Strangest Ads You've Seen

[jlam]

What are some of the strangest ads you've seen/heard, whether advertising a weird product or hitting a little too close to home? I just heard an ad for E-470 (yes, the eastern Denver bypass) on Spotify. I'd never seen a road ad before.

[hotdogPi]

This was on the radio, so I only heard it, but I've heard an Infiniti of Norwood and an Xfinity commercial consecutively.

Also consecutively, a Trump ad making claims that the ad immediately preceding it (for Nikki Haley) explicitly called false backed up by PolitiFact.

[Max Rockatansky]

Probably almost every Zima ad in the 1990s.  I was convinced that I had imagined or remembered something wrong until I saw some randomly on YouTube.

[vdeane]

Anyone remember the book 55 Ways to Have Fun with Google?  The chapter on Google Ads Gone Wrong has some interesting ones.

Mars Rover Insurance
Sexy Syphilitic Singles
Ebay: Discount Dead Pets, New and Used Jerusalem Israel

[bandit957]

Around 1982, there was a weird commersh for Perkins restaurants. The ad showed a little girl sitting in a kitchen of a home talking about a souvenir glass Perkins was offering. At the end of the ad, she is seen walking on a sidewalk in front of the house, and she tripped and fell. She dropped the glass on the pavement, shattering it. I've never been able to find this on YouTube.

[gonealookin]

It's Reno...so we have divorce attorneys, with duct tape.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3U-X6aG2NgA

[epzik8]

Any Wendy's ad this decade.

[Henry]

On TV, I've seen ads for Lexus and Alexa (of Amazon) played back-to-back.

[Molandfreak]

Any Wendy's ad this decade.

"Bad boys, whatcha gonna do? Whatcha gonna do when we bring your food?"

[TheHighwayMan3561]

The pandemic-era Bud Light ad with the cardboard cutout New York Giants fan was creepy as hell.

I've probably seen thousands of ads as a sports fan, so it's tough to single out particularly grotesque ones.

Oh, I remember one. Early 2010s I think, I forgot precisely what the ad was for (I think it was some kind of phone directory service) a woman taking a bath while sweage and poop is pumping into the tub and she has no idea because she's wearing an eye mask.

[bandit957]

The pandemic-era Bud Light ad with the cardboard cutout New York Giants fan was creepy as hell.

I've probably seen thousands of ads as a sports fan, so it's tough to single out particularly grotesque ones.

Oh, I remember one. Early 2010s I think, I forgot precisely what the ad was for (I think it was some kind of phone directory service) a woman taking a bath while sweage and poop is pumping into the tub and she has no idea because she's wearing an eye mask.

About 25 years ago, there was a beer commersh that prompted a big protest. It consisted of a woman gossiping about something in a bar, and the man takes a big swig of beer, and then the voice of the sports announcer on the TV replaces the woman's voice.

[Mr_Northside]

Any Wendy's ad this decade.

Over the last few years, it seems they're really trying to sell the packaging much more than the food.  They really like the word "bag".

[Molandfreak]

I know you aren't supposed to think about it this much, but I've always wondered about the logistics of a cheese wheel writing a note and taping it to the doctor's back.

[Takumi]

Any Wendy's ad this decade.

Over the last few years, it seems they're really trying to sell the packaging much more than the food.  They really like the word "bag".

They also have different kinds of weird on different platforms. Their schtick on Facebook is imitating technologically illiterate Facebook boomers, and on X, formerly known as Twitter*, they do a lot of roast/snark posts.

I had to do that just once.

[CNGL-Leudimin]

This one from the German supermarket chain Netto Marken-Discount:
https://youtu.be/iNtYHswzFzM?si=HB8Swr0UL0We3SMF