likely hired performers miming to a prerecorded studio track, but they helped give the commercial the look of a colorful television variety show.

Chrysler’s relationship with Clark later became part of television history. The company sponsored her 1968 NBC special, where she touched Harry Belafonte’s arm during a duet. A Plymouth executive objected to the interracial contact, but Clark and the show’s producers refused to remove the scene.

Petula Clark already had major American hits including “Downtown,” “My Love” and “Don’t Sleep in the Subway,” making her an ideal spokeswoman for Plymouth. She did not merely stand beside the car and read a sales pitch. She made Plymouth look young, stylish and part of the changing beat of the late 1960s.

Don’t Squeeze the Charmin Fun Facts

Beginning in 1964, shoppers were repeatedly warned, “Please don’t squeeze the Charmin!” The commercials followed grocery store manager Mr. Whipple as he tried to stop customers from squeezing the soft toilet paper, even though he could rarely resist squeezing it himself.

Copywriter John Chervokas created Mr. Whipple for the Benton & Bowles advertising agency after noticing shoppers squeezing produce such as tomatoes and melons. Actor Dick Wilson brought the character to life in more than 500 commercials, making Mr. Whipple one of the most recognizable advertising personalities in America.

The first Mr. Whipple commercial was fittingly filmed in Flushing, New York. In a 1978 survey, Mr. Whipple was reportedly ranked as the third-best-known person in America, behind Richard Nixon and Billy Graham.

The original campaign ended in 1985, but Dick Wilson returned when Charmin revived Mr. Whipple in 1999. Another lesser-known connection came later when future MythBusters host Adam Savage appeared as Mr. Whipple’s stock boy, Jimmy, in several commercials.

Wilson also appeared in television shows including Bewitched, Hogan’s Heroes and The Bob Newhart Show, but Mr. Whipple remained his most famous role.

Did you ever squeeze the Charmin when nobody was looking?

First Walk On The Moon

I remember watching Neil Armstrong take his first step on the Moon at 10:56 p.m. Eastern time on Sunday, July 20, 1969. We sat there filled with excitement and anticipation, knowing we were watching history unfold right before our eyes.

Even now, I can still picture our living room, the furniture and exactly where I was sitting. Technically, it was 10:56 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, since daylight saving time was in effect, but the technical details did not matter that night. It was history, and I remember it like it was yesterday.

Where were you when Neil Armstrong walked on the Moon? Now please pass the tang!

Hey, Kool-Aid!

Two thirsty kids call for Kool-Aid, and suddenly a giant smiling pitcher comes charging through the park barrier to save the day. This mid-1970s commercial used the wonderfully ridiculous formula that made Kool-Aid Man one of advertising’s most unforgettable characters.

Kool-Aid’s story began in 1927 when Edwin Perkins turned his bottled drink concentrate, Fruit Smack, into an easier-to-ship powder called Kool-Ade. The spelling was later changed to Kool-Aid.

The smiling pitcher mascot was created in 1954 by advertising art director Marvin Potts, who was reportedly inspired by his son drawing faces on a frosted window. In 1974, Grey Advertising’s Alan Kupchick and Harold Karp gave the pitcher arms, legs and a larger-than-life personality, creating the Kool-Aid Man seen crashing through walls, fences and nearly anything else in his way. The exact person who first suggested the crash-through entrance is not firmly documented, but the famous campaign came from Grey Advertising.

The exact songwriter for this particular commercial is not clearly credited. However, commercial jingle writer and producer Richard Berg provided Kool-Aid Man’s original voice, including that unforgettable “Oh, yeah!”

Did you ever shout “Hey, Kool-Aid!” and secretly hope he would come crashing through your fence?

The Invaders

Architect David Vincent took a wrong turn one night and discovered something terrifying: aliens were already living among us. That discovery launched The Invaders, an eerie ABC science-fiction series starring Roy Thinnes that began in 1967.

The aliens looked human, but a stiff, crooked little finger could sometimes reveal their true identity. They had no pulse, could not bleed and glowed red before disintegrating when killed, destroying any proof Vincent found.

My mom and I used to watch this show together. Seeing it again brings her back to life, even for just a moment, and reminds me how television shows can become tied to some of our most treasured memories.

Produced by Quinn Martin, the man behind The Fugitive, the series followed Vincent as he tried to convince a skeptical world that the invasion was real. With its haunting Dominic Frontiere theme and constant feeling of paranoia, The Invaders became one of the most memorable science-fiction shows of the 1960s.

Did you watch The Invaders, and does an old television show ever bring someone special back to you for a moment?

Quisp Cereal

What other cereal commercial could turn a giant ball of space yarn into an 87-mile-long necktie? This Quisp ad feels more like a miniature Saturday morning cartoon than a commercial, with Quisp flying through space to deliver cereal before encountering a very “knotty” problem.

Quisp was not just a cereal mascot. He was the Crown Prince of Planet Q, and the propeller on his head allowed him to fly through space. He occasionally traveled with a furry sidekick named Quunchy and competed against Quake, a musclebound miner voiced by Cannon star William Conrad.

Quaker Oats introduced Quisp in 1965, with crunchy corn pieces shaped like flying saucers. The commercials were produced by Jay Ward, creator of Rocky and Bullwinkle, which explains their fast jokes, wild characters and cartoon-style adventures. Daws Butler, also famous as the voice of Yogi Bear, provided Quisp’s voice.

Quisp never starred in a regular cartoon series, but its animated commercials often appeared during children’s programming and became almost as memorable as the shows they sponsored. The cereal disappeared and returned several times over the decades before Quaker discontinued it again around 2024.

Do you remember eating Quisp, or were the crazy commercials more memorable than the cereal?

The Great Grape Ape

Somehow, this cartoon completely escaped my memory, so I’m counting on your memories for this one!

The Great Grape Ape Show debuted in 1975 and followed a friendly, 40-foot-tall purple gorilla who traveled with his small canine friend, Beegle Beagle. Beegle drove their tiny yellow van while Grape Ape rode on top, usually causing confusion wherever they went.

Grape Ape was known for repeating “Grape Ape, Grape Ape!” and calling his friend “Beegly Beagly.” The cartoon originally aired as part of The New Tom and Jerry/Grape Ape Show on Saturday mornings.

Did you watch The Great Grape Ape, and what do you remember most about it?

George Plimpton Sells Intellivision

Mattel chose writer George Plimpton to promote Intellivision because he brought both intelligence and sports credibility to the commercials. Plimpton was known for joining professional athletes and writing about the experience, so he was a natural choice to explain why Intellivision’s sports games looked and played more realistically than Atari’s.

The ads often placed both systems side by side, allowing Plimpton to calmly point out the differences in graphics and gameplay. His serious, almost professor-like delivery made the comparison funnier and helped Intellivision position itself as the smarter video game system.

Do you remember these commercials, and did George Plimpton convince you that Intellivision was better than Atari?